Beats, Rhymes and Life
Studio album by
A Tribe Called Quest
ReleasedJuly 30, 1996
Recorded1995–1996
StudioBattery Studios (New York City)
Genre
Length51:18
LabelJive
01241-41587
Producer
A Tribe Called Quest chronology
Midnight Marauders
(1993)		 Beats, Rhymes and Life
(1996)		 The Love Movement
(1998)
Singles from Beats, Rhymes and Life
  1. "1nce Again"
    Released: July 1, 1996
  2. "Stressed Out"
    Released: November 11, 1996

Beats, Rhymes and Life is the fourth studio album by American hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. Released on July 30, 1996, by Jive Records, it followed three years after the highly regarded and successful Midnight Marauders. Produced by The Ummah, the album is a departure from the joyful, positive vibe of the group's earlier albums and is regarded as their darkest album in content. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on October 27, 1998.

Background

In September 1993, shortly after the recording of Midnight Marauders had concluded, Phife Dawg moved to Atlanta.[1][2] Along with Q-Tip's conversion to Islam the following year, the addition of Jay Dee to the group's new production team, The Ummah, and the enlistment of guest rapper Consequence, Q-Tip's cousin, the group dynamic changed drastically.[2][3][4] Phife Dawg later stated that "the chemistry was dead, shot", while Q-Tip felt that becoming a Muslim "made the atmosphere much more serious."[2][3]

Music and lyrics

For Beats, Rhymes and Life, The Ummah created a minimalist sound reminiscent of The Low End Theory, which Ali Shaheed Muhammad described as "nothing extravagant, nothing far out."[2][5] Miles Marshall Lewis of The Source praised The Ummah for being "the most proficient in the rap game at using samples as instruments in themselves."[6] Regarding Jay Dee's five contributions to the album, Q-Tip stated, "He would just send me the beats and then I would lay them."[7] One of his contributions, the lead single "1nce Again", was hailed as "one of the few successes" on the album and a "surprising R&B crossover."[5]

Lyrically, the group addresses "everything from O.J. to spirituality" and were recognized for the complexity of their messages.[5][8] However, they were criticized for sounding "bored", "confused, hostile, and occasionally paranoid."[2][5] In the song "Keeping It Moving", Q-Tip responds to the diss comments made about him in MC Hammer's songs "Break 'Em Off Somethin' Proper" and "Funky Headhunter", as well as Westside Connection's song "Cross 'Em out and Put a K".[9] In the first verse, he says that comments previously made about the West Coast were not intended to be a diss and that people should not misinterpret his lyrics.[9]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[10]
Entertainment WeeklyA[8]
NME7/10[11]
Q[12]
Rolling Stone[13]
The Source4/5[6]
Spin7/10[14]
Tom Hull – on the WebA−[15]
USA Today[16]

Beats, Rhymes and Life debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), on October 27, 1998, with shipments of one million copies in the United States, becoming the group's most commercially successful album.[2]

The album received mostly positive reviews from music critics. Ernest Hardy of Rolling Stone called it "near-flawless", while commending The Ummah for their "irresistible" production, and the group for "spinning universal themes from an Afrocentric loom, with positivity balanced against subtly subversive street reporting."[13] Entertainment Weekly's Cheo Tyehimba described it as "the return of playful yet potent hip-hop" and praised the "trademark originality" of the group's lyrics.[8] Will Hermes of Spin credited the group for performing "with a sleight of hand that lets them get intelligent without ruining the party", however, he felt that "over the three fallow years since the group's last record, they've been dealing with a real crisis of musical faith."[14] Robert Christgau gave the album a three-star honorable mention in his consumer guide for The Village Voice,[17] noting that the group fights "sensationalist obscurity with philosophic subtlety", which he believed was ineffective. Christgau highlighted "Jam", "Crew" and "The Hop" as standout tracks.[18]

In the 5th edition of his Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Colin Larkin praised the group's "highly evolved" lyrics and lauded them for "addressing issues with greater philosophy than the crude banter of their past recordings."[10] Despite calling the album "the group's most disappointing listen", John Bush of AllMusic credited it as "a dedication to the streets and the hip-hop underground."[5][19]

Beats, Rhymes and Life was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album and "1nce Again" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, presented at the 39th Grammy Awards in 1997.[19]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Phony Rappers"Kamaal Fareed, Malik Taylor, Dexter Mills Jr.3:35
2."Get a Hold"Fareed, James Yancey3:35
3."Motivators"Fareed, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Taylor, Mills3:20
4."Jam"Fareed, Taylor, Mills4:38
5."Crew"Fareed, Muhammad1:58
6."The Pressure"Fareed, Muhammad, Taylor3:02
7."1nce Again" (featuring Tammy Lucas)Fareed, Muhammad, Taylor, Yancey, Steve Swallow3:49
8."Mind Power"Fareed, Muhammad, Taylor, Mills3:55
9."The Hop"Fareed, Taylor, Rashad Smith3:27
10."Keeping It Moving"Fareed, Yancey3:38
11."Baby Phife's Return"Fareed, Taylor3:18
12."Separate/Together"Fareed1:38
13."What Really Goes On"Fareed, Leroy Bonner, Greg Webster, Andrew Noland, Marshall Jones, Ralph Middlebrooks, Walter Morrison, Marvin Pierce, Bruce Napier3:23
14."Word Play"Fareed, Taylor, Mills, Yancey2:59
15."Stressed Out" (featuring Faith Evans)Fareed, Muhammad, Mills, Faith Evans, Yancey, Gary Taylor4:57
Total length:51:18

Personnel

Credits are adapted from AllMusic.[20]

  • A Tribe Called Quest – primary artist
  • Tammy Lucas – featured artist
  • Faith Evans – composer, featured artist
  • Consequence – composer, guest artist, vocals
  • Pasemaster Mase – scratching (track 9)
  • Ali Shaheed Muhammad – composer, DJ
  • Phife Dawg – composer, vocals
  • Q-Tip – composer, vocals
  • James Yancey (Jay Dee) – composer
  • Rashad Smith – producer
  • The Ummah – mixing, producer
  • Bob Power – mixing
  • Tony Smalios – mixing
  • Tom Coyne – mastering

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[29] Gold 50,000^
United States (RIAA)[30] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Rapaport, Michael. Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest. Sony Pictures Classics. Event occurs at .
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Beats, Rhymes And Life was A Tribe Called Quest’s commercial peak—and first misstep. The A.V. Club. Accessed on February 12, 2018.
  3. 1 2 Beats, Rhymes and Life--A Tribe Called Quest (1996). Vibe. Accessed on February 12, 2018.
  4. ↑ Cowie, Del F. (February 2008). "A Tribe Called Quest - Verses from the Abstract". Exclaim!. Accessed on February 12, 2018.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bush, John. "Beats, Rhymes and Life – A Tribe Called Quest". AllMusic. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  6. 1 2 Lewis, Miles Marshall (September 1996). "A Tribe Called Quest: Beats, Rhymes and Life". The Source (84): 145.
  7. ↑ Q-Tip Red Bull Music Academy. Accessed on February 12, 2018.
  8. 1 2 3 Tyehimba, Cheo (August 9, 1996). "Beats, Rhymes and Life". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  9. 1 2 Exclusive: Q-Tip Interview. MOOVMNT.com. Retrieved on 2017-04-08.
  10. 1 2 Larkin, Colin (2011). "A Tribe Called Quest". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  11. ↑ "A Tribe Called Quest: Beats, Rhymes and Life". NME: 51. August 1, 1996.
  12. ↑ "A Tribe Called Quest: Beats, Rhymes and Life". Q (121): 172. October 1996.
  13. 1 2 Hardy, Ernest (August 8, 1996). "Beats, Rhymes and Life". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  14. 1 2 Hermes, Will (September 1996). "A Tribe Called Quest: Beats, Rhymes and Life". Spin. 12 (6): 149–50. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  15. ↑ Hull, Tom (June 13, 2015). "Rhapsody Streamnotes: June 13, 2015". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  16. ↑ Jones, Steve (July 30, 1996). "A Tribe Called Quest, Beats, Rhymes and Life". USA Today. Archived from the original on December 28, 1996. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  17. ↑ Christgau, Robert (2000). "A Tribe Called Quest: Beats, Rhymes and Life". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan Publishers. ISBN 0-312-24560-2. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  18. ↑ Christgau, Robert (September 17, 1996). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  19. 1 2 "A Tribe Called Quest | Biography & History". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2021-10-08.
  20. ↑ Beats, Rhymes and Life – Credits. AllMusic. Accessed on February 12, 2018.
  21. ↑ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 8502". RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
  22. ↑ "Charts.nz – A Tribe Called Quest – Beats Rhymes & Life". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  23. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – A Tribe Called Quest – Beats Rhymes & Life". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  24. ↑ "A Tribe Called Quest | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  25. ↑ "A Tribe Called Quest Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  26. ↑ "A Tribe Called Quest Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  27. ↑ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1996". Billboard. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  28. ↑ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1996". Billboard. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  29. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – A Tribe Called Quest – Beats, Rhymes and Life". Music Canada.
  30. ↑ "American album certifications – A Tribe Called Quest – Beats, Rhymes & Life". Recording Industry Association of America.
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