ARTIST: The Roots
ALBUM: Undun
LABEL: Def Jam
RELEASE DATE: December 6, 2011
Longevity Pays
Photo by Ben Watts
Written by Jeremy Weeden
The Roots, one of hip-hop’s most beloved acts, have been hard at work on their craft for 25 years now. Formed in 1987, by Amir “Questlove” Thompson and Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter, the Roots are one of the hardest working groups in the music business and their longevity is a testament to that. One of the few instrumental ensembles in hip-hop, the Roots have had varying levels of commercial success over the years and have seen members come and go, but their music has always been critically acclaimed and hailed for its soul and realness. The Roots are best known for their 1995 and 1999 albums, Iladelph Halflife and Things Fall Apart—the former being their first album to have a Top 40 hit with “What They Do,” and the latter being the first album to garner the group a Grammy for the song “You Got Me,” featuring soul songstress Erykah Badu.
The Roots have been around through numerous different eras of hip-hop, from Wu-Tang Clan to Biggie to Kanye West to Drake. The four-time Grammy winners have seen and survived it all and are one of hip-hop’s most respected acts.
Undun, proves the Roots are indeed the hardest working band in the business. Undun is not a typical hip-hop album, or even a typical Roots album for that matter. Undun is a concept album about a 25-year-old man named Redford Stevens. The album is about Stevens’ life and the paths that he takes. The album’s cover seems to also play in to this story, as it captures a child in mid-air, performing a flip above a dirty, broken mattress. There are endless possibilities to the way the photo could play out: the kid could land on his head on the mattress, he could hurt himself on a coil, or he could perform a landing worthy of an Olympic gymnast. This could be a metaphor for the uncertainty in life and the consequences one faces for their decisions.
Upon listening to the first track on Undun, we learn that our protagonist has died a tragic death. The album, similar to the film Memento, then follows a reverse narrative that allows the listener to find out what led to Redford Stevens’ death. The storyline is not completely clear to the point where one could take the songs and write a line-by-line exact story, but is easy enough to follow and discover what happens to Redford Stevens.
The album, as with most Roots albums, is produced by Questlove and his Roots brethren. The album has a typical Roots sound: neo-soul mixed with hip-hop beats. The album has features from Big K.R.IT., Phonte, Dice Raw, Bilal, Greg Porn and a few other Roots associates. The last few tracks on the album are orchestral instrumentals that portray the ultimate demise of Redford Stevens.
Undun is a must have for any fan of the Roots. This album can be listened to conceptually or as individual tracks and the same satisfaction is provided. The Roots may have evolved from an underground hip-hop group to the house band on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, but Undun shows hip-hop will always be the life force of the band.