Rapper Malik Taylor, known to fans as Phife Dawg from the critically acclaimed A Tribe Called Quest, died today after complications from diabetes. Many of hip-hop’s biggest artists took to social media to pay respects to the beloved rapper.
Phife Phorever #RIPPhifeDawg https://t.co/jpg4Y8sHTB
— ?st (@questlove) March 23, 2016
So incredibly sad to hear the Great Phife Dawg of Tribe Called Quest has passed away at only 45 yrs. GREAT MC. Sincere Love and Respect.
— ⭐Jill Scott⭐ (@missjillscott) March 23, 2016
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 (@MrChuckD) March 23, 2016
To honor the late, great rapper, a WSB-TV Atlanta traffic reporter, Mark Arum, tributed Phife Dawg’s best lyrics—skillfully weaving references into his traffic update.
Some of the best references included:
“More hits than the Braves or the Yankees”
“Are things ludicrously speedy or infectious with the slow-mo?”
“Track record’s longer than a DC-20 aircraft”
“Do that, do that, do do that that that”
“Tell your mother, tell your father, send a telegram”
“One for the treble, two for the bass, you know the style”
And to further celebrate Phife Dawg and A Tribe Called Quest, check out the band’s Beats, Rhymes, and Life doc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9d6M-mHTFU8
Screengrab via WSBTV/Facebook