Notes From The Abstract

At last night’s installment of “Noisemakers” with Peter Rosenberg, the hip-hop equivalent of “Inside the Actor’s Studio,” Q-Tip shared amazing stories about A Tribe Called Quest’s ascension from high school talent shows to international stages.

The event was a rap-nerd’s heaven; a hip-hop history lesson for even the most informed old-school heads in attendance. Thankfully the evening didn’t devolve into a The Low End Theory vs. Midnight Marauders death match, and instead consisted of hilarious impersonations, amazing stories and background on some of the greatest hip-hop records ever recorded.

Here are some of the gems from last night:

1. Tip revealved that he made the beat for “Bonita Applebum” at the age of 15.

2. After the dissolution of Leaders of the New School, Busta Rhymes was on the verge of joining ATCQ! He ended up going solo, but not without Tip’s help. He explains below.

In the above clip he also imitates Busta’s animated performance of “Scenario” on the Arsenio Hall Show (seen below).

3. Tip put on the late J-Dilla. Many already know this, but last night Q shared how he was introduced to Dilla and how he then proceeded to turn all of hip-hop onto the Detroit beat-making legend. Peep the video below.

4. In addition to Dilla and Busta, Q-Tip helped launch the careers of Mobb Deep’s Prodigy and Havoc.

5. The Low End Theory was sonically inspired by NWA’s Straight Outta Compton, which in turn inspired Dr. Dre’s The Chronic.

6.”I Left My Wallet in El Segundo” was on the first demo tape A Tribe Called Quest ever recorded. That demo prompted a bidding war between Def Jam, Geffen and Jive.

7. Tip kicked it with De La Soul and The Jungle Brothers back when he was still in high school and those groups were just breaking. As Peter Rosenberg said, “These are rap super heroes. You’re talking about hanging out with MC Serch and DJ Red Alert! And that was nothing for you. That was just Saturday!”

For a generation of Tribe stans, last night’s “Noisemakers” was a revealing look at one of the best emcee/producers of all time. Tip offered an exclusive inside look at a group that changed hip-hop with their dominant bass lines, catchy jazz samples and live instrumentation. Whether or not you are/were a fan of ATCQ, they pioneered a brand of hip-hop carried into the present by The Roots, Common, Mos Def and others.

Tip famously spit on “Electric Relaxation,” “I couldn’t drop dimes cuz she couldn’t relate,” but luckily last night we could and he did. Even hip-hop’s nerd-in-chief, ?uestlove, left amazed.

-Lukas Brekke-Miesner