With high expectations placed on their shoulders since the confirmation of a new and final album, A Tribe Called Quest returns 18 years later to provide the answer hip-hop has been looking for the past two decades. Luckily, and unsurprisingly, Tribe comes back smoother than ever with We got it from Here... Thank You 4 Your service, a two-part album that does not fail to restore order in a tumultuous time, while giving us what we need the most right now: hope.
Reaffirming their unbreakable bond, Phife Dawg, Q-Tip, Jarobi and Ali Shaheed reunite with the help of Busta Rhymes and Consequence to emphasize what most artists steadily attempt – and constantly fail – to do: remind us that hip-hop is not only a genre, but a lifestyle. With a load of incredible special guests such as Kendrick Lammar and Andre 3000, We got it from Here... is a living testament of the selfless spirit and timeless brotherhood of the hip-hop pioneers. Doing what they do best, Tribe effortlessly chronicles the modern-day struggles – such as the controversial 2016 presidential elections – as accurately as they did 18 years ago.
Rediscovering their chemistry verse by verse, We got it from Here... accentuates the essence of Tribe’s inimitable and iconic sound: the impeccable interconnection of rhythm, flow, narrative and word play. Re-opening the doors to socially conscious lyricism, A Tribe Called Quest has no time for dissing, only storytelling. Leaving us wishing it wasn’t their last album, Tribe constantly examines the ego – instead of inflating it – with their traditional witty punch lines and cerebral word play. With blueprints on how to overcome, accept and even embrace chaos, We got it from Here... is an intricate fusion of jazz, hip-hop and all other genre-blending influences that delineate A Tribe Called Quest as one of the most emblematic groups in the history of music.
An amazing tribute to their alliance, the remaining members of A Tribe Called Quest tenderly approach Phife Dawg’s recent death in many songs, making We got it from Here... not only a tribute to the MC’s life and memory, but also a way to immortalize him as one of hip-hop’s biggest – and most essential – influences. Capturing the unique energy that conveys Tribe’s traditional humanitarian state of mind, We got it from Here... is the album we have all been waiting for the last two decades: truthful, meticulous, inspiring and heart-filling. And although the future remains hesitant, as we say our farewell to hip-hop's most iconic group, one thing is still certain: A Tribe Called Quest can – absolutely - still kick it.
