Music9/18/20Sep 18SaveMusic9/18/20MusicThe Root Jams Weekly (9/18/2020): 'Lost Ones'Panama JacksonSometimes you don’t know what you have until it’s gone. Sometimes you have to remind people that if they had just…
Entertainment9/17/20Sep 172Entertainment9/17/20Entertainment8 Things I Learned From an 18-Word Tweet From Rick Fox About Kanye WestPanama Jackson661. Rick Fox considers Kanye West to be his friend.
Music9/15/20Sep 151Music9/15/20Music10 Songs That Defined New York Rap to Me, From the Outside Looking InPanama Jackson17I grew up as a ‘90s hip-hop head, which means that I have an ironically romantic view of New York City. Though my…
Music9/11/20Sep 111Music9/11/20MusicThe Root Jams Weekly (9/11/2020): 'Auntie Jams'Panama Jackson5This Sunday, the good folks at Verzuz are bringing a “battle” most of us didn’t even know we needed: Gladys Knight…
Entertainment9/10/20Sep 10SaveEntertainment9/10/20Entertainment10 Things I Do That Make My Wife Think I'm Addicted to Hamilton. I Disagree; Everybody Does This Stuff, Right?Panama Jackson32My wife made a comment to me the other day that implied that maybe she thinks I’m addicted, or perhaps overly…
Technology9/9/20Sep 9SaveTechnology9/9/20TechnologyI Almost Walked Into A Fight: An Accidental Product Review of Apple's AirPods Pro's Noise-Cancellation TechnologyPanama Jackson9Hey, you. Are you in the market for noise-cancelling earbuds? If you are, have I got a product review for you.
Entertainment9/8/20Sep 81Entertainment9/8/20EntertainmentHow Would You Spend $900,000 a Month on Entertainment (If You Had It)?Panama Jackson104Over the weekend, TMZ waded into messy-boots territory—who am I kidding? They own beachfront property there—and…
Music9/4/20Sep 41Music9/4/20MusicThe Root Jams Weekly (9/4/2020): 'The Teenage Years'Panama Jackson4Monday evening, we were treated to the Verzuz folks have been talking about since the idea came to be: Monica versus…
Lift Every Fork9/4/20Sep 4SaveLift Every Fork9/4/20Lift Every ForkDear Taco Bell, You're Getting Rid of the Mexican Pizza? Really? Not Cool, Bro. Not Cool at AllPanama Jackson63Dear Taco Bell, you a rude motherfucker, yo.
Race Matters9/2/20Sep 24Race Matters9/2/20Race MattersIn Ghana, I Experienced an Interaction With the Police Unlike Any I'd Expect in AmericaPanama Jackson40All I could say after “it” concluded—and after I picked my face and bowels up off the floor of the car—was, “it is…
Culture9/1/20Sep 12Culture9/1/20Culture9 Proper Nouns That Sound Better When You Add the Oh-So-Necessary, Very Unnecessary Extra 'S' on the EndPanama Jackson49If you are Black in America, there’s a better than 50 percent chance (this is non-scientific, by the way) that you…
Music8/28/20Aug 281Music8/28/20MusicThe Root Jams Weekly (8/28/2020): 'Walkout'Panama JacksonIt’s been a week in America. After another shooting of a Black person at the hands of police—7 times in the back, no…
Culture8/28/20Aug 283Culture8/28/20CultureI Took My Kids to Visit Theodore Roosevelt Island Outside of Washington, D.C. I Had No Idea It Was a Former PlantationPanama Jackson30I live in Washington, D.C., and much like most of the parents in the area—the whole country, really—my wife and I…
Movies8/26/20Aug 261Movies8/26/20Movies8 Reasons Why The Five Heartbeats Are the Best Fictional Black Movie Music Group of All TimePanama Jackson23The Five Heartbeats, the 1991 movie written and directed by—and also starring—Robert Townsend (Keenan Ivory Wayans…
Music8/20/20Aug 201Music8/20/20MusicA Line-By-Line(s) Breakdown of Alleged Foolywang Jam, Donnell Jones' 'Where I Wanna Be'Panama Jackson10In October 1999, singer/songwriter/producer Donnell Jones released his second album, platinum-selling Where I Wanna…
Music8/17/20Aug 173Music8/17/20MusicIf an Album Isn't Streaming Online, Does It Really Exist? A Theoretical DiscussionPanama Jackson32I did something recently that I haven’t done in probably 10 years—I made two compact disc (CD) purchases. That’s…
Music8/14/20Aug 142Music8/14/20MusicThe Root Jams Weekly (8/14/2020): 'Wet Ass Playlist'Panama Jackson9Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion set the internet on fire with their song and video, “WAP,” which stands for “wet ass…
Music8/14/20Aug 141Music8/14/20Music7 Quick Thoughts About Nas' New Blackness Jam, 'Ultra Black'Panama Jackson6God-level MC, hip-hop mainstay and legend, Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones—aka Nas aka Nasty Nas aka Esco aka “N-A-S are…
Entertainment8/13/20Aug 131Entertainment8/13/20 Entertainment'How Will Art Sit in Other People's Hearts?': Aloe Blacc, Arisha Hatch and Kierna Mayo Break Down How Art Transforms Our Lives at The Root InstitutePanama JacksonArt is the cornerstone of most societies. The art often reflects the times the artist lived in and/or the systems in…
Entertainment8/13/20Aug 132Entertainment8/13/20 Entertainment'Joy Is at the Forefront of Our Culture': Chloe and Maud Arnold, Phil Augusta Jackson and Michael Harriot Talk Black Joy During Times of CrisisPanama Jackson4You know what doesn’t get enough love and attention right now? Black joy. So what are we going to do about it? Well,…