Like Dover, Delaware’s Firefly Festival in May and West Philly’s Porchfest in June, the date for The Roots annual Picnic with Meek Mill – like last year, set within the stages and bucolic land space of the Mann Music Center at Fairmount Park – has been postponed until August 1 to suit the mess (and the social distancing) of COVID-19.
dosage/A.D. readers who recall my question last week of whether or not Hall & Oates’ HoagieNation would remain in May at The Mann – the answer is nope. It’s going to be another fallllll in Philadelphia, to quote the old Hall & Oates song, as HoagieNation with Squeeze moves to September 4.
The Roots, however, are not about to let the spring go to waste.
Along with having that extra alone time – the one that comes with social distance – to finish their long-awaited, supposedly due-for-2020 new album, band leaders Questlove, Black Thought and the rest of The Roots Crew are still a nightly part of “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,” doing its intro music from home, in boxes, “Brady Bunch” style.
Last night, however, The Roots announced another incentive to chill while staying home, and away from friends and live music. Every weekday, from Monday to Friday, The Roots will stream content, new and old, on their YouTube channel.
“While we are daily trying to figure out ways for us to play as a group while practicing social distancing, we are always thinking of new ways to be creative and leaving our comfort zone. This week we are featuring gems from my Questlove Supreme Podcast, Black Thought, James Poyser and Kirk Douglas. We just hope people will follow and subscribe and we will keep the treats coming” said Questlove
“After we made the decision to postpone The Roots Picnic, there was a major creative void as usually, we spend the months of April and May on phone calls and in countless meetings planning the various aspects of the event. We built this idea for a content-rich channel after seeing the immediate success of Questlove’s virtual DJ sets,” said Shawn Gee, Roots manager and President of Live Nation Urban. “Our goal is to build a variety of content across our channel, curated through our lens, initially focused on the members of the band, but eventually opening it up to the larger creative community.”
I’m on The Roots YouTube right now – stay tuned.
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