Latest news with #TheRootsPicnic
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Questlove Apologizes for Extreme Delays at Roots Picnic: ‘Today Wasn't Ideal'
Opening day of the annual Roots Picnic in Philadelphia on Saturday was marred by long lines, muddy conditions, a scrambled schedule, and extreme frustrations for fans who flocked to the Mann Center to check out sets by Maxwell, Latto, Musiq Soulchild, GloRilla, and several other acts. Questlove took to Instagram at 3 am the next morning to share a video of workers dumping mulch onto muddy spots on the grounds and apologize for what took place. 'I know today wasn't 'ideal' for The Roots Picnic in this 18th year of 2025,' he wrote. 'This year has been particularly challenging to say the least. Transforming the Mann Center into our event takes about two weeks, but as many of you experienced, heavy rain from May 30th into the morning of the 31st caused significant damage (midnight to 7am).' More from Rolling Stone D'Angelo Cancels Roots Picnic Performance Over Medical Issue Questlove Was 'Shocked' by Kendrick Lamar's Homage to the Roots In 'Squabble Up' Video Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross Announce Inaugural Future Ruins Fest Celebrating Film Music Things were so bad that they nearly cancelled the event, but they ultimately chose to delay doors by three hours. It was a chaotic time where much of the emphasis was on prepping the grounds, even as fans showed up in droves, and faced closed gates, a long, winding line, and little information. 'I got numerous messages from attendees, family, everyone in the tristate,' Questlove wrote, 'but we prioritized caution above all else…We managed to revise the schedule so that all artists, including headliners Maxwell (whom we ALL owe an incredible amount of gratitude for doing us a solid with seconds on the clock) and Latto, could perform without violating city noise curfews.' (Maxwell was a last minute substitution for D'Angelo, who was originally slated to make his first live appearance in years at the event.) Fans gathered outside the event eventually started to chant, 'Let us in.' 'We would see these staffers outside and ask them questions, but they would just say, 'I have no idea,'' South Jersey fan Lauren Brown told Philadelphia Magazine. 'So I have no idea what their purpose was. We weren't allowed to bring chairs, so there was nowhere to sit, and I have back and knee issues, and we didn't see any bathrooms or trash cans, so everybody was just throwing their stuff on the ground while we were waiting out there for hours and hours…There was no organization of any kind. Absolutely zero.' In his message, Questlove thanked all the fans for their patience. 'This year has shown our ability to adapt and overcome challenges, much like we did in past years,' he wrote. 'Tomorrow is a new day.' The second day of the Roots Picnic was indeed much smoother. It featured a complete performance of the Roots' 1995 LP Do You Want More in addition to sets by Lenny Kravitz, Funk Flex, and Meek Mill. Best of Rolling Stone The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The Roots Apologize to Fans After First Day of 2025 Roots Picnic Marred By Long Lines: ‘Safety Will Always Be Our Number 1 Priority'
The Roots apologized to fans for the delayed opening of Saturday's (May 31) first day of their 2025 Roots Picnic festival. According to Philadelphia magazine, fans complained that they waited hours in very long lines to enter the fest on its first day. Roots drummer Questlove responded to the complaints in an Instagram post featuring footage of front loaders pushing around wood chips to cover of giant muddy patches on the site at the Mann Center in Philly's Fairmount Park. 'I know today wasn't 'ideal' for The Roots Picnic in this 18th year of 2025. (This year has been particularly challenging to say the least),' he wrote. 'Transforming the Mann Center into our event takes about two weeks, but as many of you experienced, heavy rain from May 30th into the morning of the 31st caused significant damage (midnight to 7am). We nearly canceled The Picnic because conditions were unsafe for everyone involved.' More from Billboard D'Angelo Cancels 2025 Roots Picnic Performance Due to 'Unforeseen' Medical Issue Cynthia Erivo Opens Up About Her Queerness: 'The More Yourself You Are, The Better Understanding Starts to Happen' Rod Stewart Postpones Las Vegas Colosseum Residency Gig Due to Unspecified Illness CBS reported that 'throughout the afternoon and evening, the festival's social media pages were flooded with comments from people saying they waited in line for hours to get inside on Day 1.' The Philadelphia Inquirer said that hours after gates were slated to open fans started chanting 'Let us in!,' with the line not moving until after 3:30 p.m. as frustrated attendees vented their anger in comments on the event's official Insta. 'Definitely need a refund! After waiting in 3 hours in the line, I have very little trust in today's process. Yesterday was UNACCEPTABLE,' wrote one, with another adding, 'If the event is rain or shine, y'all should be prepared for rain or shine. We knew about the weather all week and we prepared for that. What happened in those entry lines yesterday was not safe.' Quest explained that instead of cancelling the festival — whose roster this year included Meek Mill, Lenny Kravitz, GloRilla, Miguel, Tems, Latto, Kaytranada and Jeezy — the group decided to take extra time to repair the site to make it safe for attendees, which he said caused a three-hour delay in opening doors. 'We prioritized caution above all else,' he wrote. 'After working hard to improve the site—factoring in the challenge of finding mulch to absorb excess water — we managed to revise the schedule so that all artists, including headliners Maxwell (whom we ALL owe an incredible amount of gratitude for doing us a solid with seconds on the clock) and Latto, could perform without violating city noise curfews.' In the note Quest said he was writing at 3 a.m. Sunday morning, said he personally worked with promoter Live Nation to work out the kinks caused by the rain. 'I wanna thank you for your understanding and patience through this adversity,' he added. 'This year has shown our ability to adapt and overcome challenges, much like we did in past years. Tomorrow is a new day, and I'm excited to revisit the Do You Want More LP on the Mann stage.' The official Roots Picnic Instagram also featured an update and apology for the delays in a message that read: 'We would like to say sorry. As we shared yesterday, the rain over the last 48 hours made the grounds unsafe. In an abundance of caution, we had to delay doors opening, resulting in the lines to get into the festival. Please understand safety will always be our number 1 priority.' Organizers said they worked hard to make sure every artist still got their stage time, extending the hours of the festival do that everyone could perform without violating city curfews. They also promised to 'do better' on Sunday (June 1), noting that there was no rain in the forecast and that they had made changes to improve the entry process and communication with fans. Day two appeared to go off with less hitches, with the official Roots Picnic posting footage of sets by Crystal Waters, the Clipse, CeeLo Green, The Roots, Kravitz, Kaytranada and Meek Mill. See the message from the Picnic below. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Axios
07-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Axios
Music festivals worth traveling to in 2025
The music festival season keeps stretching further across the year. The latest: The WorldPride Music Festival in D.C. and The Roots Picnic in Philadelphia both announced their summer lineups this week. The LGBTQ+ festival will feature Jennifer Lopez, Troye Sivan and ZEDD, and the hip-hop festival will include D'Angelo with The Roots, Lenny Kravitz and GloRilla. September's Oceans Calling in Ocean City, Maryland, announced its lineup last week, with Green Day, Noah Kahan and Fall Out Boy on the docket. Warped Tour is making its return for the first time since 2019 in three cities, with two already sold out. Tickets are still available for the final weekend in Orlando, Florida, in November. By the numbers: In 2024, North America accounted for over 40% of global music festival revenue, with a market size of $863.28 million. The market is expected to grow at 22.2% annually through 2031, according to market research. Here are 34 more music festivals in the U.S. worth traveling to this year: 🎙️ Hip-hop and R&B Rolling Loud California: March 15–16, Inglewood, California Dreamville Festival: April 5–6, Raleigh, North Carolina Essence Music Festival: July 3–6, New Orleans, Louisiana Broccoli City Festival: July 12-13, Washington, D.C. 🎸 Rock and metal Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival: May 8–11, Columbus, Ohio Cruel World: May 17, Pasadena, California Maha Festival: Aug. 2, Omaha, Nebraska Louder Than Life: Sept. 18–21, Louisville, Kentucky Shaky Knees Festival: Sept. 19-21, Atlanta, Georgia Riot Fest: Sept. 19-21, Chicago, Illinois 🎛️ EDM and electronic Big Ears Festival: March 27–30, Knoxville, Tennessee Ultra Music Festival: March 28–30, Miami, Florida Beyond Wonderland: March 28–29, San Bernardino, California Electric Daisy Carnival: May 16–18, Las Vegas, Nevada Electric Forest: June 19–22, Rothbury, Michigan III Points Festival: Oct. 17–18, Miami 🪕 Country and folk Two Step Inn Festival: April 5–6, Georgetown, Texas Stagecoach Festival: April 25–27, Indio, California Outlaw Music Festival: May–September, multiple stops nationwide Newport Folk Festival: July 25–27, Newport, Rhode Island 🎶 Multigenre Jazz in the Gardens Music Festival: March 8–9, Miami Gardens, Florida Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival: April 11–13 and 18–20, Indio, California RiverBeat Music Festival: May 2–4, Memphis, Tennessee Just Like Heaven: May 10, Pasadena, California Kilby Block Party: May 15-18, Salt Lake City, Utah Boston Calling Music Festival: May 23–25, Boston, Massachusetts Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival: June 12–15, Manchester, Tennessee Mountain Jam: June 20–22, Highmount, New York Governors Ball Music Festival: June 6–8, New York City Lollapalooza: dates are not yet confirmed, but usually fall on the last weekend of July or first weekend in August, Chicago Hinterland: Aug. 1-3, Saint Charles, Iowa Bourbon & Beyond Festival: Sept. 11–14, Louisville, Kentucky Austin City Limits Music Festival: Oct. 3–5 and 10–12, Austin, Texas When We Were Young: Oct. 18, Las Vegas Editor's note: This story has been corrected to note the dates for Lollapalooza are not confirmed.
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Lil Kim's 'Monsoon Prayer' Partially Comes True, LA Gets Rain Amid Fires
Lil' Kim's prayers for Los Angeles rain have seemingly been answered, and fans are showing their gratitude. The Hip-Hop icon—who took to social media on Jan. 16 to 'pray for a monsoon' amid the LA wild fires—is now being praised for her heartfelt plea. 'Been sending strong prayers up for LA and everyone affected by the fires,' she initially wrote on her Instagram Story. 'This is heartbreaking. I pray to Jesus that God make it monsoon in LA.' Days later, on Saturday (Jan. 25), rain finally arrived, offering relief to the exhausted firefighters battling relentless flames fueled by dry vegetation and strong winds. Heavy rains and thunderstorms are now forecast through Tuesday (Jan. 28), though the sudden showers have also triggered flood warnings in certain areas. According to CBC, 'rain fell on parts of Southern California on Sunday (Jan. 26) and the scattered showers were expected to continue overnight, boosting the risk of toxic ash runoff in areas scorched by Los Angeles-area wildfires. Flood watches were in effect through 4 p.m. Monday (Jan. 27) for burn areas from recent fires that broke out around the Pacific Palisades neighborhood in Los Angeles, Altadena and Castaic Lake,' said Joe Sirard, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Oxnard. Fans wasted no time crediting Lil' Kim for the long-awaited rainfall. 'It's raining in LA! Everyone say thank you @LilKim,' one user wrote, while another added, 'Thank you Lil Kim for the rain this weekend, couldn't have done it without you!!' Her initial tweet, however, had sparked some controversy, with critics pointing out that a monsoon could bring more damage to an already devastated region. In response to the backlash, she defended her statement, explaining, 'What LA really needs is rain — so what's the issue? Doesn't everyone understand that a monsoon is heavy rain?' While the rainfall has brought a much-needed break in the fire crisis, officials continue to warn of new dangers, including potential debris flows in burned areas. Mayor Karen Bass has issued emergency orders to expedite recovery efforts, as the city grapples with both destruction and rebuilding. As of Jan. 24, fires across L.A. have killed at least 28 people, destroyed more than 16,000 structures and charred about 76 square miles, according to CBS. Among those who lost their homes in the devastation are several celebrities, including Tina Knowles, Jhené Aiko, Keyshia Cole, and others. More from Lil Kim Defends Her Prayer Asking For "Monsoon In LA" Amid Wildfires: "What's The Issue?" Lil Kim Erroneously "Prays For Monsoon" To Hit LA Amid Wildfires, Social Media Reacts The Roots Picnic Returns To L.A. With 'Class Of '95' Experience
