🎤 The Roots // collaborations · IMUDB
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The Roots
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Awards
Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
Grammy Award for Best R&B Album
Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance
NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Album
NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Duo or Group
IMUDB Ranking
9.8/10
Based on how many times this artist has been played on Last.fm — not a critic score.
🎧 2,066,477 listeners
▶ 61,074,652 plays
Wikipedia
The Roots are an American hip-hop band formed in 1987 by rapper Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and drummer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, having served in the same role on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon from 2009 to 2014. The regular members of The Roots on The Tonight Show are Captain Kirk Douglas (guitar), Mark Kelley (bass), James Poyser (keyboards), Ian Hendrickson-Smith (saxophone), Damon "Tuba Gooding Jr." Bryson (sousaphone), Stro Elliot (keyboards and drums), Dave Guy (trumpet), Kamal Gray (keyboards), and Raymond Angry (keyboards).
The Roots are known for a jazzy and eclectic approach to hip hop featuring live musical instruments and the group's work has consistently been met with critical acclaim. ThoughtCo ranked the band number seven on its list of the 25 Best Hip-Hop Groups of All-Time, calling them "Hip-hop's first legitimate band."
In addition to the band's music, several members of the Roots are involved in side projects, including record production, acting, and regularly serving as guests on other musicians' albums and live shows.
🤝 Collaborations (159)
Genius ↗MusicBrainz credits combined with Genius song credits from top 15 tracks
The Roots has 159 credited collaborators on IMUDB — 22 featured, 5 producer, 16 bandmates, 39 production & engineering, 8 instrumentalists, 69 other. Active 1987–present.
F
🎵 Top Tracks popularity ranked · Genius
📅 Collaboration Timeline
6 dated credits, by decade
1990s
2
2000s
3
2010s
1
⭐ Known For
Things Fall Apart
▶ 10,911,709
Phrenology
▶ 5,931,552
Illadelph Halflife
▶ 4,760,179
The Tipping Point
▶ 3,707,026
Do You Want More?!!!??!
▶ 2,872,964
How I Got Over
▶ 6,871,934
📻 Historical Recordings
Shellac sides digitised by the Great 78 Project — original 78rpm transfers, free to stream
Browse these sides on the Internet Archive ↗The IMUDB Guitar Guide
The Complete Guitarist — 20 chapters, beginner to expert. Free PDF, no email required.