The music world was shaken Wednesday morning by the unexpected news of Malik “Phife Dawg” Taylor’s death at the age of 45. As the hip-hop community woke to a world without the beloved Tribe Called Quest rapper, many of those inspired by the rapper and ATCQ turned to social media to pay tribute to the late Five Foot Assassin.
Questlove remembered Phife Dawg with an anecdote on Instagram where the Roots drummer reminisced about visiting Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter in college in 1991, buying A Tribe Called Quest’s The Low End Theory on the way and listening to the album in the dorm room. It was in that moment that Questlove decided to pursue a career in hip-hop.
“The look on our faces when we 1st heard ‘Buggin Out’ was prolly Me & Tariq’s greatest ‘rewind selector!’ moment in our friendship. (Back then every MC’s goal was to have that ‘rewind!!!’ moment. As in to say something so incredible. Or to catch you by surprise that it makes you go ‘DAAAAAYUM!!!’ & you listen over & over—Malik ‘Phife’ Taylor’s verse was such a gauntlet/flag planting moment in hip hop,” Questlove wrote. “Every hip hop head was just…stunned HE. CAME. FOR. BLOOD & was taking NO prisoners on this album (or ever again) we just kept looking at the speaker on some disbelief old timey radio Suspense episode. & also at each other ‘Phife is KILLIN!’–by the time we got to ‘Scenario’ I swear to god THAT was the moment I knew I wanted to make THIS type of music when I grew up–(yeah yeah dad I know: ‘go to Juilliard or Curtis to make a nice living at ‘real music’) but he didn’t know that Phife & his crew already wrote my destiny. I ain’t look back since. THANK YOU PHIFE!”
Public Enemy’s Chuck D tweeted, “Phife-HipHop & Rap word Warrior, simple as that. Breathed it & lined rhyme into Sport. A true fire Social Narrator my bro #RIBeats ATCQforever,” Chuck D also posted a mural of Phife Dawg.
Chris Rock was among the legion of ATCQ fans to share their favorite Phife lines. “I like [’em] brown, yellow Puerto Rican or Haitian / name is phife dog from the Zulu nation. Rip Phife,” Rock wrote. “When was the last time ya heard the Phifer sloppy… Lyrics anonymous ya never hear me copy,” Beats 1 DJ Ebro Darden tweeted, quoting the rapper. “… Never had a cavity.. Got more rhymes than the Winans got family…”
“Rest in peace to the incredible Phife Dawg,” El-P tweeted, while Just Blaze was hit hard with the news, writing of Phife’s death, “Refuse to believe this.” Mark Ronson added, “Phife Dawg made some of the most beloved hip hop ever. It’s so sad that he’s gone. I’d have gone to every reunion show till the end of time.” Former Main Source rapper Large Professor, who appeared on Tribe Called Quest’s Midnight Marauders, tweeted, “Shout Out to 1 of the Coolest & Strongest Brothers : Malik “Phife Dawg” Taylor !! Much Love & Respect!!”
– Rolling Stone
