Roots Rock Society founder Stann Champion wanted to learn the guitar after seeing Chuck Berry perform on TV. As a child he was exposed to a variety of Black Culture music in his home - artists such as Miles Davis, Miriam Makeba, Harry Belafonte, Ahmad Jamal and Oscar Brown Jr. It was in 1980, while Stann was employed at a Chicago Michigan Avenue ad agency by day and playing music at night, that he was approached to record at Bob Marley's Tuff Gong Studios in Jamaica. While in Jamaica, Stann performed live and met members of the Wailers, Third World, Roger Lewis of Inner Circle, producers Kiddus I and Neville Lee, brother of Byron Lee. Stann was also presented the Playing for Peace award which set the tone for his recent musical direction.
Awarded the Best Entertainer of 2003 recently by the 2004 Chicago Music Awards, Roots Rock Society, founded in December 1986, strongly believes in keeping their heritage and culture alive with their energetic live show and innovative blend of Reggae, Calypso, Soul, Zouk and other rhythms of the African diaspora. Hailed as "Chicago legends" by Tribune's Metromix TV and "Chicago's premier reggae band" by WGN Morning News with their one of a kind sounds, sometimes being described as tropical soul or rootsoul. In 2003, with the release of their award winning CD, "Riddim to Riddim", RRS reached 1 million viewers and listeners with television and radio performances, matched with articles and ads in newspapers and magazines. Critics have labeled RRS "nation's best".
Stann formed Roots Rock Society to maintain his African-Caribbean-American culture alive through voice, music and dance in order to heal and reach with sound and movement. With RRS, Stann established performance workshops to teach children and adults about the history of the drum and guitar before they reached the Caribbean and Americas. Even in the beginning, Stann's focus was on his talent for songwriting and storytelling which developed into the band's loyal following.
RRS released their first recording in 1987 on cassette, to a favorable response and it sold quickly. With that in mind, Stann produced and released "Bass Mint Sessions" in 1993 when up to 30 radio stations responded giving it suitable airplay. RRS had a reputation as a great live band in the region, but when Champion met Christopher Columbus, touring with Arrow's band when RRS opened for them at Chicago's Rivera Theater in '94, Chris suggested that Stann go for the world market as opposed to narrow USA market. At that point Stann was off and running. With a degree in advertising and graphics and some marketing skills learned from the field, he figured "I can do this!" and released "Again" in 1996 with the help of engineer and co-producer David Axelbaum (Bob Seger, Koko Taylor, Johnny Winter). It was then that the world was introduced to the music of Roots Rock Society. Playlists as well as letters were coming in from the U.S. and far away places such as France, Africa, New Guinea, Germany, Poland, Spain, and Ireland. Soon after there were offers to appear live on radio and television.
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