Called one of the “20 greatest live acts in the world” by Rolling Stone magazine, Grammy Award-winning hip-hop band The Roots will take over Memorial Auditorium on Saturday, Dec. 1 as the main attraction of the annual Big Game Concert.

The Roots are a Philadelphia-based group famous for their heavy jazz sound and live instrumentation. The band has gained critical acclaim since its inception in 1987, and their live sets are frequently called the best in the hip-hop genre.

“They’re known for putting on a great live show,” said Stanford Concert Network (SCN) Director Chris Chen ‘08. “They’ve got this nice jazzy sound, and they play their own instruments. It’s a nice mix of hip hop, rap and jazz.”

“They’re definitely danceable,” added Roxie Dickinson ‘10, assistant director of SCN.

The band has toured extensively over the past decade, and recently backed rapper Jay-Z for a third time. The group has also recently performed in New York’s Radio City Music Hall with Common, Nas, Talib Kweli and Big Daddy Kane.

“The Roots are definitely a quality act,” Chen said. “They’ve worked with a lot of high-quality artists, and they’re very well-respected in the hip-hop community.”

The band won its first Grammy Award in 1999 for Best Performance by a Duo or Group and has been nominated three times since.

The Big Game Concert, which is traditionally held the weekend of Big Game, has historically featured such high-profile performers as Jason Mraz, Talib Kweli, Nappy Roots and Vertical Horizon.

Chen and Dickinson are confident that next month’s concert will not disappoint.

“In the past the turnout has been pretty good, but it depends on what act we can bring,” Chen said. “I think we have a good enough act this year that a lot more students will come out.”

“I definitely think this will be one of the better shows we’ve had in my time here,” Dickinson added.

This year’s concert, whose motto is, “Respect Your Roots,” will also feature two student hip-hop groups, Von and Jidenna the Chief, as openers.

“Basically the entire show is going to be hip-hop,” Chen said.

The concert is slated for 9 p.m., which will allow students to go to both Big Game and the show in MemAud.

“We want students to go to the football game,” Chen said, “but we’re trying to put a little gap in between so they can get dinner, shower and do whatever they need before coming out to the show.

“Big Game is another amazing Stanford tradition that students shouldn’t miss,” Dickinson said. “Regardless of how we do at the game, the Big Game Concert will be a great pick-me-up.”

Tickets for the concert will be available both through dorm pre-sales and at an SCN table in White Plaza this week. The cost of attending the concert for students is $20, down from last year’s cost of $23. The concert is open to outsiders, who will have to pay $35 per ticket.

“We want to sell tickets primarily to students,” Dickinson said, “but we’re selling them off-campus as well.”

“Our goal is to get as many students as we can because we want to keep it a Stanford event,” Chen added.

The concert will begin at 9 p.m. on Dec. 1; doors will open at 8:15 p.m.