The Philadelphia rapper Malik Abdul Basit, who recorded as Malik B., has died. Basit was one of the founding members of the Roots, the long-running and beloved hip-hop band, who confirmed his death to Rolling Stone. No cause of death has been reported yet. Basit was 47.

The Roots' annual Roots Picnic music festival is going virtual this year, and they've partnered with Michelle Obama and her When We All Vote organization to get fans registered to vote. SZA, Lil Baby, Roddy Ricch, H.E.R., EarthGang, Polo G, G Herbo, and Kirk Franklin are among the artists who will perform, while celebrities including…

The Roots have been a Philadelphia institution for decades. ?uestlove and Black Thought, the two original members who are still in the band, formed the Roots in 1987, when they were both students and a Philly performing-arts high school. They played their first show -- not counting street-corner busking -- at a 1989 talent show,…

Lil Wayne wore the following things when he was the musical guest on The Tonight Show last night: A red beret with spikes sticking out of it, a giant fur coat with some kind of skatepunk-looking logo across the back, huge black sunglasses, and what appeared to be a white-and-plaid dress. He wore this dress…

Nothing should surprise us anymore, but the enduring mainstream success of Gucci Mane remains pretty baffling. Just a few years ago, Gucci couldn't stop arrested. Now he's a generally-acknowledged national treasure who exchanges banter with Jimmy Fallon and performs with the Roots on The Tonight Show. (The Roots did a song with Project Pat years...