http://www.bet.com/articles/0,,c3gb882-1524,00.html

The Roots Tapped By Jay-Z For His 'Unplugged' Special, Album
By Mark Allwood, BETi Music News

MTV's latest installment of its "Unplugged" series should make for interesting bedfellows, as multi-platinum rapper Jay-Z will be backed by Grammy-winning, Philadelphia-based hip-hop band The Roots.

BET.com caught up with The Roots' drummer extraordinaire recently, Amir "?uestlove" Thompson, who told us that Jigga's performance will be released as an album sometime next month, while the program is slated to air on MTV in December as well.

While vocalists Black Thought and Rahzel did not participate in the taping, Jay-Hova enlisted the help of the rest of The Roots and a string quartet as the Brooklyn-born MC performed hits from his previous albums, as well as tracks from his critically acclaimed new album, The Blueprint.

Queen of Hip-Hop Soul Mary J. Blige reunited with Jay-Z onstage for "Can't Knock the Hustle" (from the rapper's 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt), and The Neptunes' Pharrell Williams on "I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)" (from last year's The Dynasty: Roc La Familia), reports MTV News.

In other Roots news, Thompson also told BET.com that Black Thoughts long-delayed solo debut, Masterpiece Theatre, has been shelved indefinitely due to sample clearance issues.

Meanwhile, fans may notice a slight difference in Thompson's appearance, as the drummer recently shed 107 pounds with the help of trainer Mark Jenkins, who has trained D'Angelo and Mary J. Blige.

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man, I don't even give a fuck no more. I'm just gonna have to wait, until it drops. If it doesn't then thats sad, cause the kid has potential.


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The key to patience is trusting the inner presence that knows exactly what you need
That inner presence allows everything to unfold divinely at just the right time