Malik Izaak Taylor (November 20, 1970March 22, 2016), known professionally as Phife Dawg (or simply Phife), was an American rapper and a member of the group

A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest was an American hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985,Q-Tip

with Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (and for a short time Jarobi White). He was also known as the "Five-Foot Assassin" and "the Five-Footer", because he stood at .

Early life

Phife Dawg was born Malik Izaak Taylor on November 20, 1970, in

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, the son of

Trinidadian Trinidadians and Tobagonians, colloquially known as Trinis or Trinbagonians, are the people who are identified with the country of Trinidad and Tobago. The country is home to people of many different national, ethnic and religious origins. As a ...

immigrant parents Cheryl Boyce-Taylor, a poet, and Walt Taylor. Born prematurely, his twin brother Mikal died shortly after birth. His mother settled in the St. Albans neighborhood of Queens, where Phife Dawg was raised, when she was 13 years old. He was a cousin of writer Zinzi Clemmons. He first met his friend Q-Tip at the age of two, and at nine years old, Phife Dawg suggested that they should rap, after hearing " Rapper's Delight" by

the Sugarhill Gang The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop trio. Their 1979 hit " Rapper's Delight" was the first rap single to become a top 40 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100; reaching a peak position of number 36 on January 12, 1980. This was the trio's o ...

for the first time. He attended Pine Forge Academy, a Seventh-day Adventist boarding school near

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

, for his freshman year of high school, later transferring to

Springfield Gardens High School Springfield Gardens High School was a public 4–year high school located in the Springfield Gardens section in the New York City borough of Queens. The school was opened in 1965. Closed in 2007, The Springfield Gardens High School building is ...

in Queens.

Career

Phife Dawg formed

A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest was an American hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985,Q-Tip

, then simply named Quest, with Q-Tip and DJ Ali Shaheed Muhammad in 1985; the group was later expanded with the addition of Jarobi White. A Tribe Called Quest were closely associated with fellow hip-hop acts

De La Soul De La Soul () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternati ...

and Jungle Brothers, with the groups being collectively known as the

Native Tongues The Native Tongues were a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s hip-hop artists known for their positive-minded, good-natured Afrocentric lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and jazz-influenced beats. Its principal mem ...

. A Tribe Called Quest were initially offered a demo deal by

Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint. Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and h ...

in 1989, but signed to

Jive Records Jive Records was an American independent record label founded by Clive Calder in 1981 as a subsidiary to the Zomba Group. In the US, the label had offices in New York City and Chicago. Jive was best known for its successes with hip hop, R&B, ...

to release their 1990 début '' People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm''. Phife Dawg's contributions to the group increased on their second album, 1991's ''

The Low End Theory ''The Low End Theory'' is the second studio album by American hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released on September 24, 1991, by Jive Records. Recording sessions for the album were held mostly at Battery Studios in New York City, from 1990 to ...

'', which saw Phife—often referring to himself as "the Five-Foot Assassin"—rapping about social and political issues; the record has since been acclaimed by critics and fellow musicians. The group released three further albums throughout the decade—''

Midnight Marauders ''Midnight Marauders'' is the third studio album by American hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released on November 9, 1993, by Jive Records. Recording sessions for the album occurred at Battery Studios, Platinum Island Studios and Scorcerer Sou ...

'' in 1993, ''

Beats, Rhymes and Life ''Beats, Rhymes and Life'' is the fourth studio album by American hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. Released on July 30, 1996, by Jive Records, it followed three years after the highly regarded and successful ''Midnight Marauders''. Produced by ...

'' in 1996, and '' The Love Movement'' in 1998—before disbanding as a result of conflict both with their record label and between members. The band's troubles, especially the sometimes tense relationship between Phife and Q-Tip, were featured in the 2011 documentary '' Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest'', directed by Michael Rapaport. In addition to being a member of pioneering hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, Phife performed on songs with other artists. He was featured on the Fu-Schnickens song " La Schmoove", Diamond D's "Painz & Strife" with

Pete Rock Peter O. Phillips (born June 21, 1970), better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongside DJ ...

, and Chi-Ali's "Let the Horns Blow" with Dres, Al' Tariq and Trugoy. In 2000, he released his debut solo album, '' Ventilation: Da LP''. In 2013, it was reported that Phife was working on a solo album titled ''MUTTYmorPHosis''. A single titled "Sole Men" was released one day after Phife's death (March 23, 2016) along with a posthumously released music video. Another single, "Nutshell", was released online in April 2016 along with a posthumously released music video. On November 13, 2015, A Tribe Called Quest reunited for a performance on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...

'', in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of ''People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm''. That night, Phife and Q-Tip decided to put aside their differences and record a new group album, '' We Got It from Here... Thank You 4 Your Service'', in secrecy. Phife spent four months working on the album before his death; it was completed by the surviving group members and released on November 11, 2016. In February 2017, it was announced that Phife's second studio album, posthumously titled ''Forever'', would be released later in the year. The single "Wanna Dance" was released that month and features Dwele and Mike City. Phife Dawg's second solo album, ''

Forever Forever or 4ever may refer to: Film and television Films * ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice * ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama * ''Forever'' (1992 film), an American ...

'', was released on March 22, 2022, the sixth anniversary of his death.

Personal life

Taylor was married to Deisha Head-Taylor and had two children, a daughter and a son. He was a fan of the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

, and was a playable character in the video games ''

NBA 2K7 ''NBA 2K7'' is a 2006 basketball simulation video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It is the eighth installment in the ''NBA 2K'' franchise and the successor to '' NBA 2K6''. It was released in 2006 for PlayStation 2 ...

'' and ''

NBA 2K9 The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

''.

Health problems and death

Taylor was diagnosed with

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

in 1990. Conflicting reports indicated it as type 1, while other sources reported it as type 2. He described himself as a "funky diabetic" in the single " Oh My God" from A Tribe Called Quest's 1993 album ''

''. After the group's disbandment, he continued playing live shows in order to help cover medical costs, and revealed in the 2011 documentary film '' Beats, Rhymes & Life'' that he was "just addicted to sugar ... it's really a sickness". In 2008, Taylor developed

renal failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

and received a

kidney transplant Kidney transplant or renal transplant is the organ transplant of a kidney into a patient with end-stage kidney disease (ESRD). Kidney transplant is typically classified as deceased-donor (formerly known as cadaveric) or living-donor transplant ...

from his wife, but it was unsuccessful and by 2012 he again required a transplant. On March 22, 2016, Taylor died at age 45 in his Oakley, California home due to complications of diabetes.

Legacy

Phife has been described as having had a "self-deprecating swagger", and his work with A Tribe Called Quest helped to challenge the "macho posturing" of rap and hip-hop music during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Phife's work has been cited as an influence on

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

, Jill Scott,

The Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...

and

Common Common may refer to: Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts * Clapham Common, originally ...

, while the 1991 album ''

'' is considered one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever released. On November 19, 2016, a portion of Linden Boulevard, at the intersection of 192nd Street in St. Albans, was honorarily renamed as Malik 'Phife Dawg' Taylor Way. The location is significant, as it was the site of the music video for A Tribe Called Quest's song " Check the Rhime".

Discography

Studio albums

*'' Ventilation: Da LP'' (2000) *''

'' (2022)

Guest appearances

Filmography

*1993: ''

Who's the Man? ''Who's the Man?'' is a 1993 thriller buddy comedy film directed by Ted Demme in his feature film directing debut. The film stars '' Yo! MTV Raps'' hosts Doctor Dré and Ed Lover as its two main protagonists and features cameo appearances fro ...

'' – Gerald *1998: '' The Rugrats Movie'' – Newborn Baby *2007: '' NBA 2K8'' – Himself *2011: '' Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest'' – Himself *2017: '' NBA 2K18'' - Himself

References

External links

* *
Official A Tribe Called Quest website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phife Dawg 1970 births 2016 deaths American male rappers African-American male rappers Rappers from New York City A Tribe Called Quest members People from St. Albans, Queens Rappers from Atlanta American rappers of Trinidad and Tobago descent East Coast hip hop musicians Deaths from diabetes Kidney transplant recipients Musicians from New York City