Malik Taylor, aka Phife Dawg, the “funky five footer” whose limber, animated rhymes helped make New York hip-hop outfit A Tribe Called Quest one of the genre’s fundamental groups, died last Tuesday at age 45. By now this isn’t news, and not just because Taylor’s memorial was yesterday—he had such an immeasurable influence over hip-hop and pop that his death was immediately felt. And his work remains immediate too: the collagelike vitality of Tribe’s Afrocentric stomp makes it timeless.
On the right of the right side of the mural it says, “Cuz you and I know you know who I am.” It’s a slightly abridged version of one of Taylor’s lines from “Check the Rhime,” which is today’s 12 O’Clock Track. The mural may be missing a “know” from the lyrics, but the message remains—as long as hip-hop is in the air, so is Taylor.More photos of the Logan Square tribute mural:
