photos by Toby Tenenbaum, words by BBG

Last night's posted set times:
7:00PM-8:00-DJ JEFF CHAIRMAN MAO
8:00-8:30-BLACK THOUGHT & MONEY MAKING JAM BOYS
8:30-9:00-DJ STRETCH ARMSTRONG
9:00-10:00-GHOSTFACE & RAEKWON
10:00-10:15-DJ STRETCH ARMSTRONG
10:15-11:30-MOBB DEEP

The welcome home Mobb Deep show for Prodigy last night at Best Buy Theater (5/12), their first in three years, featured appearances from some of the biggest names of the 90's. Method Man appeared during fellow Wu-Tang Clan members Ghostface & Raekwon's set, and again during a DJ set from one of the crew's biggest supporters in their early years, DJ Stretch Armstrong. Ghost & Rae closed with Ol' Dirty Bastard classic and crowd favorite "Shimmy Shimmy Ya".

Unlike in the days before the release of their classic LP The Infamous, Queensbridge duo Mobb Deep did not freestyle rhymes over Stretch beats, but Black Thought did open the show dropping freestyle verses before The Money Making Jam Boys joined him on stage.

And the 41st side crew had a surprise of their own during their headlining set, bringing out Lil Kim for a rendition of the awesome "Quiet Storm". Video of that, Mobb Deep performing "Burn" and "Right Back At You", and more pictures from the whole show, below...

Continue reading "Mobb Deep returned @ Best Buy Theater w/ Black Thought, Ghostface, Raekwon, Stretch Armstrong & more (pics & video)"

The Roots Picnic 2009 (more by Tim Griffin)

As Pitchfork reported, The Roots Picnic will be happening again this year at Philadelphia's Festival Pier on Penn's Landing, on Saturday, June 5th. ?uestlove announced part of the lineup via a Twitvideo (which you can see below), and it includes of Mayer Hawthorne, Clipse, the Very Best, Neka, Tune-Yards (a recent Questlove favorite), Das Racist, Bajah & the Dry Eye Crew, Pattern Is Movement, headliner Vampire Weekend and The Roots (with two side-projects, Black Thought's Money Making Jam Boys and ?uestlove with DJ Jazzy Jeff). He also says that the fest will be reuniting a certain black hat/gold chain (and it could be assumed, Adidas)-wearing hip-hop crew.

Tickets go on sale Friday, March 5th at 10am.

Mayer Hawthorne headlines Webster Hall Thursday night (3/4).

Picture sets from last year's Picnic are here. Pictures from a 2009 show at Brooklyn Bowl that featured more than a few of the members of this year's lineup are here. See ?uestlove's video for yourself (where he also announces that it's the Roots' one year anniversary on Fallon - congrats!) below...

Continue reading "The Roots Picnic - 2010 date & initial lineup (Vampire Weekend, Clipse, The Very Best, Tune-Yards, Run DMC?)"