By Aria Brent
AFRO Staff Writer
abrent@afro.com
Thousands of people from around the country gathered June 1-2 at The Mann in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia for the 15th annual Roots Picnic.
Since 2008, legendary hip-hop group The Roots has been putting on the music festival and highlighting both emerging and well-established artists from all realms of Black music. Throughout the years the festival has grown in size, event duration and the entertainment. This year’s two-day event had a lineup that was packed with artists, podcasts and entertainment acts that left concert-goers ready for more.
Artists such as Lil Wayne, Babyface, Amerie, Wale, Method Man, Redman, Robert Glasper and Jill Scott took the stage and put on performances that wowed the crowd and upheld the soulful feeling the Roots Picnic has been known to have throughout the years. The AFRO caught up with concert attendees and found out what brought them to this year’s event.
“Going to the Roots Picnic, it’s an annual thing that we’ve been doing and we came out to see the headliners and all the other artists. We came because we love Black culture, we wanted to feel the vibes and just hang out with some friends,” said Taeler Wright of Charlotte, N.C., “It feels like a big family reunion and the artists they put on every year are top tier.”
The familial feel Wright referred to was welcomed and fostered with nostalgic activities like line dancing, roller skating and a double dutch contest. Many guests opted for bringing blankets to sit on as they watched performances, another dynamic that added to the hospitality of the event.
“This is my first time going and so far I love it. I love seeing all these different representations of Black culture–we’re so beautiful,” exclaimed Justin Brent of Columbus, Ohio. “All these people are just sitting down enjoying themselves, and watching the performances. It warms my heart to see us, as Black people come together and nothing bad happens.”
The event was bursting at the seams with Black culture. With artists from all genres of music, including rap, jazz, gospel and go-go, there was something for everyone to enjoy.
Additionally, both days of the event were full of colorful outfits and carefully crafted hairstyles that displayed the diversity of Black fashion. From bantu knots to braids and locs to afros, the venue and city was full of Black beauty, so much that even performers commented on it.
“You know what’s awesome about Philly? Philly has some real Black women,” said André 3000 during his performance. “They’re real dark and you don’t get to see that too much. I’m talking about like super dark—and we love that.”
In recent years, the festival has begun to feature a stage that includes podcasts and interactive cultural experiences like U+Me+R&B and They Have The Range. With a variety of entertainment options and a range of musical performances, the festival made it so that guests always had something to participate in.
Both nights of the festival were closed out by hometown heroes. The first night was finished by neo soul legend Jill Scott, and on the second night The Roots took the stage along with Trombone Shorty, Lil Wayne, Lloyd and PJ Morton to give a dedication to the city of New Orleans.
This year’s Roots Picnic was full of fun, family and phenomenal music, truly making for the perfect way to kick off the summer and Black Music Month.