The Question and Answer For Hip Hop. It took me a while to write a review for The Roots latest album, "Things Fall Apart." Not because, the album wasn’t good. Rather, I was looking for something while listening. I was searching for answers to certain questions: Why is a group with such skills and talent so underrated? What is it about the Roots’ music that places them in almost a league of their own? What does their style of music say about the possibilities and limits of hip hop music? Trying to answer such questions gave me a greater appreciation for The Roots and increased my concern about the overall state of hip hop.

"Things Fall Apart," taken from the title of Chinua Achebe’s novel of the same name which came from William Butler Yeats’ poem "The Second Coming," starts with a sampled dialogue from Spike Lee’s movie "Mo’ Better Blues". The highlighted conversation raises the question of why people-black people-don’t support 'our own music'. The Roots represent one of the most 'authentic' sounds in hip hop in the sense that they play/use live instruments in their music. The group’s driving force is not only the man on the mic, Black Thought, but also the man on the drums, ?uestlove. The album is marked by his creative influence with innovative tracks and beats. "Step Into The Realm" is the one example. In this experimental track, the music fades in and out, as Black Thought and the chorus continues. It makes for a moving effect.

"The Next Movement", like many of the tracks, highlights Black Thought’s ability to blend the art of rhyming with his thoughts on the state of hip hop and the world. He states, "This record is to whoever is in listening range/yo, the whole state of things in the world ‘bout to change." In their music, The Roots question and check those emcees and groups who submit to commercialism. As Black Thought asks in "Ain’t Sayin’ Nothin’ New": "what’s the cure to this hip hop cancer?".

The keyboard and bass playing, the creative sounds of Rahzel, and the rhyming skills of Dice Raw round-off the group’s distinctive brand of hip hop music. On tracks such a number of tracks, Dice Raw proves to be one of the best kept secrets in hip hop. His rhymes are characterized by a certain 'militancy' and battle lyrics style. On "Ain't Sayin' Nothin' New" he states, "When you come sloppy, fuck is ya’ll trying to do?/ ya’ll into some wack shit and ain’t saying nothing new."

Tracks such as "Adrenaline", "You Got Me" featuring Erykah Badu, "Don’t See US", the concluding poem by Ursula Rucker, and the hidden track, make "Things Fall Apart" one of the most creative albums in hip hop this year. But what does that mean?

At a time when market forces reward and highlight groups that extol sex, violence and/or materialism, it comes as no surprise that The Roots are not one of the most popular rap groups. The Philly-based group might have to compromise some of the qualities so many have come to love and appreciate if they are to receive the commercial success of individuals such as Will 'Fresh Prince' Smith, Sean 'Puffy' Combs, and to some extent, Jay-Z.

In the long-run, hip hop listeners will benefit more if The Roots keep doing what they’ve been doing and produce good music. And record sells can not be the ultimate indicator of the quality of rap. Why? Because the best hip hop music and artists are not always recognized and what is recognized is not necessarily the best. In fact, some of the most thought provoking music in hip hop might always remain hidden to the larger public. Such is the case with true art.

The Roots’ album "Things Fall Apart", like Chinua Achebe’s book, are works of art we can continue to return to ask questions about art and hip hop that are not so easily answered.