Here's a sneak peek at the upcoming Roots Picnic

The Roots Picnic is the essence of summer. This year’s festival kicks off Philadelphia’s summer music calendar. Last year, everything was delivered to us virtually, so being able to meet in person this year is a treat. The event will take place, June 4-5, over two days instead of one. As Black Thought put it, “We wanted there to be something for everyone.”

Mary J. Blige will headline the R&B-inspired festival, which will also feature hometown songstress Jazmine Sullivan and the sensational Summer Walker. Also look for country music favorite Mickey Guyton, as part of a lineup centered on Black Girl Magic.

To get an inside look at the festival, Black Thought (Tariq Trotter) and Live Nation executive Brandon Pankey shared what makes this year’s event special.

“This year’s picnic is returning to some normalness,” Trotter explains. “Our movement has been measured.”

Unlike previous years, this year’s picnic required caution, but that doesn’t mean the quality will suffer. R&B has the spotlight for the 2022 festival.

“That’s what you want when you are at the Mann. I feel like this year’s picnic is tailored for the audience at the Mann Center for Performing Arts,” Trotter said.

For some the addition of Mickey Guyton, a country star, was an unexpected choice. Guyton’s song “Black Like Me” exploded on the country music scene but many in the African American community are unaware of the current movement of Black artists in country music or the historical ties of Black influence in country music.

“It’s important for us to show the range of Black music and how broad our medium of the arts is. It’s also important for us to have young people see themselves in spaces outside of hip hop and R&B,” Trotter.

Black Thought shared what went into choosing the line-up for a festival taking place in a very picky city like Philadelphia.

“It’s based on their buzz, their validity, and credence. We have always kept our ears to the street but the Roots in and of itself have been incubators of talent. At this point there are generations of performers who grew up under the Roots umbrella. Jazmine is a good example of that,” he said.

The Mixtape portion of the festival has become increasingly popular in recent years. It’s here that Black Thought and his longtime collaborator/DJ J. Period give MC’s the opportunity to flex their lyrical prowess. This year’s lineup includes Griselda’s Benny The Butcher, Rick Ross, and possibly a few surprises.

“This is something that developed from J. Period and I touring around 2010. We’ve been doing this select set of Mixtape performances from city to city. The first time we did it at a festival was in Toronto since then it’s evolved as a mainstay at the Roots picnic. It gives us an opportunity to cater to that portion of the audience that still enjoys spitting,” The Roots frontman said.

The festival will once again feature podcasters. In a climate where some areas of the podcasting space are filled with vitriol, particularly directed at Black Women, the Roots want to reassure the public that the podcasters involved are viable and purposeful.

“First and foremost, every act that we book on the Roots Picnic is based on a certain level of professionalism. We aren’t sensationalists, we are not chasing the act or the podcast who’s the center of any controversy. We’ve done a nice job of maintaining an equilibrium,” Trotter responded.

Brandon Pankey, the Live Nation executive helping make it all happen, spoke about the measures being taken to have a great and safe Roots Picnic.

“Ultimately, we are going to have all our staff and crew wearing masks backstage. We are fortunate it’s at the Mann Center where it’s open and outside. The picnic is a love letter to Philadelphia, and we are excited to be back,” he said.

The Roots Picnic is a multi-generational event that brings out a lot of local talent.

“Philadelphia is a melting pot of people and one of the things that Black Thought and Questlove do so well is curate this festival and surprisingly with their busy schedules they do keep their ears to the streets,” Packney said.

He added “as producers, we make sure that Philadelphia is represented by Suzanne Christine and now Grammy award winning artist Jazmine Sullivan.”

Pankey also wants concert goers to know that there will be an installation by local artists and a collaboration with the Black Starr Film Festival for their visual pleasure.

He’s also excited about the fact that the lineup showcases variety, “It was very intentional to have multiple genres on the stage.”

The other nice component to this year’s festival is that audiences will be able to enjoy the first day of the festival via live streaming on YouTube “It’s an amazing partnership with YouTube. In 2020, YouTube allowed us to bring the festival virtually. It will be Saturday, June 4 only and we are excited about that,” Packney mentioned.

The Roots Picnic will once again bring together Philadelphians and visitors to our great city. It’s back to being a two-day event that brings the community together through music.

For more information, visit ticketmaster.com.