The build up for the final A Tribe Called Quest album has captivated the music industry, after the hip hop legends revealed back in August that there was a full album featuring the late Phife Dawg still to be released.
Last week Q-Tip revealed the release date for the record, and now a feature in The New York Times has unveiled an insane star-studded list of collaborators on the album, which is set to be titled We Got It From Here, Thank You For Your Service.
Joining all four A Tribe Called Quest members, the album will feature rapper Kendrick Lamar, music legend Elton John, rocker Jack White, Outkast’s André 3000, Busta Rhymes and Consequence.
The release of their first album in 18 years is set to be a huge moment for A Tribe Called Quest, but Q-Tip reveals the recording process was often difficult, especially working with pre-recorded lines from Phife.
“It’s so hard for me to sit in there and hear his voice,” he says. “Sometimes I just have to like take a break and walk away. It gets heavy. It doesn’t necessarily get sad, it just gets heavy. I literally feel the energy from him when I hear his voice.”
In the feature, other group members reveal that they now think that all the travelling required to record the album took a toll on Phife Dawg’s health. “Doing this album killed him,” says Jarobi White. “And he was very happy to go out like that.”
A Tribe Called Quest’s first album in 18 years, We Got It From Here, Thank You For Your Service, will be released on Friday, 11th November.
Watch: A Tribe Called Quest – ‘Can I Kick It?’
