Eclectic hip-hop outfit the Roots are eyeing a February 2006 release date for their next Geffen studio album, “Game Theory.” “We’re about 60% finished with the new album,” drummer ?uestlove tells Billboard.com. The set will likely feature a collaboration with Black Star’s Mos Def and Talib Kweli called “Where I Come” and one song with just Mos Def, “Workin’ on It.”
“Game Theory” will be the follow-up to the Roots’ 2004 effort “The Tipping Point,” which debuted at No. 4 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 395,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
The Roots have a host of summer shows lined up, including a run with fellow hip-hop outfit Floetry. Headlining dates get underway Friday (April 29) in Bridgeport, Conn., and are booked through a July 1 appearance at New Orleans’ Essence Festival. The group will head to Europe in August.
Here are the Roots’ tour dates:
April 29: Bridgeport, Conn. (Fairfield University)
April 30: Washington, Pa. (Washington & Jefferson University)
May 1: Memphis (Tom Lee Park)
May 16: Philadelphia (Electric Factory; w/ Floetry)
May 18: Boston (Roxy; w/ Floetry)
May 20: Cleveland (House of Blues; w/ Floetry)
May 21: Columbus, Ohio (Ohio State University; w/ Floetry)
May 23: Detroit (Royal Oak Theatre; w/ Floetry)
May 26: Milwaukee (the Rave; w/ Floetry)
May 28: Chicago (Vic Theatre; w/ Floetry)
May 30: St. Louis (Pageant; w/ Floetry)
June 2: Atlanta (Tabernacle; w/ Floetry)
June 4: Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (Revolution; w/ Floetry)
June 6: New Orleans (House of Blues; w/ Floetry)
June 8: Houston (Hush; w/ Floetry)
June 11: Dallas (Gypsy Tea Room)
June 15: San Francisco (the Grand; w/ Floetry)
July 1: New Orleans (Essence Festival)
Aug. 23: London (Shepherd’s Bush Empire)
Source billboard.com.
