You can always count on Questlove to keep it real. The Roots drummer — who is now also the executive music producer for the “Roots” revival, a TV series that originally aired in 1977 and gave a historic portrayal of slavery in America — has always been vocal on social media about important issues, particularly those facing the black community. But in his latest post, things got personal. On Wednesday night, Questlove posted a picture on Instagram with a heartbreaking story of how he and his friends were once pulled over by police after a U2 concert and — how things quickly escalated. “Most people’s Rites Of Passage are marked happy occasions like graduation or birth or things …
You can always count on Questlove to keep it real.
The Roots drummer — who is now also the executive music producer for the “Roots” revival, a TV series that originally aired in 1977 and gave a historic portrayal of slavery in America — has always been vocal on social media about important issues, particularly those facing the black community. But in his latest post, things got personal.
On Wednesday night, Questlove posted a picture on Instagram with a heartbreaking story of how he and his friends were once pulled over by police after a U2 concert and — how things quickly escalated.
“Most people’s Rites Of Passage are marked happy occasions like graduation or birth or things you do when in love,” the Philadelphia native wrote. “Mine was being held at gunpoint at 16.”
It was a haunting night for Questlove. He admitted that, after that evening, “U2 never sounded the same again.”
Though Questlove and his friends felt this fear decades ago, this emotion still resonates with so many today. So far in 2015, on-duty police officers have killed 547 people in the United States, according to The Guardian, reporting that black people are twice as likely to become victims.
“I hated the guilt of just being me,” he wrote. “Nothing more degrading in life than the helplessness you feel when you get pulled over.”
Read Questlove’s entire post below:
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Questlove Was Only 16 When He Was Held At Gunpoint By Police