Summertime Starts In Philly: The Roots Picnic 2016 Review Photos & Videos

Words, Images & Videos by: Jake Krolick

The Roots Picnic 2016 :: 6.4.16 :: Festival Pier :: Philadelphia, PA

View Jake’s gallery after his review.

The Roots Picnic has become the iconic summer kick-off event in the East Coast. This was its last Philly-only appearance as the picnic approached a decade at Festival Pier. A day after the 2016 event had ended the announcement came that hosts The Roots would be throwing a second Picnic in New York City in October. The ninth annual event made it hard to see why Philly was voted the angriest city as love poured between the masses and The Roots-curated, eclectic lineup of performers. The Picnic has become a yearly awakening of musical senses, a cultural phenomenon that is hard to beat.

From the Nigerian-American swagger and style of Jidenna, to the painted Yoruba speaking Diaz sisters known as Ibeyi , culture and style are at the forefront of The Roots Picnic. Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith hung supporting their daughter Willow with love and song. Nicki Minaj rode shotgun around the grounds via golf cart with her guy, local rapper Meek Mills while R&B vocalist Jill Scott added to the grandeur of the day. The crowd was liberal and open, creative and accepting of whatever you were into as long as what you were into had some style to it. Even the dreaded Festival Pier parking lot venue adapted by expanding into the neighboring lot with sand for a pseudo-beach vibe and a massive third stage and tent adding shade. Minus the sound issues that plagued headliner Future, the day went off hitch-free.

The standout sets started early from Zoe Kravitz, the daughter of Lisa Bonet and Lenny Kravitz who goes by the pseudonym Lolawolf. Her funky style, wonderful harmonies and accompanying live drummer presented themselves beautifully. Her songs oozed a chill minimalist feel that would pair well with a sativa and some cheap wine. Lolawolf’s versions of “Jimmy Franco” and “AYO” bounced out along the Delaware River, dancing with the pier and moving the crowds quite early in the day. This was the set I dreamed of except with a large grassy field to lie in.

Later in the day, commotion broke out when 15-year-old Willow Smith finished her set with her proud papa Will Smith joining in the impromptu encore for perhaps the greatest seasonal kick-off anthem ever, “Summertime.” With mom dancing in the wings and DJ Jazzy Jeff spinning, father and daughter serenaded the city together.

By midafternoon, The Roots Picnic had hit its best moments with back to back raging performances from Anderson .Paak, the California rapper-singer-drummer who was making his Philadelphia debut and Philly local Lil Uzi Vert. Both artists had incredible stage presence and crowd awareness. They pushed the envelope of what we could handle baking in the hot sun. Backed by his band The Free Nationals, Anderson .Paak turned up the juice to shred on “Miss Right,” “Drugs” and a version of “Come Down” that blew minds as the bass and drumming synced superbly with .Paak’s smooth vocal delivery. His vocals were part song, part spoken verse, not quite rapping, but more singing. He jumped on drums for “Am I Wrong” showing his multi-instrumental side. The man is a performer and has a grand vision to break ahead of the pack like a new age Cee Lo Green crossed with other worldly wildness.

Lil Uzi Vert, a local rising emcee, showed an enthusiastic crowd how to put on a show. Starting with a smoke screen and wild Philadelphia bounce, his set was packed with a killer rendition of “Money Longer,” guest Meek Mills and more than one dive off of the stage to play with the crowd.

DMX has aged really well, showing a touch of grey on the chin but not missing a beat as he was joined by crowd favorite Swizz Beatz on a rousing rendition of the “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem” that started with DMX climbing a large stack of speakers to start the song.

Leon Bridges fit into the blend of the Roots Picnic well offering a bit of soul that was swayed to by the entire crowd. He opened with the vintage sounding “Coming Home” releasing his best Otis Redding form. He cruised through “Smooth Sailin” as the clouds moved in affecting the sunset in the most glorious of ways. Before he finished, he set aside some of his old charm and reworked Ginuwine’s “Pony” into a slow grinding ditty that touched on a perfect vibe for the muggy summer-like evening.

Dressed to the nines, The Roots broke open another unbelievable show, their only scheduled Philadelphia performance this summer. Seeing them these days must be what it was like seeing the Rat Pack in Vegas in the 60’s or Duke Ellington with a big band in the ’30s. Taking the long way around, they began playing from multiple genres ultimately blending funk and hip-hop into a concoction featuring “The Next Movement” and “Don’t Say Nothin’.” It featured Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter’s aggressive delivery that matched wits with Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s calm, but keen work on the drum kit. Captain Kirk Douglas on guitar and Damon “Tuba Gooding Jr.” elevated each minute with their characteristic orchestrated movements around the stage hyping the music and crowd before Usher joined the band.

The 37-year-old sporting a Muhammad Ali T-shirt in honor of the boxing legend, opened with “Caught Up” before leading into “U Make Me Wanna.” Usher remarked that, “There’s something about that Philly bounce” before getting down with some extra dance moves on “U Remind Me.” In typical Roots Picnic fashion a few surprise guests joined Usher like Yuna Zarai for their duet of “Crush” and Lil Jon for “Yeah.” With the Roots coordinating, the musical collaborations went off incredibly well as they added some serious musicianship and bravura to Usher’s songs.

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