Moderated by Ben Greenman, best-selling author and former New Yorker editor

A signed copy of MUSIC IS HISTORY is included in the price of your ticket.

Harnessing his encyclopedic knowledge of popular music and American history, award-winning musician, producer, director, and best-selling author Questlove engages in an intimate, insightful discussion of his new book MUSIC IS HISTORY. Best-selling author Ben Greenman joins The Roots frontman as moderator of this captivating conversation.

MUSIC IS HISTORY combines Questlove’s deep musical expertise with his curiosity about history, examining America over the past fifty years.

Focusing on the years 1971 to the present, Questlove finds the hidden connections in the American tapestry, whether investigating how the blaxploitation era reshaped Black identity or considering the way disco took an assembly-line approach to Black genius. These critical inquiries are complemented by his own memories as a music fan, and the way his own appetite for pop culture taught him about America.

For the Culture Artist Residency
The Roots

The Kennedy Center’s new For the Culture initiative uplifts one of the core tenets of the Hip Hop Culture Program: celebrating the multi-hyphenate artist. Our inaugural residency spotlights one of Hip Hop’s vital cultural leaders and most respected acts: four-time Grammy Award^®–winning band and founding Kennedy Center Hip Hop Culture Council members The Roots.

This two-year residency explores the full range of The Roots’ creative expression with performances, curatorial endeavors, activations, and humanities activities highlighting the legendary crew and its joint front men: acclaimed emcee, writer, actor, and artist Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter and award-winning drummer, DJ, producer, director, journalist, and best-selling author Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson.