The Questlove Show

Recorded one week before the 2020 election, this classic sit-down goes behind the news desk with Joy Reid. She explains how she anchors The ReidOut from a studio NBC built in her basement, with her husband running production and her daughter handing her the scripts. Joy also tells the story of her unlikely path: she was born in East Flatbush, grew up in Denver, and switched from pre-med to film at Harvard. From there she produced a Reggae video show and booked a very young Shaggy (who later appeared on QLS) before she broke into local news in Miami.
Along the way, the crew asks why Hip-Hop went quiet on politics, and Joy explains why she covers the then (and now) President like a toddler you can't stop watching on the baby monitor.
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Before the Ramones and the Sex Pistols, Lenny Kaye was clerking at Village Oldies on Bleecker Street. In 1972, he compiled Nuggets—and its liner notes helped shape the emerging idea of Punk Rock.
Questlove and Lenny nerd out as fellow record obsessives, swapping stories about organizing vinyl, seeing Jimi Hendrix twice, meeting Patti Smith (whom he played guitar for ever since), and recording “Piss Factory” in the final 15 minutes of a session at Electric Lady. Lenny also talks about his new solo debut, Goin' Local, out now on Yep Roc. Made for artistic closure, not to chase a trend, the personal, unhurried record came from a simple conviction: “because I’m my favorite artist.” He reflects on creativity, his enduring love of music, and the crates he’s digging through now.
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Open Mike Eagle and Cousin Jake unpack E-40’s conversation on The Questlove Show. They get into how E-40 has kept writing new chapters—and inventing new styles—for nearly 40 years; what independence really means; and why “lyricist” can come with an unfair bias. Plus, E-40 credited one MC with helping shape his unmistakable delivery in an ah-ha moment of the convo.
They also give flowers to Hieroglyphics’ Casual, a Bay Area great E-40 says deserves more credit. Which Bay Area rappers should we be talking about?
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For Nat Adderley Jr., serving as Luther Vandross’ musical director and longtime pianist was one chapter in a remarkable musical life—and a partnership that helped shape the sound of modern R&B. In conversation with Questlove, Nat looks back on making “Never Too Much,” flying in from Houston to play “A House Is Not a Home,” and trying to talk Luther out of recording the Carpenters’ version of “Superstar.” As Vandross is inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Nat recalls the grandeur of Luther’s stage shows and the loss of drummer Yogi Horton. He also reflects on how his arrangement of “If This World Were Mine” found new life in Kendrick Lamar’s “Luther.”
The funny, unpredictable conversation also touches on Nat’s new album, Took So Long—his first as a leader and a return to the Jazz roots that run through his family and his work. In a personal full-circle moment, Questlove tells Nat how a protest song Nat recorded at 15 with his uncle Cannonball Adderley changed his life.
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Open Mike Eagle and producer Cousin Jake react to the Vince Staples episode of the Questlove Show, which has quickly become one of the biggest videos on the QLS YouTube channel.
The two unpack Vince's candor and persona, even as it applies to the Internet commentary when he stated he doesn't have a favorite song of his own, and why his blunt, unpolished honesty makes him such a good guest. Mike and Jake also look at Vince's deep Hip-Hop references, from Blu & Exile to Jemini the Gifted One and Murs, and debate whether the line between underground and mainstream Rap was ever real.
Plus, they casually look back at a QLS season that ran from JoJo to Wallo, and Mike shares his upcoming tour dates.
As a reminder, keep sending mailbag questions to @QLS or QuestloveSupreme.com, and tell somebody about the show.
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