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Few things in life are less surprising than the fact that The Roots once partnered with John Legend on an album. It was an musical pairing with all the adventurousness of ketchup-on-fries- experiment. Much more intriguing is the prospect of Wise Up Ghost, the collaborative album the world's premier rap band made with Elvis Costello, which drops today. Who knows what the hell this audio-Sharknado is going to sound like?
Sometimes the best kind of collaboration is an unlikely one. Think Afrika Bambaataa and Johnny Rotten on "World Destruction" or Thom Yorke and Flying Lotus on "… And The World Laughs With You." Of course, not all such stylistic collisions end up listenable—lest we forget the still-hilarious joke that is Chris Cornell and Timbaland's "Scream" or the Blade 2 soundtrack (which forced Ice Cube and Paul Oakenfold to sonically scissor each other.)
The Roots were on that soundtrack too, though, and they emerged unscathed because their song with electro producer BT is a testament to their mutability. Here are 10 other non hip-hop artists the venerable band should consider making albums with, to push the boundaries of their shape-shifting ever further.
Written by Joe Berkowitz (@JoeBerkowitz)
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Santigold
Santi White is a Philly native, so she and The Roots share that common ground, and they would likely overlap some in their musical geography as well. Like The Roots, Santigold tends to cycle through a vast palette of styles, but she also has keen pop instincts (see "Lights Out") that Black Thought and co. tend to resist. Combine them together and the product would be funky, eclectic, and perhaps radio-ready.
Bon Iver
Being besties with Kanye has done wonders for Justin Vernon's cred beyond the NPR set in a post-Grammy world. The music they've created together has been high-profile and fruitful enough to shift the conversation away from the conditions under which the first Bon Iver album was recorded, and over to how well the dude can handle a hook.
At this point, Vernon seems like he might be game for an album of hauntingly lovely rap songs floating on a soufflé of gossamer arrangements. Either that or The Roots might tap into the wellspring of aggression that is no doubt lurking beneath Vernon's lovelorn drawl.
Damon Albarn
The Blur frontman is in so many bands that some days he probably wakes up and has no idea who he is or what's even happening. His output as Gorillaz, though, has demonstrated that his voice sounds great piped in over hip-hop beats and that he doesn't give anything resembling a fuck.
His rap-involved collaborative work has also widely avoided the wonky solos that plague any MC who so much as looks at a guitar in the studio. Weirdly, we get the feeling he would be the one in the room to suggest a reggae direction in the first meeting about the album.
tUnE-yArDs
The insufferably caps-lock-challenged tUnE-yArDs is a force to be reckoned with. She may not be able to beatbox like Rahzel but she can do tricks with her voice that would offer The Roots an endless grab gab of noises with which to fiddle. The artist, whose given name is Merrill Garbus, leans toward afrobeat and jazz-like nü-scat or whatever that is way to all-over-the-place for a wide audience. But maybe working with Jimmy Fallon's house band would rein her in and create something approximating accessibility. Plus, she's already worked with Questlove, who's a fan, on the Fela Kuti cover, "Lady."
Hall & Oates
If karaoke staples Daryl Hall and John Oates put out any album at all right now, the big news would be that they'd released their first original music in a decade. But that news would be so much better if said album was a team effort with The Roots.
The "rock and soul" pioneers hinted at an experimental collaborative impulse six years ago when they asked Chromeo to work on an album in 2007. Since the meet-up never occurred, perhaps Hall and Oates could bring some of that "Maneater" realness to the next "Seed (2.0)"-like summit. Also, considering the band's penchant for puns (their debut album was called Whole Oats), there is at least a chance of Hall and Roots happening, which would make dreams come true.
Patti LaBelle
Of course, if they're gonna go disco, The Roots might do better to go old school. Patti LaBelle isn't really disco, though. Rather, she possesses a range that crate-diggers like Questlove can definitely appreciate. Before LaBelle was "Lady Marmalade," the soul singer rocked the fuck out as The Rolling Stones' opener.
Even at her current advanced age, LaBelle would still ladle a heaping helping of stank all over anything The Roots threw her way. And it doesn't hurt that she's as much a Philly institution as Rocky, or at least the Delfonics.
James Murphy
On paper, James Murphy producing songs for Arcade Fire sounded so ideal, there was almost no chance it wouldn't suck.Then came the promising title track from Arcade Fire’s Reflektor. Lo and behold: proof positive that the former LCD Soundsystem knob-twirler can tweak another band’s sound and put his own stamp on it, without making unrecognizable. What that means for The Roots is that having Murphy behind the boards wouldn't automatically result in post-punk-inflected hyper-disco rap; just something danceable. And definitely with bongos.
Leonard Cohen
A lot of the people who think Leonard Cohen is bleak probably haven’t heard Game Theory or Rising Down—not coincidentally, the two albums The Roots made during Bush’s second term. Like Dylan, Cohen is another survivor of the '60s who's stayed surprisingly vital. It's the latter's obsession with mortality, though, that distinguishes him—and that would sadly complement a band approaching its fourth decade of being a band.
Willie Nelson
Considering their mutual synonym-status with Cannabis Sativa, some would say that Willie Nelson's hip-hop spirit animal is Snoop Dogg. It's probably true, but that doesn't mean the two would make an album anybody on Earth would ever want to get high to or even hear.
The Roots, however, would likely conjure the outlaw country music master of the 1970s from within the wizened weed-muppet of present day, and restore his rep as a rightful peer of Johnny Cash. It's hard to make an 80-year old man sound dangerous, but with The Roots as your rhythm section, it's less so.
Bob Dylan
Here is where we venture deep into hypothetical territory, as Bob Dylan would never in a million years make an album with The Roots. But let's imagine he did! Dylan may be rock's poet laureate, but he's a famously uneven live performer. Perhaps being backed by the most dependable unit hip-hop has would reinvigorate the fire in his belly to a state of consistency.
Dylan's gravelly voice couldn't be relegated to mere hook duty, so he'd be trading verses with Black Thought, whose slight rasp would serve as a proper foil. Considering that he'd be going toe-to-toe with a Presidential Medal of Freedom winner, Black Thought would definitely put some elbow grease into his lyrics too.
