In the nuclear family of A Tribe Called Quest, Beats, Rhymes, and Life is the middle child. Unlike it's first-and-last-born musical siblings, BR&L doesn't really get as much attention from the general public for it's accomplishments. Even the addition and resulting creative shot-in-the-arm that producer J.Dilla (as 1/3rd of production team 'The Umma') gave the album couldn't save it from a legacy of relative obscurity compared to much-worshipped Tribe LP's The Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders. Agreed, those two albums (and, one could argue, People's Instinctive Travels) are essential, timeless classic of the hip-hop genre. But Beats, Rhymes, and Life was perfect for what it was - an album created during a group's gradual and eventual decline...but still working at a somewhat-high level. Like Mike on the Wizards. I challenge you to find a skipable single track on BR&L. Double dare. Also, the album is just so goddamn FUN. A Tribe Called Quest started this journey of theirs on a mostly-fun tip with People's Instinctive Travels... - that almost childlike joy and sense of innocence (somewhat) that the genre of hip-hop started with itself - and they were just getting back to that, essentially. Q-Tip and the rest of the crew (but especially Tip, as he put in a LOT of timer & energy production-wise as well as lyrically and anything else needed to move the group's efforts forward in the public spectrum) were starting to feel the effects of all that time on the road doing both touring and making the promotional rounds; as well as making music videos, taking photographs, and all the other necessary tasks of a major label album release in the early nineties. There was also starting to be a lot more group in-fighting (which would continue to fester within the group, see: Michael Rapport's also-named Beats, Rhymes, and Life documentary). Half the decade was over when Beats, Rhymes and Life dropped in 1996 - a time where hip-hop artists ion general had started to stop focusing on what made their era so golden, in pursuit of platinum and (eventually) diamond-level record sales. These artists stopped giving to the culture and started only taking from it. This topic was addressed that same year by fellow Native Tounges' members, De La Soul, on their seminal classic Stakes Is High. Tribe went the different, less serious (and totally fine) route. Their leader needed a surge of inspiration - and Tip found it in a young producer from Detroit with a seminingly unlimited amount of musical potential named James Dewitt Yancey. Yancey's artist name/general nickname was J.Dilla - the (now) much-worshipped underground sales sensation. But Yates didn't have a congregation yet in 9-6. Back then, he was still trying to get himself and his group of neighborhood friends and rappers, Slum Village, off the literal pavement still. (SEE: BBC Radio 1's EXCELLENT radio program 'The Story of Q-Tip' for more on Tip and Dilla's relationship beginnings in his own words) And so, here came Q-Tip with an "S"-on-his-chest to save the day (and the admiration of suburban-dwelling, Diamond Supply Co. wearing, soocer-playing white kids everywhere). Dilla, plus Tribe co-members Tip and Ali Shaheed, joined forces as production trio "The Ummah" and create the expansive sonic environment that makes-up 'BR&L'. The album's recipe was basically a mixing of the "classic Tribe" soundscape - with some Dilla-esque production tweeks. The trio decided to create an album less of the jazz-rap variety - though jazz elements definitely still remain - and go with something a little more soulful, yet updated. Basically a precursor to the net-soul atom bomb that Dilla and his contemporaries were about to drop on the general public via individual efforts; as well as together in the super-production team The Soulquarians. And I think this switch-up of production style (which, remember, was still ahead of it's time by a couple years) is where most of the listener's "shock value" comes from - that and the addition of a third emcee in Q-Tip's younger good cousin, Consequence. Yes - there was now a third voice in the crew, as "unofficial" as Consequence's status was claimed to be by Tip himself at the time. More than a mere feature artist - Consequence shows-up on at least 3/4th of the album's cuts. And it;s not necessarily a bad thing. Cons is himself a competent lyricist. In fact, I personally feel that he adds a sense of energetic vibrancy that, as mentioned earlier, was lacking. Sure, Tip & Phife still had LOTS of energy in the tank. But to borrow Phife's favorite type of references (basketball) once again - even Jordan needed newer members like Steve Kerr for his second three-peat. And Consequence was that 6th man off-the-bench that gives that verbal shot-in-the-arm needed on tracks like 'Motivators' and album single 'Stressed-Out'. It's like the Ewoks in Return of the Jedi - your either with or against them. They add to the material, or take it away depending on who's expressing the opinion. I'm firmly in the pro-Consequence group. Well, I am on this album anyways - Consequence leaves much to be desired on post-B,R&L material; and probably the reason he was never heard from again on other Tribe releases which were soon to dwindle into nothing at all after The Love Movement. There will never be an argument over which is the top 3 ATCQ albums - Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders firmly hold positions #1 and #2 (and switch depending on who's deciding the ranking), while People's Instinctive Travels is close behind in spot #3. But playing eternal catch-up behind People's... in the "eh" category is Beats, Rhymes, and Life. It has all the elements that make-up a classic hip-hop album as well. It's just that the cooks might've added too many new ingredients in the kitchen to the old, favorite formula just a little too much for most people's liking. And that's a shame. RIP Phife Dawg. RIP Consequence's career.
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