"Check the Rhime" is the first single from

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

's second album ''

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 ...

''. The song was written by group members

Phife Dawg Malik Izaak Taylor (November 20, 1970March 22, 2016), known professionally as Phife Dawg (or simply Phife), was a Trinidadian-American rapper and a member of the group A Tribe Called Quest with Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (and for a short ti ...

Q-Tip Cotton swabs (American English) or cotton buds (British English), also Q-tips ( proprietary eponym), are wads of cotton wrapped around a short rod made of wood, rolled paper, or plastic. They are most commonly used for ear cleaning, although th ...

, and

Ali Shaheed Muhammad Ali Shaheed Muhammad (born August 11, 1970) is an American hip hop DJ, record producer, rapper and bass guitarist, best known as a member of A Tribe Called Quest. With Q-Tip (musician), Q-Tip and Phife Dawg (and sometimes Jarobi White), the grou ...

. It was recorded at the legendary

Greene St. Recording Greene St. Recording was a New York City recording studio, located at 112 Greene Street in SoHo, Manhattan, until its closure in 2001. It was one of the early headquarters of hip hop music during the 1980s and 1990s. History Background In the ...

studio in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The song peaked at number 59 on

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

on November 16, 1991. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' listed "Check the Rhime" as one of the group's 20 essential songs, noting that Phife Dawg "quickly proves himself Q-Tip's lyrical equal."

Composition

The song samples "Live Your Life" by

Average White Band The Average White Band (also known as AWB) was a Scottish funk and R&B band that had a series of soul and disco hits between 1974 and 1980. They were best known for their million-selling instrumental track " Pick Up the Pieces", and their alb ...

; this is why the band members are credited.

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

, directed by Jim Swaffield, starts out in front of houses and moves to a dry cleaning business in St. Albans, Queens,

, where the group performs on the roof in front of a large crowd. The dry cleaners shop featured in the video is still at the corner of 192nd St. & Linden Blvd. in St. Albans. In 2016, a mural was commissioned on the wall of the business after the death of the group's founding member, Phife Dawg.

Charts

Weekly charts

Certifications

References

1991 singles A Tribe Called Quest songs 1991 songs Jive Records singles Song recordings produced by Q-Tip (musician) Songs written by Q-Tip (musician) Songs written by Ali Shaheed Muhammad Songs written by Richard Rudolph Songs written by Leon Ware Songs written by Phife Dawg {{1990s-hiphop-song-stub