Black Thought

Black Thought Real Name Tariq Trotter Born October 3 1972 A.K.A. Bad Lieutenant Big Bank Willie Gank And 'Riq Geez B. Is The MC Of The Philadelphia-Based Hip Hop Group The Roots. Although Nowhere Near The Most Popular Performer In Hip-Hop Black Thought And The Roots Have A Solid And Devoted Following. Thought Who Co-Founded The Roots With Drummer ?uestlove Ahmir Thompson Is Widely Lauded For His Lyrics' Political Bent Lyrical Complexity And His Live Performances. Tariq And ?uest Met In The Philadelphia High School For Creative Performing Arts And Formed A Drummer/MC Duo Performing On The Streets Of Philly And At Talent Shows. Thought Would Subsequently Spend Some Time As One Of Two MCs In The Group The Square Roots The Other One Was Malik B. A Name Change To Simply The Roots And An Album Release Organix Black Thought And Malik Struck A Balance With Malik Bringing More Personal Raps And Thought Oriented More Towards A More Political Style Infused With Battle Raps. After Malik B. Left The Group Due To Drug Issues Thought Continued Drifting Toward The Political And Was Featured On Several Other Records Like Common's One Day It'll All Make Sense Linkin Park's Reanimation And More Recently Its Frontman Mike Shinoda's The Rising Tied As Well As Damian Marley's Welcome To Jamrock And The Coup's Pick A Bigger Weapon. Black Thought Was In The Process Of Recording A Solo Album But The Project Was Shelved When It Was Realized The Effort Would Not Assist The Group In Their Release From Their Contract With MCA Records. Some Of The Songs He Had Recorded Were Eventually Released As Tracks On The Roots' Album Phrenology. He Is Working On A Collaborative Project With Producer Danger Mouse Which According To XXL Magazine Is Tentatively Being Called Dangerous Thoughts As Well As A Gangsta Grillz Mixtape With DJ Drama. He Is Still A Core Member Of The Roots. He Has Also Been A Member Of Two Production Teams Grand Negaz And The Grand Wizzards. The Roots Latest Album Game Theory Shows A More Introspective Side Of Black Thought And Is The "darkest" Roots Album To Date. read less