The Legacy of Donald Byrd
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This is…the REMIX (Audio Playlist)
It used to be remixes were a BIG deal. Unlike now, where an extra verse from a featured rapper constitutes a remix, remixes were often wholly-different takes on a song. The track was substantially different than the original and sometimes there were completely new verses. Here's a playlist of some... Read more
What makes an album a classic? Here are our criteria and 15 albums we think make the cut (with songs from each) (Food For Thought)
With the release of Kendrick Lamar's good kid, m.A.A.d. city album, many are using the word "classic" (including us--though we said "modern day classic"...more on that later) about a hip-hop album for the first time in a long, long time. No doubt, just the utterance of the "c" word is... Read more
Chris Lighty Tribute (Video)
If there were any questions about the impact Chris Lighty had on hip-hop and music, generally, last night's stirring tribute to him at the Hip-Hop Awards answered them. The late mogul was celebrated by performances from some of his biggest clients including Busta Rhymes, 50 Cent, Fat Joe, Missy Elliott... Read more
Check out this mix of The Pharcyde’s Passing Me By, A Tribe Called Quest’s 1nce Again and Black Moon’s How Many MC’s (Audio)
You dig that Bizarre Tribe mixtape combining ATCQ and Pharcyde music? Here's one to really blow your wig back. ABSOLUTE FIRE!!! Check out Pharcyde of the Black Moon. Related: Bizarre Tribe – A Quest to The Pharcyde a blend of classic cuts from A Tribe Called Quest and The Pharcyde... Read more
Bizarre Tribe – A Quest to The Pharcyde a blend of classic cuts from A Tribe Called Quest and The Pharcyde(Mixtape)
A super fresh mashup of ATCQ's Electric Relaxation and The Pharcyde's Runnin' dropped a couple of weeks ago from a project called Bizarre Tribe: A Quest to the Pharcyde. Here's the full project which is chock full of blends of classics from Tribe and The Pharcyde. Dope! You can listen... Read more
The impact of Chris Lighty
The hip-hop community is still reeling from the sudden and tragic loss of Chris Lighty on Thursday. Here are links to 2 of the better articles written about both the impact Lighty had on hip-hop culture and the man, himself. First is an article written by Rob Kenner of Complex... Read more
Bizarre Tribe – Runnin’
Here's a mashup of A Tribe Called Quest's Electric Relaxation and The Pharcyde's Runnin. Super ill. This is part of an upcoming project called Bizarre Tribe by Gummy Soul that will do several mash ups between the 2 legendary groups. Check out the song and a video trailer for the... Read more
A Tribe Called Quest & Leaders of the New School perform Scenario live at the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival (Video)
The annual Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival took place on Saturday. There were many dope moments but the highlight was when Busta Rhymes brought Leaders of the New School AND A Tribe Called Quest onstage to do the first live rendition of Scenario in almost 20 years. Check out the video below.... Read more
Phife Dawg Speaks to The Come Up Show (Video)
Here's a cool interview of Phife Dawg from A Tribe Called Quest. He speaks on the Beats, Rhymes & Life documentary, Nas role in spearheading the documentary, Q-Tip's personality and more. Check out the video below. Related: Beats, Rhymes & Mixes - A playlist inspired by the ATCQ documentary... Read more
Rap music started with 2 turntables and a microphone, no doubt, but there’s something special when a dope MC’s voice combines with other instruments. Here’s a playlist of 13 songs that feature some if not all live instrumentation on the track–maybe drums, a bass line, horns or all the above (Playlist)
You'll hear music from DJ Quik, Eazy-E, Elzhi, Big KRIT, The Roots, De La Soul, Jay-Z, A Tribe Called Quest, Mos Def, Grand Puba, The Pharcyde and 2Pac. You can listen to the whole thing below. Sit back and experience hip-hop Live & Direct.... Read more
Here’s a Valentine’s Day Playlist for Lover’s of Hip-Hop (Audio)
Like most relationships, the one between Hip-Hop & Love is complicated. Here's a playlist showing its many sides. You'll find music from Common, Mos Def, Dead Prez, The Roots, OutKast, Snoop Dogg, Murs, A Tribe Called Quest, Pharoahe Monch, Slum Village, Heavy D, Method Man, Biggie and many more. Some... Read more
EVITAN (Dres & Jarobi) – P.T.I. (Occupy Wall Street)
Dres from Black Sheep and Jarobi from A Tribe Called Quest team up as EVITAN to put out a strong song about the Occupy Wall Street movement. Check out the video for P.T.I. (Occupy Wall Street). Salute to them for still making great music.... Read more
Today most people know Jive Records for Britney and Justin. Here’s why they’re the 11th most important hip-hop record label of all time.
Long before Clive Calder built Jive Records into the pop music juggernaut that featured Britney Spears, Nsync, The Backstreet Boys, R. Kelly and Justin Timberlake, the label was the home to some of the most important acts in hip-hop. These artists achieved both commercial and critical success and some went... Read more
Before The Glitter: We asked you what the best year in hip-hop was and you answered. Here’s the first in a series of playlists that will feature music from the era you picked as the greatest in hip-hop…thus far: ’87-’99. This first installment features music from De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, The Jungle Brothers, Queen Latifah, Kid N Play, Special Ed, Monie Love, Chubb Rock, Pete Rock & CL Smooth and more. Check it out.
You listen to us on the regular. We listen to you too...We asked a couple of weeks ago what the best year ever in hip-hop was. There was no clear individual year that surfaced (though '93 and '94 got a lot of votes) but there was an overwhelming consensus that... Read more
Beats, Rhymes & Mixes: This week’s mix was inspired by the A Tribe Called Quest documentary. You’ll here lots of Tribe from the Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders years, as well as other artists who were doing it at that time: Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Diamond D, The Beatnuts, Showbiz & AG, De La Soul, Black Sheep, The Pharcyde, Main Source, Brand Nubian and more.
And, if you haven't seen Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest, it is a MUST for any ATCQ fan or student of hip-hop. Enjoy. Ambrosia For Heads Tribal Inspirations Mix... Read more
Can’t wait to see the A Tribe Called Quest documentary? It’s coming soon to a theater near you.
Click here for details on locations and release dates for Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest. Also, here's a playlist we did celebrating music produced by Q-Tip.... Read more
Q-Tip is a great MC…quietly, he’s a really dope producer too. The latest installment of the Producer Series playlists features music produced by Q-Tip.
Everyone knows what Q-Tip brought to the mic for A Tribe Called Quest, but his production contributions are rarely mentioned. He and Ali Shaheed Muhammad often shared those duties, with Tip producing under the name The Abstract. Q-Tip also did a fair amount of production as part of The Ummah,... Read more
There is NO WAY I could let this day go by without a tribute to the late, great J. Dilla. Here’s a playlist with some of my favorite Dilla joints.
37 years ago today was his born day and, to the HUGE loss of the hip-hop community, the anniversary of his death is on 2/10/06. In the short time he was with us, he left an indelible sonic imprint on the hip-hip, R&B and general music landscape. Here's a playlist... Read more
Jazz has never been one of my favorite genres. Yet, it is the foundation of hip-hop samples (along with James Brown and Funkadelic). Chuwee’s Yes Yes Yo reminded me of this and inspired this week’s playlist. You’ll find A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Gang Starr, The Roots, Nas, Eric B. and Rakim and others.
Guaranteed to help make a smooth transition into the weekend. Press play, sit back and enjoy. If you missed Yes Yes Yo by Chuwee, click here.... Read more
Consequence has always been on the verge but he never had that hit to take him to the next level.
He had an incredible pedigree--his big debut was on A Tribe Called Quest's Beats, Rhymes and Life, he was Q-Tip's cousin and he became closely affiliated with Kanye West, ultimately signing with G.O.O.D. Music. He never had that one big song that put him on the map, though. His new... Read more
Rewin(d) – AFH Samples (Video Playlist)
We recently posted a documentary about sampling so it seems fitting to make this week's playlist one dedicated to some classic samples. You'll find music sampled by Jay-Z, Dr. Dre, A Tribe Called Quest, Kanye West, DJ Quik, Biggie, 2Pac, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Redman, Black Moon and more. The tracklist... Read more
If you like hip-hop from the early 90's this Mick Boogie mixtape will blow your mind. Vintage and remixed classics from LL, Snoop, Pete Rock, Tribe, Gangstarr, De La, Pharcyde and that's just 7 songs out of 27…
Click here to download '93 Til Infinity. Need more Mick Boogie in your life? Click here to see over 100 of his mixtapes. Here's the tracklist for '93 Til Infinity. 1. Mick Boogie – Intro 2. Das Efx – Mic Checka (Remix) 3. Souls Of Mischief – 93 Til Infinity... Read more