Questlove & Black Thought Reflect On How They Cut Class To Bump NWA

Back in 1988, a young Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson and Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter were barely (if at all) out of high school and hip-hop was barely out of its toddler years. And while it's been well-documented how the duo that went on to form the legendary Roots crew embraced the sounds of a fledgling culture, their introduction to the ferocious five-some that is NWA may not be as public of knowledge as how they first came to know and love the late J Dilla. Which is to say, how some of the earliest iterations of the sounds that moved a nation were embraced and expounded upon by the mid-90s push towards more Organix and less drum-machine madness. But last night's episode of The Tonight Show provided the perfect opportunity for ?uesto and Tariq to enlighten us as to how they came to know and love the best of the west as a pair of Philly-born hip-hop heads that would cut class just to hear Tariq's copy of the Straight Outta Compton tape, and to Ice Cube himself, who sat opposite Jimmy Fallon to discuss the NWA biopic and his son's role in the film. All of which goes to show that a little hooky never did anyone too much harm and may even lay the ground work for one of the most influential musical crews that ever was. Watch as Questlove & Black Thought gush over their first time hearing Straight Outta Compton on The Tonight Show below and do yourself a favor by seeing Straight Outta Compton when it hits theaters next Friday, August 14th.