Every late-night talk show needs a band, and Jimmy Fallon’s “The Tonight Show” is no different. The band “The Roots” has been with Jimmy Fallon since even before his “The Tonight Show” gig. When he was still hosting his previous show, “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” The Roots were with him back then. The band is largely underrated, and many people don’t know that they’re far more than just a late-night talk show band. The group was formed by two of the members who are still with the group, Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter and Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson when they lived in Philadephia as young men. Formed in 1987, The Roots have an eclectic, jazzy sound and approach to hip-hop. They perform using a variety of live musical instruments. But don’t think they’re just a talk show band. This group of talented men has won Grammy Awards, and the website ThoughtCo ranks them as number seven on its list of Best Hip-Hop Groups of All Time. They even go so far as to call the group “Hip-hops first legitimate band.”
The group rarely tours these days extensively because “The Tonight Show” keeps them very busy, but people who are lucky enough to see them perform live say that they’re some of the best performances in the industry. Also, some of the members are involved in side projects of their own, including acting gigs and record producing. You can also find them sometimes working with other musicians on their live shows and albums. Currently, there are 12 working members of the group. Because they’re a fluid group, the actual members occasionally change over the years, but the two founding members are still with the group to this day.
Image via YouTube
The Roots are so popular with “The Tonight Show” fans that they are often featured in skits with Jimmy Fallon and other stars. In the awesome skit below, you can see them adding their sound with childhood classroom instruments as they sing along with Idina Menzel and Jimmy Fallon to “Let It Go” from the movie “Frozen.”
Image via YouTube
Enjoy this talented group of young men, who haven’t become too high up on the totem pole to stop and have a little fun.
