The Roots pull out of David Bowie tribute concerts over 'bitchassness'
The Roots have pulled out of two upcoming David Bowie tribute shows at New York's Carnegie Hall. The reason? Bitchassness.
In an Instagram post on Wednesday, just one day before of the first show, Questlove cited a fellow musician's refusal to allow the group to use their equipment.
He wrote:
You May Also Like
"Mood. I've never been so insecure or petty as to deny a fellow musician use of ANY of my equipment (or my band's equipment----or resources or contacts or knowledge or ANYTHING) it angers me when that same courtesy is not reciprocated. (Believe you me I was about to get #TomPetty or #PettyWap or #PetRockAndCLSmooth or #BlackPetty or however you wanna roll wit it)---keeping a level head and not being self destructive is a weak point I'm working on. But I'm also keeping it true: The Roots/Bilal/Kimbra (w/ Wendy Melvoin, DD Jackson & Ray Angry) pulled out of these Bowie gigs. We have patience. But we do NOT have patience for the #Bitchassness. Enjoy your precious equipment."
Roughly 20 bands had been announced for the shows, but not the order in which they were to play. For now, whoever the #Bitchass is will remain a mystery.
The shows' producer Michael Dorf has been putting on these tribute shows for years and, in an interview with Mashable last week, said the Roots have been one of his "go-tos." The group has performed at four of his 13 tributes, and he listed their first ever performance -- at Bob Dylan's tribute in 2006 -- as one of his favorite performances of any tribute he's produced.
"They took it so seriously, and they created such a powerful version of 'Man of War," he said. "To this day people talk about it."
Dorf told Mashable in an email Wednesday night that he's hopeful this will all be resolved.
"There was some confusion over the drum kit tonight unfortunately. Hopefully, all will be OK tomorrow."
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.
Topics Music
