The Roots are an influential, Grammy Award-winning American hip hop band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, famed for a heavily jazzy sound and live instrumentation. They made their debut in 1993 and have gone on to collaborate with artists from a range of genres, such as Roy Ayers and Cody Chesnutt. Inspired by the "hip-hop band" concept pioneered by Stetsasonic, The Roots themselves have garnered critical acclaim and influenced later hip-hop and R&B acts.
