The Roots are one group that have rarely found themselves feuding with any of their fellow Hip Hop artists, but several years ago the noted Philadelphia musicians were targeted by Nas due to their involvement in the Spike Lee film Bamboozled. The band starred as The Alabama Porch Monkeys in the film, which featured various characters in blackface.
As part of the inaugural episode of Complex TV’s Combat Jack Show, Black Thought revisited his former beef with the Queensbridge emcee who found himself in feuds with several other artists at that time.
“In some interview he made a comment about how wack it was for us to do the movie Bamboozled with Spike Lee and ‘how you gonna call yourself The Roots and Black Thought or something and you’re portraying a group called The Alabama Porch Monkeys in Spike Lee’s movie with the ball and chain and all,’” said Black Thought. “Nas was spazzing out on a lot of people during that point in time because he was losing his mom. He had actual beef during that time and this was just a comment he made about The Roots.”
Fortunately, the two emcee’s were able to hash out their differences during a Talib Kweli show they both attended. Black Thought revealed that both rappers were able to find common ground with one another due to the loss of their parents.
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“I hadn’t really interacted with him at all up until that point. And then there was a show one night with Talib Kweli and I think he invited Nas, and he invited me. And we were all there in the building together. I had a chance to meet Nas and he explained to me that it wasn’t coming from a personal place and he basically apologized,” Black Thought explained. “He told me he was going through it. He lost his mom. I totally relate to that, I lost my mom when I was 17. She’s a murder victim. Both my parents are murder victims, got killed in Philly.”
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