To call it “long-awaited” or “eagerly anticipated” would be the understatement of the year – as hip-hop’s most daring pioneers the Roots release their 9th studio album (and third for Def Jam Recordings) on June 22nd, HOW I GOT OVER. The album, which takes its name from Clara Ward’s gospel classic (made popular by Mahalia Jackson), is the Roots’ first new release since joining Late Night with Jimmy Fallon for a full time gig as the show’s house band. Grammy Award winners the Roots characterize the songs on HOW I GOT OVER as “depicting the everyman’s search for hope in this dispiriting post-hope zeitgeist”.
The lead single from the Roots new set will be “Dear God 2.0.” The track re-imagines the Monsters Of Folk song “Dear God” and features MOF members Jim James from My Morning Jacket, Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis from Bright Eyes and M. Ward. HOW I GOT OVER also includes two appearances from Grammy-winning soul man John Legend: “Doin’ It Again” a re-working of his track “Again,” and “The Fire,” an original song written for the Roots’ 2010 Olympic concert performance.
