The long awaited documentary that was so many years in the making took a Hip-Hop infused director and a mid-summer tour to bring to life. Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels Of A Tribe Called Quest chronicles the relationship, beginnings, breakups and life between group members Q-Tip (Kamaal), Phife Dawg (Malik Taylor), Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Jarobi White. The film starts at the end of a series of tour dates the group had going on with Q-tip being followed by a camera and interviewed about the group, proclaiming their end. Beats takes us through the journey of the group, from Jamaica, Queens to joining the Native Tongues posse with other groups, like De La Soul and Jungle Brothers. How Phife was the one to spur Q-Tip to rap and both taking it seriously enough through life. These two members are highlighted a lot as they are founding members of the group, lifelong friends, and have the most sordid relationship. Throughout the film we were treated to actual concert footage not by the fans but by the cameras that followed, we were treated to archived footage from other performances , as well from previous interviews, concerts, photoshoots, and interviews from other hiphop artists who deem ATribe Called Quest and music royalty. These other hiphop artist either know them personally in the case of a Mos Def, Kanye West, or were just influences initially by their style say a Pharrell Williams.
An interesting note about the film is all the new interviews with the group are conducted in separate places. As musicians they’re busy but they should have at least had a shot together. The rise and fall of the group from, 1985 to 1998, was a journey few other groups but a whole Hip-Hop nation was around to see [new sentence to replace above one: Beats portrayed Tribe more like a family than a rap group with Q-Tip and Phife arguing like two parents in front of their kids, band members Ali and Jarobi, looking on with the sentimental “I wish my parents weren’t fighting”. The look on Jarobi’s face said it all, like the kid who isn’t really interested in the fights. This is why he’s either like” let’s make up or lets shut it down.” That seems to be his mannerism as you watch him talk, reflect, and give insight on the group from his view.
Beats is unique in its view because as fans of Hip-Hop, our journey from the blackout in South Bronx in the late 60’s to the forefront of the world right now hasn’t been as well documented as rock music. Hip-Hop hasn’t had too many large tours documented over its 30 years, the fore fathers (godfathers) seem to change yearly and we retire our people usually before they even get started. As a fan of hip-hop and A tribe Called Quest if you couldn’t follow as much as you would like, didn’t know the group dynamics, how the group started, how they felt about their music, why they put it out and where their mind was as it relates to the music, their struggles, their fears, tears, and inner group turmoil then this film is for you, All those things and more are covered, revealed and bout to light. As for the new fans, please remember hip-hop is still a young ATCQ were growing up in the middle of the growth of hip-hop. As you see this film there is a glimpse as to how hard it was in the beginning, the struggles, the fears, the camaraderie of not just your friends but everyone you know trying to get involved in an art form that is still in its infancy. A Tribe Called Quest and their message are still relevant right now and still as fresh as it was when it was first said. Beats allows us a view into independent people coming together to form a whole while, at times, fighting for an individual voice.