The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by singer Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and drummer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, having served in the same role on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon from 2009 to 2014. Current regular members of The Roots on The Tonight Show are Captain Kirk Douglas (guitar), Mark Kelley (bass), James Poyser (keyboards), Ian Hendrickson-Smith (saxophone), Damon "Tuba Gooding Jr." Bryson (sousaphone), Stro Elliot, Dave Guy (trumpet), Kamal Gray (keyboards), and Raymond Angry (keyboards).
David Khari Webber Chappelle is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He starred in and co-created the satirical comedy sketch series Chappelle's Show (2003–2006) before quitting in the middle of production during the third season. After a hiatus, Chappelle returned to performing stand-up comedy across the U.S. By 2006, Chappelle was called the "comic genius of America" by Esquire and, in 2013, "the best" by a Billboard writer. In 2017, Rolling Stone ranked him No. 9 in their "50 Best Stand Up Comics of All Time".
Chappelle's Show is an American sketch comedy television series created by comedians Dave Chappelle and Neal Brennan, with Chappelle hosting the show and starring in the majority of its sketches. Chappelle, Brennan, and Michele Armour were the show's executive producers. The series premiered on January 22, 2003, on the American cable television network Comedy Central. The show ran for two complete seasons. An abbreviated third season of three episodes aired in 2006, compiled of previously unreleased sketches.
Wayne Alphonso Brady is an American comedian, actor, and singer. He is a regular cast member on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series Whose Line Is It Anyway? He was the host of the daytime talk show The Wayne Brady Show, the original host of Fox's Don't Forget the Lyrics!, and he has hosted Let's Make a Deal since its 2009 revival.
Dane Jeffrey Cook is an American stand-up comedian and film actor. He is known for his use of observational, often vulgar, and sometimes dark comedy. He released six comedy albums: Harmful If Swallowed (2003), Retaliation (2005), Vicious Circle (2006), Rough Around the Edges: Live from Madison Square Garden (2007), and Isolated Incident (2009).
"Waiting for Tonight" is a song written by Maria Christensen, Michael Garvin, and Phil Temple. It was originally recorded by Christensen's girl group 3rd Party for their debut studio album, Alive (1997). Two years after the group disbanded, American singer Jennifer Lopez recorded her own version of the song for her debut studio album, On the 6 (1999). Ric Wake and Richie Jones produced Lopez's Hispanic house version of "Waiting for Tonight", which differs from the German-sounding Europop version that was recorded by 3rd Party. A Spanish version of the song, entitled "Una Noche Más", was adapted by Manny Benito and also recorded for the album. "Waiting for Tonight" was released on September 7, 1999, by the Work Group, as the third single from On the 6.
"The Reflex" is the eleventh single by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 16 April 1984. The song was heavily remixed for single release and was the third and last to be taken from their third studio album Seven and the Ragged Tiger (1983). The single became the band's first to reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and their second to top the UK Singles Chart.
"More Cowbell" is a comedy sketch that aired on Saturday Night Live on April 8, 2000. The sketch was written by regular cast member Will Ferrell and depicts the recording of the song "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" by Blue Öyster Cult. The sketch stars guest host Christopher Walken as fictional music producer Bruce Dickinson, and Ferrell as fictional cowbell player Gene Frenkle, whose overzealous playing annoys his bandmates but pleases Dickinson. The sketch also features Chris Parnell as Eric Bloom, Jimmy Fallon as Bobby Rondinelli, Chris Kattan as Buck Dharma, and Horatio Sanz as Joe Bouchard.
The Mouse and the Mask is the only studio album by Danger Doom, a collaboration between the hip hop artists Danger Mouse and MF Doom. It was released in Europe on October 10, 2005, and on October 11, 2005 by the independent punk label Epitaph Records in the United States. It was also released by Lex Records in the UK on October 17, 2005, with different cover art.
Neal Brennan is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, and podcaster. He is best known for co-creating and co-writing the Comedy Central series Chappelle's Show (2003–2006) with Dave Chappelle and for his Netflix stand-up comedy special 3 Mics (2017).
"Computer Blue" is a song by Prince and The Revolution. Released on June 25, 1984, it is the fourth track on Prince's sixth album, Purple Rain, which also served as the soundtrack to the film of the same name. In the film, the song represents Prince's character's angst at the budding relationship between the characters played by Morris Day and Apollonia, the latter of whom he desires, and he performs it in front of the two during The Revolution's set at a nightclub with the aim of upsetting them. The song was composed by Prince with credit to his father, John L. Nelson, for the guitar solo based on a piano instrumental written by Nelson and Prince. He titled the instrumental piece "Father's Song" and recorded it on piano for the film, though onscreen it was portrayed as being played by Prince's character's father, played by Clarence Williams III. On the box-set Purple Rain Deluxe (2017), a different and longer recording of "Father's Song" was included.
"Konichiwa Bitches" is a song by Swedish singer and songwriter Robyn, taken from her self-titled fourth studio album. It was released in the United Kingdom on 26 March 2007 as the first international single from the album. The term "Konichiwa Bitches" originates from a sketch with American comedian Dave Chappelle. The song was met with positive reviews, and features a more hip-hop sound than Robyn's previous singles. An accompanying music video premiered in February 2007 and features scenes that are literal representations of the song's lyrics. "Konichiwa Bitches" reached number ninety-eight on the UK Singles Chart and number sixty-seven in Australia. It was featured in the American film R.I.P.D.. A Simlish version called "Bonichita Kitcha" was recorded for The Sims Pet Stories and The Sims 2 IKEA Home Stuff.
"Sussudio" is a song by English singer-songwriter Phil Collins. It was released on 14 January 1985 in the United Kingdom by Virgin Records as the lead single from his third solo studio album, No Jacket Required (1985). The song served as the second single from the album in the United States, being released on 30 April 1985 by Atlantic Records, following "One More Night". The song’s title is a pseudoword Collins randomly came up with during a practice session.
Jason Bradford Reeves is an American songwriter, singer, and guitarist. He is best known for his songwriting work for Colbie Caillat, with whom he formed the acoustic pop band Gone West in 2018.
Lotusflow3r is a triple album set by American recording artist Prince and protégée Bria Valente. It contains the thirty-third and thirty-fourth studio albums by Prince, Lotusflow3r and MPLSound, as well as Elixer, the debut studio album by Bria Valente. It was released on March 24, 2009, by NPG Records. The three albums were sold exclusively in the United States at Target as a 3-disc set, and in Europe from more online music stores.
"Hollywood Tonight" is a song by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson, included on his posthumous album, Michael. The song was released by Epic Records on February 11, 2011, as the second single from Michael. The spoken parts were performed by Jackson's nephew, Taryll Jackson and written by Teddy Riley. An accompanying music video was released on March 10, 2011. It features Algerian dancer Sofia Boutella dressed in a Jackson-inspired outfit performing a routine with 60 dancers.
Rebecca Renee Black is an American singer, songwriter, and YouTuber. She gained extensive media coverage when the music video for her 2011 debut single "Friday" went viral on YouTube and various social media sites. The song had a polarizing reaction as while it peaked at number 58 on the Billboard Hot 100, it was also panned by audiences and music critics, many of whom considered it "among the worst songs ever made". In 2013, Black released a follow up single "Saturday" to similar commercial success and marginally improved reception. Her debut studio album Let Her Burn—preceded by two extended plays—was released in February 2023 to generally favorable reviews.
"Invisible" is a song by Irish rock band U2. Produced by Danger Mouse, it was released as a non-album single on 2 February 2014. The song was unveiled in a Super Bowl XLVIII television advertisement, launching a promotion that offered the song as a free digital download in the iTunes Store from 2–3 February. For each download of the track, Bank of America donated $1 to (RED), an organisation co-founded by lead vocalist Bono, to fight HIV/AIDS. Ultimately, $3.1 million was raised during the 36-hour promotion. Since 4 February, "Invisible" has been available as a paid download that continues to benefit (RED).
"Fallinlove2nite" is a song by American musician Prince, released as a digital single on March 17, 2014, and promoted as being a stand-alone single. It was made available on iTunes and Amazon. The song peaked at No. 40 in Belgium on April 5, 2014. On April 26, it peaked in the US on the Billboard Adult R&B Airplay chart at No. 29.
Danielle Leigh Curiel, known professionally as DaniLeigh, is an American singer and songwriter. Initially appearing as a backup dancer, Curiel began her career by posting covers of popular songs on YouTube before moving to Los Angeles, California, where she began choreographing for other artists and dancing. She made a career breakthrough after working with Prince on the music video for his single "Breakfast Can Wait". DaniLeigh was signed to Def Jam Recordings in 2017, releasing mixtapes and singles starting that year.
