Usually, when Black Thought appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, it’s as a member of house band The Roots, a position that lets him riff with the host and show off his impressive rhyme skills in funny sketches. Last night, though, he received the opportunity to appear on the show as a musical guest, performing a medley of songs from his upcoming Streams Of Thought, Vol. 3 EP. The Roots frontman was joined by guests The Last Artful, Dodgr and Portugal. The Man to perform “Quiet Trip” and “Nature Of The Beast.”
Naturally, Thought employed a framing device that was fitting for the current social climate, presenting the performance as a Zoom call between himself and his featured artists, overlaid on a cleverly-designed desktop. Black Thought, Dodgr, and the members of Portugal pop up in windows, then as a multi-paneled chat with Streams Of Thought producer Sean C. making a cameo appearance with his MPC as Thought ruminates on the “Nature Of The Beast.”
The road to the third volume of Streams Of Thought has hit its fair share of bumps and curves. After sharing “Thought Vs. Everybody” in July, he was forced to delay the release in the wake of the death of former Roots crew member Malik B. However, he’s been pretty visible all year, joining Public Enemy for a remix of their seminal hit “Fight The Power,” giving a Tiny Desk Concert from his home office, and sharing the single “Good Morning” featuring Killer Mike and Pusha T.
Watch Black Thought’s Tonight Show performance above.