The Very Good Agency

The Roots Rising Down?

Okay players, time for another bout of honesty, which may or may not lower your respect for me. I started this article a long time ago, shortly after the release of ‘Rising Down’, the tenth and latest album from Philadelphia hip-hop crew The Roots. It started as an album review, but as I found publicity material in certain publications, I became irritated and this piece has now turned into a dissection of methods used in modern journalism, and how information is disseminated through the mass media  with sensational hype and spin added.

As I see it, rumour and speculation have become the main ways to promote artists and draw attention. After reading an article in the June edition of U.S hip-hop magazine ‘The Source’ (apparently the mainstream ‘hip-hop bible’) I wondered why all information has to be communicated so simplistically.

I will admit the article does attempt to talk about the issues that the album deals with as it quotes ?uestlove, who states “(the album) gives detailed psychological explanations on why and how methods of violence are used in everyday society from justifiable to domestic to national”. The writer acknowledges the themes explored by The Roots can be difficult to explain and that they create music for the sophisticated listener, but the main focus of the piece is on a possible break-up of the band. The evidence used to justify this speculation is that the group has existed for 17 years (so they must have to break up soon), and that only two of the group members showed up for a press conference.

It couldn’t be possible that some musicians prefer recording and touring to attending promotional appearances? Black Thought tries to explain that they have all been touring extensively for many years, and most of the crew members have “outside endeavours” apart from the group, and even possibly lives. This means that media duties are left up to ?uest and Thought to complete, but it’s a bit to early to say the sky is falling. Just because people don’t want to talk about themselves to reporters endlessly, doesn’t mean they lack commitment to the music.

Should I have expected more from a magazine full of adverts for expensive jewellery, cigars and penile enhancement devices? As it’s obviously not just a commercial tool and has the best intentions of their readers at heart…. not!

I can understand that the themes The Roots focus on can be too complicated for the mainstream media to try an analyse for an audience being continually dumbed-down, but if they have to resort to sensationalism why not base it on fact. For example if I wanted to cause a stir, but remain factual, I would draw attention to the video for ‘Birthday Girl’ which stars a teen XXX award winner Sasha Grey, and contains some unusual phallic innuendo. The video was leaked and created attention online, some were confused and some were outraged. The clip could be interpreted in several ways; to me it seems they are trying to draw attention to a culture of increased sexuality that children are being confronted by. It’s a tough pill to swallow but nowadays there is seemingly no age which is too young to be “sexy”.

At least discussing this I am focusing on something real (the video) and debating an actual issue, instead of just filling up column inches with speculation. So what if no member of The Roots has been shot or in an under age sex scandal, it doesn’t mean we have to assume that every album is either a comeback or a send-off. I mean someday they will break-up but it will be for many and varied reasons, but in the meantime they are still making some damn good music.

Find some real information for yourself at:

The Roots Website

“When I spit it’s something like a psychology exam
If you stand where I stood, you could probably understand
How that mic feeling like a million dollars in my hand
It’s the silence of the lamb, go and cop another gram”

(75 Bars (Black’s Reconstruction) – The Roots)

…Yossarian

Tags: hip hop

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