8/6/2019 A Tribe Called Quest Hip-Hop Documentary
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As a teenager growing up in New
York City in the late 1980s, Michael
Rapaport listened religiously to hip-
hop radio station 98.7 Kiss FM. That
was where he first heard A Tribe
Called Quest.
I was just taken by the musicality,
he actor-turned-director recalls. Tribe
were like superheroes. They were larger-han-life people talking
about these
everyday things.
The legendary Queens hip-hop
group made up of rapper-producer
Q-Tip, rapper Phife Dawg and DJ/
producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad
released three groundbreaking
ecords and changed the face of hip-
hop throughout the 1990s. (Rapper
arobi White has f loated in and out of
he band, recently touring again with
Tribe.) They gained a loyal following
of lifelong fans including Rapaport.
He was there when Tribe played its
breakup show in 1998 and again
when they played a reunion show
in 2008, and those experiences inspired
him to make Beats, Rhymes & Life:
The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest,
opening Friday at E Street Cinema.
The documentary marks the
directorial debut for the actor, who
is perhaps best known for roles on
Friends and Prison Break. He
spent three years filming the group
at home and onstage, and the result
is a smart, funny and surprisingly
poignant film chronicling the rocky
relationships between the Tribe
members most prominently Q-Tip
and Phife Dawg.
Lifelong friends who started
rapping before they were 10 years
old, the two helped to define Tribes
unique boho musical style but grew
apart with each new record. Phifes
battle with diabetes, which involved
an emergency kidney transplant
in 2008, prompted a round of
reunion shows to defray his medical
costs and inspired some of the most
moving scenes in Beats, Rhymes
& Life. But the film captures some
o f t he i r f r ie ndship s t o ug he r
moments, too: At one point, Phife andQ - T i p n e a r l y c o m
e t o b l o w s
backstage.
Still, Rapaport insists the two
are friends and as close as brothers.
Of course, sometimes you just
hate your brother, he laughs. The
people you love the most can be the
people you cant stand the most. But
whether they like it or not, theyre
married to A Tribe Called Quest for
life. STEPHEN M. DEUSNER
This dance-floor
come-on, from the
groups 1990 debut,
Peoples Instinctive
Travels and the Paths
of Rhythm, casts
Q-Tip as the ultimate
boho Romeo.
The answer to this
1990 jam is always,
Yes, you can!
Closes out 1991s The
Low End Theory
with a party vibe and
Tribes liveliest call-
and-responses.
This 1991 track
features some of
Q-Tips best samples
and some of Phifes
funniest rhymes.
Inventive samples
on this 1993 tune
highlight the Tribe
members distinctive
personalities.S.D.
A new documentarytraces the tale ofhip-hop trailblazersA Tribe
Called Quest
Phife Dawg (Malik Isaac Taylor) opens
up about Beats, Rhymes & Life and
what the future holds for Tribe.
What did you think about having a
camera in your face for a few ye ars?
At first, I wasnt really a fan of it. Mike
[Rapaport] approached me last out of
the group. Everybody had agreed to do
it, and I wasnt going to be the one to say
no. Hes a funny dude, and we cracked
jokes and talked about the bum-ass
Knicks. By the time the cameras came
on, it was like they werent on.
Does Tribe plan to record again?
Thats pretty much up in the air. In my
heart of hearts, I hope well be able
to tour eventually. As far as doing
another album, hopefully, itll happen,
because weve owed Jive Records
another one since forever. But right
now were concentrating on the film
and getting over those emotional
scars.
What is your relationship withQ-Tip like these days?
Were cool now. We were finally able
to sit down, put everything out on
the table. I dont want it to seem like
were the worst of enemies. Thats my
brother, and family argues sometimes.
How is your health?
My health is fine. Every now and
then something might go awry, but
its nothing like what I had to go
through from 2004 through 2008.
God is good, you know. S.D.
ROBERTBENAVIDES
MICHAEL RAPAPORT, DIRECTOR OF THE NEW
DOCUMENTARY BEATS, RHYMES & LIFE: THE TRAVELS
OF A TRIBE CALLED QUEST, WHICH TRACES THE
CAREER OF THE INFLUENTIAL NEW YORK HIP-HOP
GROUP AND THE STRAINED RELATIONSHIPS OF ITS
MEMBERS.
Hip-hop legends A Tribe Called Quest from left, Phif e Dawg,
Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad made a major mark on rap in the
1990s .
MICHAELRAPAPORT,
COURTESYOFSONYPICTURESCLASSICS
Landmark E Street Cinema, 555 11thSt. NW; opens Fri., $11;
202-452-7672,
Landmarktheatres.com. (Metro Center)
