The Roots have tapped Lil Kim, Method Man & Redman and many more legendary acts for their second-ever Roots Picnic in Los Angeles, this time dubbed ‘A Roots Picnic Experience: Class of ’95.’
Going down June 8, 2025 at the Hollywood Bowl, E-40, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Raekwon, DJ Quik, Goodie Mob and Havoc of Mobb Deep will also perform, with more acts to be announced. The Roots will headline the one-day event, while also serving as the backing band for all guest performances.
“Well: 1995 was our true arrival,” Questlove said in a statement. “1987 was the Year of the Creative Adhesive, the year that tied together Tariq’s world and my world in high school, and 1991 was the Year of the Green Light, the year we gave ourselves permission to take our resources and passion and pursue our dream. But 1995? That was the Year It All Came Together, the year when our first major release, ‘Do You Want More?!!!??!’ was sent into the world.
“Hip-hop was an entirely new ballgame back then, on an entirely new playing field. Those were the days when there were still things like mainstream terrestrial radio, bloated video budgets, and creativity at both the regional and the global levels. Those were the days that produced classic album after classic album, unleashing countless new ideas about art. Those were the days when the world was our oyster. This is the story of those days.”
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Tickets go on sale Wednesday (December 11) at 10a PT here.
This event is not to be confused with The Roots’ annual Roots Picnic in their hometown of Philadelphia, which according to their website, will also return to Philly in 2025.
Perhaps the iconic group will have some new material to perform as well – as Kendrick Lamar‘s music video for “squabble up” seemingly lit a fire to finish their long-awaited new album after paying homage to them.
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Released last month, the Calmatic-directed clip references the Philly rap crew’s 1999 video for “The Next Movement,” along with a host of other Hip Hop iconography including Ice-T, Nate Dogg and Menace II Society.
The tribute did not go unnoticed by Questlove, who reacted to the video on his Instagram Stories and fueled excitement that The Roots’ first album in over a decade is on the way.
Alongside a screenshot of a viral tweet highlighting the similarities between “squabble up” and “The Next Movement,” he wrote: “Damn now we GOTTA FINISH THIS LP huh? We back BABY!”
Quest followed up with a separate Instagram post thanking Kendrick and further confirming that a new Roots project is happening.
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After recounting a “surreal” encounter with a fan in Germany, the drummer wrote: “My number one love is the music I create in @TheRoots — that is the fuel to my fire & sometimes if you love something you must set it free. Then if it returns to you it’s real.
“That said I wanna thank @kendricklamar for acknowledging something I thought noone saw or cared about. Feeling seen is a great feeling and I dont take it for granted. Yup, new album still coming lol.”
