The insistent reggae rhythms of Chronixx & Zincfence Redemption bubbled up and outward from the main stage no sooner than Hiatus’ last vibratto note echoed out over the Delaware river, continuing a seamless run-of-show that remained as tight as well-orchestrated DJ set throughout the festival. As if to highlight the equality of eclecticism, every unexpected chord change and virtuoso guitar fingering received an uproarious forward from the same crowd that had been bawling “they knooooow betta” just moments before. Rounding out the spectrum of millenials, Rae Sremmurd took the main stage to remind us how hard the Philly crowd goes for hood-party anthems in between repping the most conscious music of the day, a living embodiment of the phrase “ain’t got no type.” The brothers Sremm gave the crowd a taste of an unreleased new track with Wiz Khalifa just nanoseconds before Hiatus Kaiyote made heads rotate toward the harbor bay with their distinctive flavor of prog-jazz. His set proceeded apace, alternating his indelible and personal pop/folk songwriting with the use of self-sampling and auto-tune to create his own brand of Bon Iver-meets-Bobby-McFerrin experimental choral music–a sound that makes this notoriously shy and self-deprecating young artist one of the most riveting live shows around.īishop Nehru perhaps best embodied the intergenerational spirit of the day, remarking: “I grew up on The Roots and Erykah Badu, so shit is kinda real for me right now.” Intense feels did not prevent him from delivering the kind of verbal acrobatics that have made him hip-hop’s current golden child over a bed of Dilla and DOOM beats, even as newcomer Brianna Cash‘s guitar gently wept over on the Oasis stage. Opening with his already-signature song “Man On The Moon” he transformed the closing high note into a worldless opera of droning throat-singing. Sumney, however, was the early highlight. Donn T’s band put together an incredibly tight performance that recalled the divas of disco era in spirit and musical chops, while Bassy brought a compelling blend of organic and future-set r&b, running from spacey steppers to kush-kissed ballads. Bassy and Donn T inaugurated the festivities with striking–and strikingly different–sets. In past years Shabazz Palaces and Roman Gianarthur–among many others–have blown minds and minted fans with early sets, and 2015 was no exception. Let’s take it from the top:Įver year, Roots Picnic-goers who show at doors open are treated to up-close sets from some of the most exciting progressive new acts out. With a third stage added to the Roots Picnic-grounds at Penn’s Landing, there were a lot of good things happening in terms of pure creative power packed into the bill, we maintain that Roots Picnic is the most concentrated, nutrient-rich music festival on the planet. and a stellar bench of DJs ( Hudson Mohawke, DJ Mustard, DJ Windows98 AKA Win Butler of Arcade Fire) was lead by none other than the original Master Of Records himself, Afrika Bambaataa. On top of a once in a lifetime set with sister-in-arms Erykah Badu, (commanding the stage in a futuristic handsfree segway/skatebort-like device she was apparently controlling with her mind!) The Roots were joined by co-headliner The Weeknd for a surprise rendition of “Earned It” as well as surprise cameos from Freeway, YG and The Lox! A$AP Rocky blessed the crowd with his first live performance of material of his new-brand album A.L.L.A. Roots Picnic 2015 was quite possibly the epic-est music festival that Philadelphia’s Festival Pier has seen yet.

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