The Roots and TBC Brass Band
In early 2005, Grammy-Award winning hip-hop group The Roots learned of TBC and took the band under its wing for a short time, including inviting TBC to play with it in concert.
In the summer of 2005, The Roots were planning to help TBC to enhance TBC's visibility and try to guide it to success. The plan was to help TBC go from "The Big Easy" to "The Big Time." The Roots' Questlove Thompson stated that TBC's "music was extremely impressive, enough to get us thinking about doing a Paul Simon-type album that takes The Roots in a whole different musical direction." According to Thompson, TBC "took us back to our roots working out on South Street at Passyunk, when we were praying that somebody like a Kenny Gamble would come along to discover us."
In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and the Gulf Coast of the United States. TBC's homes and instruments were destroyed, and the band members scattered for shelter throughout the U.S. The band's dream of greater visibility and success seemed to be shattered. And the band's innate desire to continue the legendary jazz traditions of New Orleans—and to serve as a bridge between the past and future of New Orleans—was in grave jeopardy.
Read more about this topic: To Be Continued Brass Band
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