A Tribe Called Quest

Biography & Overview

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. A Tribe Called Quest came to prominence as members of the Native Tongues collective, which they co-founded in 1988. Widely regarded as pioneers of alternative hip-hop and jazz rap, John Bush of AllMusic called them "the most intelligent, artistic rap group during the 1990s", and Kris Ex of Pitchfork regarded them as "one of the greatest acts that hip-hop has ever produced".
The group's debut album, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm (1990), earned critical acclaim, receiving the first five 'mic' rating in The Source's history. Their jazz-infused follow-up, The Low End Theory (1991), helped shape 1990s alternative hip-hop, and was followed by the equally influential Midnight Marauders (1993). Beats, Rhymes and Life (1996), became their ...