In 2013, West Philly’s DJ AMH was on a trip to Los Angeles where he found himself at a packed club that was playing nothing but R&B. He was surprised, and inspired; back in Philly, none of the DJ nights he frequented did anything quite like it. Upon returning home, he teamed up with longtime friend DJ HBK and decided to fill that void. A packed house lounge hang at Marmont Steakhouse later, and U+ME+RNB was born.
Over the past ten years, the party has grown from big crowds in intimate spaces to wild nights at the TLA, graduating further to headlining events at The Fillmore Philadelphia and Franklin Music Hall. This weekend, U+ME+RNB is one of the featured DJs at the annual Roots Picnic, taking place June 1st and June 2nd at The Mann Center in Fairmount Park.
Stopping by WXPN Studios, DJ AMH spun a sample platter of what U+ME+RNB have in store for Roots Picnic, and chatted with Abdur Rahman about the event, how it’s grown, and how their vision has expanded over time — something that’d led to fans weighing in on what should and shouldn’t be played. “Some people think of R&B this way, some people think of R&B this way. Some people don’t like to hear the same songs. Some people think Drake is R&B. Some people think if you don’t play 90s its not R&B, some people say y’all don’t take it back. There’s so many complaints, but there’s just as many ‘Yo, this is the best party ever.'”
Get a taste of what U+ME+RNB has in store this weekend below, and get tickets and more information on the Roots Picnic here.