Questlove has a random deal: 'Shuffle Cu...

Questlove has a random deal: 'Shuffle Cu...

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Questlove, leader of the Roots and the ‘Late Night With Jimmy Fallon’ band, is hosting the two-night ‘Shuffle Culture’ series.

People complain that modern music lovers dont have the attention span to listen to an entire song, never mind a whole album.

Questlove embraces it.

The 41-ye ar-old drummer, front man for the Roots and Late Night With Jimmy Fallon bandleader, is the man behind Shuffle Culture, a two-night concert at the Brooklyn Academy of Music that will mimic the way New Yorkers constantly flip through tunes on their iPods.

The pair of concerts, on Thursday and Friday nights, will have a rotating cast of nearly 10 musicians from different genres who will constantly switch songs throughout the performance.

The idea is to re-create the experience of someone flipping through their collection of music, says Questlove, seated in a small dressing room at 30 Rock while taking a break from filming Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.

There will be a conductor, and then you will have your rotating cast of characters coming in every two minutes. The show will be about 75 minutes, which means that there are almost 40 configurations that we are going to do.

None of those configurations will sound similar, he says.

Performin g alongside the Philadelphia-born drummer (real name Ahmir Khalib Thompson) is a group of musicians that includes the musical comedian Reggie Watts, bluesman Willis Earl Beal, classical pianist D.D. Jackson, former porn star and musician Sasha Grey, the chamber orchestra Metropolis Ensemble, experimental pop group Deerhoof and beat boxer Rahzel.

Such an eclectic group of performers reflects the diverse tastes of Questlove, who conceived the event and is curating.

The son of a doo-wop singer, he not only formed the Grammy Award-winning band the Roots, but also produced the likes of Al Green, Jay-Z and Erykah Badu. He has collaborated on instrumental jazz albums, DJ compilations and even a Christina Aguilera song.

Ive always been in the center of all these worlds, he says, picking a dried ketchup stain off his right sleeve. We wanted to take some of the old and some of the new music and create a unique experience. Its always interesting to take musician s with different backgrounds and have them play music none of them are really familiar with.

In a way, Shuffle Culture is Questloves tribute to the late Steve Jobs.

We are basically taking remote-control culture to the next level, putting it on steroids, he says. Steve Jobs iPod invention basically redefined the word shuffle by allowing us to carry an entire record collection inside a small digital box.

Not that Questlove has completely given in to the digital age. By his own admission he has a collection of 75,000 vinyl records, which he can play on the three turntables at his home in the Liberty Heights neighborhood of Philadelphia.

I doubt that in this lifetime Ill ever be able to digitize my entire record collection, he says. So Ive got to listen to the record while I can, which is why I keep one of my record players in my bathroom, so I can listen while I shower, read and brush my hair.

So who will show up for a concert inspired b y the randomness of a digital music player?

Questlove isnt sure what kind of fans will attend, but hes sure theyll be there.

There is no hip-hop manual for getting old, he says. The 22-year-old college grad who used to love the Roots in 1994 never left. Hes just 40 now and has a wife and kids and doesnt feel like spending all night at a club. Im guessing thats whos gonna be at this show.

YOU SHOULD KNOW

Questloves Shuffle Culture is at BAM (30 Lafayette Ave., between Fulton St. and Ashland Place in Fort Greene, 718-636-4100), Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m. $ 25. For info, go to bam.org.