It's clear that the Roots sound no longer has traction in today's market. The last two albums have been commercial disappointments - 2 strikes. And yet they continue to produce critically acclaimed music themselves, while the market has moved on. Whenever groups start pointing fingers at others but themselves for failures, historically that's always been the first step towards the exit. Not many bands can remain relevant after 15 years - if the Roots fail again, they'll be touring until the wheels fall off.

Don't get it twisted, I'm one of the 200K or so that thought Game Theory was worth my paper. It was a multi-layered, effects-drenched, melodically progressive look-ma-no-hands-flying-faders masterpiece, but Hov is not going to bury himself and Def Jam trying to force kids to appreciate the intricacies of False Media.

Sound familiar? The Roots need to bring somebody from the outside in to help them sharpen their songs without compromising their integrity. Jamming with strippers or compensating with studio wizardry and overproduction is not gonna cut it.

Hands up if you think "The Roots : Produced by Rick Rubin" sounds like the truth.