Wake Up! is the first collaborative album and fourth studio album by American R&B recording artist John Legend and hip-hop band the Roots, released September 21, 2010, by GOOD Music and Columbia Records. The album was produced by Legend with band members Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson and James Poyser, and features guest appearances by CL Smooth, Malik Yusef, Common, and Melanie Fiona, among others. Inspired by the 2008 United States presidential election, Legend and the Roots primarily covered 1960s and 1970s soul music songs for the album with social themes of awareness, engagement, and consciousness.

The album debuted at number eight on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 63,000 copies in its first week. Upon its release, Wake Up! received positive reviews from most music critics, who complimented its production and the artists' treatment and performance of the material. It would go on to win the 2010 Grammy Award for Best R&B Album.Grammy.com - Past Winners

Background Wake Up! follows the releases of Legend's Evolver (2008) and the Roots's How I Got Over (2010). Legend and the Roots were inspired to record a collaborative album by the 2008 United States presidential election.MacManus, Christopher (June 28, 2010). John Legend & The Roots Collaborate To Engage Listeners With Wake Up!. Sony Insider. Retrieved on 2010-09-19. In an interview for Billboard, Legend explained the reason for the album's conception at the time, stating "I was in the middle of campaigning for Barack Obama and feeling inspired by the atmosphere in the country at the time, so I wanted to do something musically that reflected that moment. The original idea was to do some sort of covers EP, but the more I got into it with the Roots, it felt like something that should be heard and marketed on its own".Herrera, Monica (September 17, 2010). John Legend & ?uestlove: The Billboard Cover Story. Billboard. Retrieved on 2010-09-19. The album's title was inspired by Canadian rock band Arcade Fire's song of the same name.

Music Wake Up! features mostly covers of songs from the soul music of the 1960s and 1970s, and incorporates musical elements from gospel, rock, reggae, and hip-hop. Songs covered for the album include "Wholy Holy" by Marvin Gaye, "Little Ghetto Boy" by Donny Hathaway, "Hard Times" by Baby Huey, and "Hang on in There" by Mike James Kirkland. The lone original song for Wake Up! is the Legend-penned album closer "Shine".Vrabel, Jeff (September 20, 2010). "The Roots and John Legend: Wake Up! :: Music :: Reviews". Paste. Retrieved 2010-09-20. A different version of "Shine" was included in the album's deluxe edition and is used during the closing credits of the 2010 film Waiting for "Superman".Columnist (January 26, 2010). "'Superman', John Legend 'shine' Sundance light on schools". Associated Press. Retrieved on 2010-09-26. In an interview for The Guardian, Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson of the Roots said that they intended to cover lesser-known soul songs, stating "I wanted to choose cover songs that were so under the radar, so uniquely interpreted, that it would take you a second to realise that these are cover songs [at all]".Michaels, Sean (May 12, 2010). "The Roots and John Legend to release covers album inspired by Arcade Fire". The Guardian. Retrieved on 2010-09-19. Questlove has said that the band's instrumentation for the album is looser than on previous albums, with a jamming and "grass-roots feel". Wake Up! contains lyrical themes concerning social awareness, engagement, and consciousness. The Roots' lead MC Black Thought is featured on few tracks, as the band mostly accompanies Legend's singing with live instrumentation.Nero, Mark Edward (September 17, 2010). "Album Review: John Legend and The Roots - 'Wake Up!'" . About.com. Retrieved 2010-09-19. Other rappers featured on the album include Common, CL Smooth, and Malik Yusef.Lewis, Pete (October 2010). "John Legend: Back to My Roots" . Blues & Soul. Retrieved on 2010-11-02.

Singles The album's lead single, "Wake Up Everybody", a cover of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes song of the same name, was released on April 29, 2010, and features rapper Common and Canadian R&B singer Melanie Fiona.B.Dot (April 29, 2010). The Roots x John Legend “Wake Up Everybody”. Rap Radar. Retrieved on 2010-09-19. It reached number 53 and spent 14 weeks on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.John Legend Album & Song Chart History – R&B/Hip-Hop Songs . Billboard. Retrieved on 2011-02-23. The second single, "Hard Times", was released on September 7, 2010, and has the Roots's lead MC Black Thought as a featured artist.Big Homie (September 7, 2010). New Music: John Legend & The Roots x Black Thought “Hard Times”. Rap Radar. Retrieved on 2010-09-19.

Reception

Critical response

Wake Up! received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 77, based on 22 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews"."Critic Reviews for Wake Up!". Metacritic. Retrieved 2010-09-21. Sean Fennessey of The Washington Post called it "a surprisingly rugged enterprise" and complimented The Roots' "brawny arrangements of a cleverly curated batch of songs".Fennessey, Sean (September 20, 2010). "Review of 'Wake Up!' by John Legend an [sic] the Roots". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2010-09-21. About.com's Mark Edward Nero commended their "outstanding job" as a backing band and called Wake Up! "a very moving, extremely well-performed and well-produced album". Rolling Stone writer Jody Rosen called it "a brilliantly conceived and executed album" and stated "Legend and the Roots capture the old feeling of protest and uplift while updating the sound."Rosen, Jody (September 21, 2010). "Wake Up". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2013-11-15. Jeff Vrabel of Paste called it "organic and opulent, with a heart of diamonds and a lush sound to match". The Boston Globes Julian Benbow noted Legend's range and stated, "The Roots band practically makes sonic photocopies of the originals".Benbow, Julian (September 20, 2010). "John Legend and the Roots, 'Wake Up!'". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2010-09-19. Newsdays Glenn Gamboa stated, "Legend's rich soul vocals and The Roots' equally lush soul arrangements succeed in updating these classics subtly, making them fit admirably both in the past and the present."Gamboa, Glenn (September 17, 2010). "John Legend's thrilling 'Wake Up!' call". Newsday. Retrieved 2010-09-19. Steve Jones of USA Today stated, "The Roots contemporize them with just enough hip-hop flavor, while the soulful Legend injects them with renewed passion".Jones, Steve (September 21, 2010). "Listen Up: 'Wake Up!' and hear the inspiration from Legend, The Roots (John Legend and The Roots, Wake Up!: Past Times, Our Times)". USA Today. Retrieved 2013-11-15. In his Consumer Guide, Robert Christgau gave the album a three-star honorable mention; he picked out two of its songs ("Compared to What" and "I Can't Write Left-Handed") and called it "A myth of conscious soul neither the singer nor his attendant rappers can quite put across".

Chicago Tribune writer Greg Kot noted that "Legend sings with more grit than usual, and the Roots crackle with energy", but stated, "This well-intentioned collection never surpasses the strong originals from which it draws".Kot, Greg (September 16, 2010). "Turn It Up: Album review: John Legend and the Roots, 'Wake Up!'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2010-09-19. Mikael Wood of Spin considered that "The results don't always play to [Legend]'s melodic strengths; ?uestlove sounds a bit reined-in, too."Wood, Mikael (September 9, 2010). "John Legend & the Roots, 'Wake Up!' (Columbia)". Spin. Retrieved 2010-09-19. AllMusic writer Andy Kellman shared a similar sentiment and commented that "There are several instances when the Roots, who are deeply intimate with grit, outshine Legend, whose polished and pride-rich voice occasionally clashes with the material."Kellman, Andy (September 22, 2010). [ "Wake Up! - John Legend and the Roots"]. AllMusic. Retrieved 2010-09-23. Chicago Sun-Times writer gave it two out of four stars and stated: "Legend might be the weak link; he's not the grittiest singer to be tackling this particular set list – he's often a boy in a man's studio here, especially when he gamely but lamely yeah's through the 12-minute arc of Bill Withers' wartime lament 'I Can't Write Left-Handed' – but his ease mostly makes a dynamic foil for the Roots' muscle and the frequent guest vocals." (September 23, 2010). "Maroon 5, 'Hands All Over'; John Legend & the Roots, 'Wake Up!'" . Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2010-09-23. Zach Cole of URBs criticized Legend's singing as overdone and wrote that the album "run[s] the risk of coming across as entirely cheesy and contrived".Cole, Zach (September 20, 2010). "John Legend & The Roots - Wake Up!". URB. Retrieved 2010-09-20. Slant Magazine's Jesse Cataldo found it musically "hollow and brittle" and commented that "Many of these treatments are good, but barely justify what amounts to a good-time vanity project for both acts."Cataldo, Jesse (September 18, 2010). "John Legend and the Roots: Wake Up!". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 2013-11-15.

Richard Trapunski of NOW viewed that Legend's "straightforward neo-soul delivery often plays it safe", but concluded: "the expertly curated track list and funky arrangements make it more than a tossed-off vanity project."Trapunski, Richard (September 30-October 7, 2010). "John Legend and The Roots: Wake Up! (Sony)". NOW. Retrieved 2013-11-15. Despite finding its arrangements unadventurous, Los Angeles Times writer Todd Martens called Wake Up! "a respectable love letter, if not quite an urgent one, to artists who shouldn’t be overlooked" and commended Legend for "stretching out of his [comfort zone]... he packs far more spark here than he did on 2008’s Evolver."Martens, Todd (September 22, 2010). "Album Review: John Legend and the Roots' 'Wake Up!'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-09-22. David Amidon of PopMatters viewed that Legend "not only delivers his most focused effort yet, but his most diverse".Amidon, David (September 29, 2010). "John Legend & The Roots: Wake Up!". PopMatters. Retrieved 2013-11-15. Rupert Howe of Q cited Wake Up! as "one of the finest soul albums of recent times" and complimented Legend's vocal "versatility".Howe, Rupert (November 2010). "John Legend & the Roots: Wake Up!". Q: 107. Archived from the original on 2010-09-30. Dave Simpson of The Guardian noted Legend's "emotional rawness" and wrote that "many of the tracks have a raw, driving feel along the lines of [Marvin] Gaye's Inner City Blues".Simpson, Dave (October 14, 2010). "John Legend & the Roots: Wake Up! - review". The Guardian. Retrieved 2010-10-14. The A.V. Clubs Nathan Rabin commented that "The Roots' tight playing serves the songs and their messages rather than the other way around, while Legend has mastered the art of singing expressively without over-emoting."Rabin, Nathan (September 28, 2010). "John Legend & The Roots: Wake Up!". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2010-09-30. Brad Wheeler of The Globe and Mail gave the album three out of four stars and commented that they "succeed" in their "attempt to keep these songs 'real' compared to the original versions".Wheeler, Brad (September 20, 2010). "Disk of the week: John Legend". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2013-11-15.

Commercial performance