South Philly natives, The Roots, were honored this past Friday for their vast influence in the hip hop during the reveal of The Mural Arts Program’s newest mural entitled, “Legendary.” This mural illustrates The Roots’ history as it tells a story of the past 21 years through prolific images and text. Consequently, the mural was painted on the back wall of the World Communications Charter School (512 S. Broad St) where The Roots once busked for change after their start in 1992.
This mural is part of a collection of over 3,500 murals spread throughout the city with the common goal of uniting artists and communities, especially inner-city youth. Executive Director of the Mural Arts Program, Jane Golden expressed her passion for this organization through great praise, “Art saves lives and ignites change; that’s our motto at Mural Arts. We are lucky the citizens of the city continue to drive our missions forward.” In preparation for the Annual Roots Picnic the next day, each band member was in attendance along with Mayor Michael Nutter – a huge Roots fan himself – and the incredibly creative mural artists.
With the spirit of The Roots captured, this mural came full circle for the group members especially for Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter. “It hits close to home for me that this is in South Philadelphia. This is my part of town. It’s an honor and a blessing.”
We are huge supporters of the Mural Arts Program in Philadelphia. Please visit http://www.muralarts.org/ to learn about this fantastic organization.
