Starting tonight, the famed NYC musical institution Carnegie Hall will play host to the first of two tribute concerts in honor of the late David Bowie. The second show will take place tomorrow night at Radio City Music Hall. The names on the bill include the Pixies, Laurie Anderson, Mumford & Sons, and many more. The Roots were also scheduled to take part in the event, but yesterday, drummer Questlove announced that his band would be pulling out due to "Bitchassness," alluding to an apparent dispute over shared musical equipment.
"I've never been so insecure or petty as to deny a fellow musician use of ANY of my equipment," began Questlove in the Instagram post that outlined The Roots' decision to remove themselves from the concert. Musicians like Bilal and Kimbra, who were set to join The Roots on stage, will also be abstaining from performing at either show.
"We have patience. But we do NOT have patience for the #Bitchassness. Enjoy your precious equipment," Quest finished the post.
Today, the event's organizer, Michael Dorf, has responded to Questlove in a statement with which he hopes to convince The Roots to reconsider removing themselves from the lineup. Read below:
"There was a miscommunication about the use of the Holy Holy’s drum kit last night on the tight City Winery stage for the rehearsal show. Very unfortunate. I would hope that after a nights sleep and knowing we have a much larger stage with multiple drum kits and other equipment that The Roots will still join us this evening. They have been a regular part of our tribute series and we deeply love and respect them. I remain hopeful they will still join the important celebration of David Bowie’s music tonight and tomorrow and the two sold out shows can experience their powerful performance as one of the 20 amazing songs planned."
Head here for more information on both Bowie tribute concerts.
[via Pitchfork]