"Out here in these streets…" we've been waiting patiently to hear that new Roots sound, and last night we got it, with a bang, on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, where ?uesto, Black Thought and crew debuted "How I Got Over," the first single and title track off their upcoming new ablum (How I Got Over, 10/20 on Def Jam). Watch the full performance here, featuring Dice Raw, a full brass section, Kamal and Poyser on keys, and Black Thought… singing! (And rapping, of course.) BT brings that Bobby Womack. We hear from the higher-ups that the song will be available for us all next week. You can also look forward to a video (supposedly dropping in July), and, DJs get ready, an exclusive 12 inch with "How I Got Over" on the A side, and a collectable "art sketch" on the B side. If you happened to see the full Fallon episode last night you also saw Okayplayer get that NBC shout out! Dap.
Featured Reviews
-
Jesse Futerman
Super Basement
Jus Like Music -
Gabriel Teodros
Colored People's Time Machine
Fresh Chopped Beats/MADK Productions -
Doomtree
No Kings
Doomtree Records -
The Black Opera
EnterMission
A-Side Worldwide -
Benny Sings
Art
Fat Beats and Dox Records -
Statik Selektah
Population Control
Showoff Records/Duck Down Music
-
Featured Videos
RRREEEEMIXXX (don’t expect those intro and outros on the studio version)
Ooooooohweeeee! Damn that’s fire. Vaugely reminds me of “The Seed” w/ Cody Chestnut…
Ummm…..So I guess the roots dont do hip hop anymore. That was easily the biggest musical dissapointment of the past year. That runined my day. Why do they play everything SO DAMN FAST nowadays? Even their old songs!
@KillaWatt: you are a fool.
It seems like the roots are tryna recreate that original PE and Marly Marl sound of sped-up intense beats and rhymes. However, at times it just sounds loud and incoherent. I know thats not the Philly vibe the Roots are known for. On a side note, Jimmy Fallon is soo corny and dense that he needs to be put out of his misery. He doesn’t seem comfortable at all and I cringe whenever I watch him.
WOW that was awsome, definatly feeling a little james brown in that… Disapointing?? Dude… would you like the to turn out all the stuff they did 10 years ago again,,, that aint progression,,, that aint hip hop.
i hope they keep the horns and the late 60′s feel to this track… FIRE
The roots stay grounded with good music, period.
beautiful…simply beautiful.
yeah, i miss hip hop. i’ve got mad respect for ?uesto/Tariq/etc but what happened after Things Fall Apart?
I think rappers who wanna be singers is the new rappers who wanna be actors.
And if they stayed the same everyone would complain that they’re recycling. Can never win….
Loved the song and the 60′s throw back. Can’t even imagine how great that’ll be live.
so an artist/group has to change genres in order to stay good/relevant?
nope.
3 words: De La Soul
btw, if you wanna talk recycling? this whole track is a james brown rip.
Not that great, i really hope i don’t have to hear that on the album
Honestly, man let them be. The roots comin with some funkyflyshit. I think there still relevant and there makin music not just music but good music. Hip Hop, Funk or 60′s soul who gives a shit, why put it in a genre, why label it. Its music. Gooooood Music. Fly Music.
I’ll admit first time i heard it i was slightly nervous on the lack of actual rapping on this song and not sure if I’d like it but after watching that live performance i really couldnt give a fuck. The Lengendary is BACK! I will always be a die hard fan of The Roots no matter which route they take.
They’ve been making music for 20 years strong and havent dissapointed me yet and after watching this video for the 5th time now, don’t expect them to anytime soon.
Fuck yes, cannot wait til october.
1. The instrumentation on this is SICK!
2. Black Thoughts vocal arrangements are crazy, (he should’ve been singing for years)
3. Black Thoughts verse he spit in the middle of the song was amazing as usual
4. The band two stepping and having fun, getting down together was fun to watch
OVERALL THIS SONG IS A 10 out of 10…. can’t wait for a video of this… go get Rik Cordero again for this video… This song will take their audience to the next level…
Questlove is a genius
Black thought is one of the goats
Poyser, Kammal, Kirk, and White dude (don’t know his name) on bass are on another level as far as musicians are concerned…
superdopeflyshit
yessirrrrrrrr!!! this shit is niiiiiiiice!!! come to friggin germany!!!
James Brown is in heaven with Bobby Byrd like ……NOW THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT. I have to even say I liked Dice Raw singing too. The band..incredible. Black Thought, the highest level of performance and emceeing (we always knew you had the Bobby Womack in you homie) Thank you for doing what you always do, raise the BAR!
The Roots have been heavy with the soul sound at The Jam, could see this coming and it is on point
im just glad the roots are still making good music. that was a great performance. cant wait!!!! love BT verse. DOPE
This shit is good. Keep up the good work
shit is smoking ? bt and dice? i didnt know that HOTTTTTT!
how black thought can change up his style and make it all work is crazy. he is still an under rated mc, man’s a beast.
DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPPPPPPPPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
Life Changing!!!!!
Just very good music. Love Love
okayhaters! damn!
THAT WAS CRAZY AS HELL
Thank you. I’ve been waiting years for the Roots to bring it like this. Way too much talent in that band NOT to do great things like this.
im a roots fan since 94 and im feeling this. glad to hear black thought singing again!
first, that song was unbelievable! can’t wait to hear the new album. wednesday’s my 13th Jam in a row. if they play this song, followed by I Can’t Understand It, I will gladly die a happy man. even if they don’t, I’ll get by fine thanks to the Roots’ music.
second, the bassist is owen biddle aka Oskie Love
third, haters are allowed to speak their mind but please allow me to retort: pull your head out of your ass then hit play again
ROOTS = SOUNDS DIVINE
COME VIBE;
KiN CAMELL(GOOGLE THAT)
PEACE TO YOU & YOURS
oh lord! thats what i’m talking about!
It’s just such a pleasure to see you guys continue to innovate. I think we are all glad that you are finally gettting this kind of platform to perform on. Fresh.
FINALLY.
Man this is so refreshing! A new sound that seems to embrace the past but move it forward. As a long time Roots fan I was worried about the last album (it didn’t seem as passionate) but this song and hopefully this album will move in a new direction.
First off let me say that I think the track is SERIOUS! The RC in one song showed just why they are so important. I like the old school James Brown soul feel. When BT spits in the middle it’s SICK and he proves once again why as a MC he has to be considered one of the best in the game.
My only concern is where did we fail Hip Hop? The was a De La Soul album called “Beats, Rhymes and Life.” What happened to that? Why do I have to hear all the singing on my Hip Hop albums? Can no one make a hook anymore that doen’t involve some R&B guest spot? What happened to the DJ scratching in a sick chorus? What happened to the choruses of the past that rocked live shows because we could all chant it out and fill the entire place up with our voices.
That has nothing to say about this particular ROOTS track. I think they have always been more progressive then you average Hip Hop but it just brings up an issue I have in general with my music. I’m tired of MC’s wanting to sing and singers wanting to rap. Stay in your place.
Alright I’m off my soap box. I look forward to “How We Got Over” and seeing TRC live because no one does it better!
Oooh, Steel! “Beats…” was put out by Tribe
this is sicky icky! two thumbs up roots crew.
First off Michael Jackson, forever baby!!!
The band is on fire on this track, incredible arrangement and playing.. Black Thought’s lyrics are so INSPIRING and UPLIFTING listen closely.. The Roots keep on ya’ll..
peace
Vante Soul
http://www.myspace.com/allstarmusicproductions
They’re fusing the live show with their original veins; brings me back to them tearing the roof off of Anaheim House of Blues with I Can Understand It. Thought: “How old are you? You ain’t gotta be 21 to get in here? Oh you just a Bayby BAyby BAYBY!”
The Roots evolve beautifully and this new joint is fire.
No one should expect these cats to be the same people they were one year, two years, three years ago. You got ta, I got ta, you got ta, I got ta…Can you understand it? I can understand it!
Thank the Lord! No matter what it is, The Roots bring it. It’s only right for a hip-hop band to display thier influences this way. It’s the best sample ever!!!
im surprised ,, this is the quality we need in todays hip hop !
wow. love it. support real hip hop!
i dig this song. I do like how the Roots changes formula from time to time. But it would be nice to hear some good ol jazz stuff again like in the days of illadelph halflife and do you want more?!!!??! Jazz/hip hop is my favorite kinda flavor.. chill music
This song is just great. The Roots last album, Rising Down, was a bit of a disappointment in my opinion, because they strayed from the jazzy/organic feel many other albums had. It’s good to see such an original song like “How I Got Over” remind me of the good ol’ roots.
Beef2Taco knows what i mean…My favorite work of the roots was the jazz stuff in illadelph, organix and do you want more.
It’s good to see that not ALL hip hop has been fixed towards electronica. The Roots never cease to amaze…this time they really delivered.
October is so far away….
I’m not going to jinx it; but you know… DOPE DOPE DOPE
http://www.hulu.com/watch/79552/late-night-with-jimmy-fallon-wed-jun-24-2009#x-0,vepisode,1
Blacks the shit!!!!
How could anyone say any diffrent.
Music is lookin at a good future!
Nice to see The Roots live experience coming through more in recorded work.
“embedding disabled by request” Link expire?
Be even better if UK heads could actually watch this
Love your music keep it up!!!!
ps did anyone hear them flip starz at like minute 30 that was tight good to hear some jaylib on nbc
Steel, actually, Beats, Rhymes & Life is a Tribe Called Quest album, not a De La album. . . hahaha. also Detroit, its pretty ignorant to say De La hasn’t changed. Are you going to tell me that 3 Feet High gives the same vibe as De La is Dead or Buhloone? Stakes Is High? What about Grind Date? It isn’t exactly old De La style to have an MF Doom feature, among other things. Yeah, I know you said “genres”, but the Roots are still making HIP-HOP. It don’t matter if they are drawing influences from jazz or soul, or doin’ their darker, synthesized thang like on these newer albums. It’s still Hip-Hop. Its all in the culture and vision. I for one dig it, just like I dig anything else the Roots crew has done or experimented with.
it’s gooooooone….
http://vodpod.com/watch/1807260-the-roots-how-i-got-over-2009
…. I need that old that old Roots feel. The first albums feel…
The band was funky, the lyrics were meaningful, and the vocals were soulful. This video was the definition of cool. Overall, the presentation is reminiscent of Edgar Winter’s “Dying to Live” and Stevie Wonder’s “Livin’ in the City.”
To be blatantly honest, the Roots are of urban cities FINEST. This song is sick!
The true artists are not afraid of changing and trying out something new. That’s how keep them shine. that’s how The roots crew work! I just came back from The Roots live in tokyo. their show is almost like rocknroll concert. that was the experience. Their energy haven’t changed.
lawd of mercy!!!
This has Quality. Attention Hip Hoppers: Learn Something
djl u got it in one. In the UK we’re just grabbing at scraps of whatever Fallon show performances are dropped to us from the US’ table. We wanna eat too!
They need to make the show available over here!
ohhh ma god!!! – is there a better drum than ?uesto??? dats killed me….SOOOOO HOT!!!
once again, the roots do teh impossible and top themselves. Great track, great music, superior in every way to trap music and gimmicky swag rappers
my love continues
The RC in one song showed just why they are so important. I like the old school James Brown soul feel.