A Tribe Called Quest was an American hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985, originally composed of rapper and main producer Q-Tip, rapper Phife Dawg, DJ and co-producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and rapper Jarobi White. The group is regarded as a pioneer of alternative hip hop and merging jazz with hip hop, influencing numerous hip hop and R&B musicians.
The Low End Theory is the second studio album by American hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released on September 24, 1991, by Jive Records. Recording sessions for the album were held mostly at Battery Studios in New York City, from 1990 to 1991. The album was primarily produced by group member Q-Tip, with a minimalist sound that combines bass, drum breaks, and jazz samples, in a departure from the group's debut album, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm (1990). Lyrically, the album features social commentary, word play, humor, and interplay between Q-Tip and fellow member Phife Dawg.
The Native Tongues were a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s hip-hop artists known for their positive-minded, good-natured Afrocentric lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and jazz-influenced beats. Its principal members were the Jungle Brothers, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Monie Love, and Queen Latifah. The collective was also closely tied to the Universal Zulu Nation. Rolling Stone cites the track "Doin' Our Own Dang" as "the definitive Native Tongues posse cut".
Midnight Marauders is the third studio album by American hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released on November 9, 1993, by Jive Records. Recording sessions for the album occurred at Battery Studios, Platinum Island Studios and Scorcerer Sound in New York City. Its production was mainly handled by Q-Tip, with contributions from Skeff Anselm, Large Professor and the group's DJ, Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A culmination of the group's two previous albums, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm and The Low End Theory, it features an eclectic, gritty sound based on jazz, funk, soul and R&B samples, in addition to socially conscious, positively-minded, and humorous lyrics.
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm is the debut studio album by American hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released on April 10, 1990, on Jive Records. After forming the Native Tongues collective and collaborating on several projects, A Tribe Called Quest began recording sessions for People's Instinctive Travels in late 1989 at Calliope Studios with completion reached in early 1990. The album's laid back production encompassed a diverse range of samples which functioned as a template for the group's unorthodox lyrics.
Kamaal Ibn John Fareed, better known by his stage name Q-Tip, is an American rapper, record producer, singer, and DJ. Nicknamed the Abstract, he is noted for his innovative jazz-influenced style of hip hop production and his philosophical, esoteric and introspective lyrical themes. He embarked on his music career in the late 1980s, as an MC and main producer of the influential alternative hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. In the mid-1990s, he co-founded the production team The Ummah, followed by the release of his gold-certified solo debut Amplified in 1999. In the following decade, he released the Grammy Award-nominated album The Renaissance (2008) and the experimental album Kamaal the Abstract (2009).
The Ummah was a music production collective, composed of members Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest, and the late Jay Dee of the Detroit-based group Slum Village. Occasional members included Raphael Saadiq, and D'Angelo. In addition to producing nearly the entirety of A Tribe Called Quest's fourth and fifth albums, the Ummah provided backing tracks and remixes for a notable array of hip hop and contemporary R&B artists, including Busta Rhymes, Whitney Houston, Keith Murray, the Brand New Heavies, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, and Jon B. The group was so named because two of its members are devout Muslims. The word "ummah" is Arabic for "community", "nation", or "brotherhood". Generally, the term refers to the global Muslim population.
"One Love" is a song by American rapper Nas, released October 25, 1994 on Columbia Records. It was issued as the fifth and final radio single in promotion of his debut studio album Illmatic (1994). The song was produced by Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest, who also contributed vocals for the chorus line. According to Nas, the title of the song originates from Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician Bob Marley's song of the same name.
Jarobi White is an American hip hop artist, chef, and a founding member of alternative hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, alongside members Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, and Ali Shaheed Muhammad. He left the group after the release of their debut album, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm in order to pursue culinary arts, before returning for their last album, 2016's We Got It from Here... Thank You 4 Your Service. In the early 2010s, Jarobi formed evitaN with Dres, formerly of Black Sheep. Their first album, Speed of Life, was released in October 2012.
"Find a Way" is a song by A Tribe Called Quest, the first single from their fifth album The Love Movement. The New York Times' Ben Ratliff wrote that "Find a Way" "innocently wonders about the point at which friendship spills over into sex."
"Bonita Applebum" is the second single from A Tribe Called Quest's debut album People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm. The song contains samples of "Daylight" by RAMP, "Memory Band" by Rotary Connection, "Jagger the Dagger" by Eugene McDaniels and "Fool Yourself" by Little Feat. Rolling Stone featured "Bonita Applebum" on their list of 20 essential songs from the group.
The Anthology is A Tribe Called Quest's 1999 greatest hits compilation spanning their career up to that point. The compilation contains songs from all of their currently existing full-length catalogue, including People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, The Low End Theory, Midnight Marauders, Beats, Rhymes and Life and The Love Movement, as well as select soundtrack releases. It also contains Q-Tip's "Vivrant Thing", which was featured on the first music compilation for Violator Management through Violator Records/Def Jam Recordings. The song would also later be featured on Q-Tip's solo effort, 1999's Amplified. "Vivrant Thing" is also substituted with "Mr. Incognito" for the Japan release. The album cover features Erykah Badu with fluorescent stripes of green and orange reminiscent of the traditional colors of the Kente tribe of the north Congo.
Hits, Rarities & Remixes is a compilation album by A Tribe Called Quest. It features two previously unreleased songs as well as remixes and some of the group's more familiar songs. It also contains songs that were featured in movie soundtracks.
"A Roller Skating Jam Named 'Saturdays'" is a song by American hip hop trio De La Soul, released on July 23, 1991 as the second single from their second studio album, De La Soul Is Dead (1991). The track includes vocal contributions from rapper Q-Tip, R&B singer Vinia Mojica and entrepreneur Russell Simmons. The track's composition is built around many samples. The song was generally well-received by critics. The song peaked at number twenty-two on the UK Singles Chart and at numbers six and forty three on the United States Billboard Hot Dance Club Play and Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs charts respectively.
Revised Quest for the Seasoned Traveller is a compilation of rare material released by A Tribe Called Quest in 1992.
The Fatboy Slim/Norman Cook Collection is a compilation album by British big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released on Hip-O Records in 2000. It was remixed and produced by Fatboy Slim.
The Best of A Tribe Called Quest is a 2008 compilation album consisting of songs recorded by A Tribe Called Quest and released between 1988 and 1998.
The discography of Boogie Down Productions consists of five studio albums, one live album and two compilation albums.
Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest is a 2011 documentary film about the music group A Tribe Called Quest, directed by Michael Rapaport. The film was released on July 8, 2011, by Sony Pictures Classics.
The following is a discography of production by Q-Tip, an American hip hop musician, record producer, and DJ. All songs credited as "produced by A Tribe Called Quest" were produced by Q-Tip, with the exception of "True Fuschnick", "Heavenly Father", and "La Schmoove" by Fu-Schnickens, which were produced by Ali Shaheed Muhammad. Q-Tip's contributions as a member of The Ummah production team are also listed. Q-Tip has also been credited under the pseudonyms "The Abstract", "The Lone Ranger", and "Qualiall".
