Phife Dawg’s posthumous Forever album comes six years after his passing from diabetic complications. His mother Cheryl Boyce-Taylor, Anglea Winbush, Redman, Lyric Jones, Little Brother, Illa J, Rapsody, Q-Tip and have appearances on the songs. Phife Dawg’s first solo album Ventilation: Da LP was released in 2000. He knew fans still wanted to hear from him and his DJ Dion Liverpool made sure to take the demos and complete Forever. Phife’s love of hip-hop, family, his morality and life philosophy comes through on the 13-songs. But the center of the album is Phife’s indomitable flow inherited from his mother who is a respected poet. Fans will be delighted by the parting gift of songs that remind why Phife Dawg’s has been so important to in hip-hop and will be listened to in the future. Last year Boyce-Taylor released Mama Phife Represents: A Memoir. 

Phife Dawg’s posthumous Forever album’s tracklisting and cover art have been revealed by his estate. Q-Tip, Rapsody, his mother Cheryl Boyce-Taylor and Busta Rhymes are some of the guests on the album. The Queens, New York legend died in 2016 on March 22nd and Forever will come out on the sixth anniversary of his passing.  

1. “Cheryl’s Big Son (Intro)”
2. “Only A Coward”
3. “Fallback” feat. Rapsody & Renée Neufville
4. “Nutshell Pt. 2” feat. Busta Rhymes & Redman
5. “Sorry” ft. V.Rich
6. “Dear Dilla (Reprise)” feat. Q-Tip
7. “Wow Factor” ft. Maseo of De La Soul
8. “Residual Curiosities” feat. Lyric Jones
9. “God Send” feat. Dwele
10. “Round Irving High School” ft. Cheryl Boyce-Taylor & Angela Winbush
11. “French Kiss Trois” feat. Redman & Illa J
12. “2 Live Forever” feat. Pos of De La Soul, Little Brother & Darien Brockington
13. “Forever”

A Tribe Called Quest’s “Electric Relaxation” set a standard for the fusing of jazz and hip-hop. Q-Tip’s samples of Ronnie Foster, Ramsey Lewis and  the country/rock group Brethren sounded like a jazz band being invaded by a hip-hop producer. The bass line from Foster’s “Mystic Brew” was the backbone of their rhymefest that included some of Phife Dawg’s most memorable verses like his double entendre about Seaman’s furniture store. “Electric Relaxation” kicked off the group’s return two years after their sophomore album The Low End Theory. The  success of  this first single from their third album Midnight Marauders added to the mystique of New York’s leading status in hip-hop during the ’90s. The vision of the group on the streets of New York in the video and sitting in the Square Diner made rap fans want to visit the city. The song was the first indication that A Tribe Called Quest had formed classic trilogy of albums. Midnight Marauders was loved by rap fans and praised by music critics before reaching gold status on January 14th of 1994 two months after it was released by Jive Records. Phife Dawg shared the creative process behind “Electric Relaxation” with XXL magazine and admitted it was one of his favorite songs. 

Midnight Marauders is considered the apex of ATCQ’s music and the Native Tongues collective they were a part of with the Jungle Brothers, De La Soul and others. When the Golden era of hip-hop is discussed Midnight Marauders is one example of the innovation reflecting that time. In 2016 the group’s sixth and final album We Got It From Here…Thank You 4 Your Service was completed and released after Phife Dawg’s passing that year.  ATCQ announced the March 2022 release date for Phife Dawg’s first posthumous album on November 20, 2021, which would have been his 51st birthday. 

 

Phife Dawg and J.Dilla’s younger brother IIIa J connected with producers Potatohead People for “French Kiss Deux.” They pay tribute to Montreal women with a laidback approach accentuated by the lazy trumpets and the beat that is more suited for slow-dancing. “French Kiss Deux” will appear on Phife Dawg’s posthumous Forever album. It is the second single to premiere from the tracklisting after “Nutshell Part 2” featuring Busta Rhymes and Redman. There is no set date for the release of Forever.