Native Tongues

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The Native Tongues is a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s hip-hop artists known[citation needed] for their positive-minded, good naturedly Afrocentric lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and later jazz-influenced beats. They were also closely-tied to the Universal Zulu Nation. Its principal members are the Jungle Brothers, De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest.

Contents

[edit] History

The New York-based Native Tongues crew was a collective of like-minded hip hop artists who would help bring abstract and open-minded lyricism - that addressed a range of topics, from spirituality and modern living to race, sex, and just having fun - to the mainstream. Together with the use of eclectic samples that would take on an increasingly jazzy sound, they would be pioneers of so-called conscious hip hop, alternative hip-hop, and jazz rap.

Fostered by Kool DJ Red Alert, the success of the Jungle Brothers would pave the way for De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest; together, these three groups would form the core of the posse and continue the spirit of Afrika Bambaataa and the Zulu Nation. By 1989 they had been joined by Queen Latifah and the UK's Monie Love, and soon by the Black Sheep & Chi-Ali. Collectively, the members of the Native Tongues Posse had a huge effect on the style and trends of hip hop during its most important period, the "golden age" of the late 80s/early 90s. A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul's albums of this time are considered among the best and most important in the hip hop repertoire.

The song "Scenario" was the final track on the Tribe Called Quest album 'The Low End Theory' and featured the fledging Leaders of the New School - Dinco D, Busta Rhymes, and Charlie Brown. This track simultaneously introduced and legitimized the concept of a 'new school' in rap music and is arguably the most notable and significant single song of the era.

While featuring an extensive discography, the collaborations of the Native Tongues have been fairly limited: they never recorded anything under that name, and the number of notable posse cuts can be counted on one hand. The various groups grew distant with time, and by 1993, De La Soul's Trugoy The Dove proclaimed, "That native shit is dead". They would however reunite in 1998 for the Jungle Brother's "How Ya Want It We Got It (Native Tongues Remix)"; collaborators in this period, such as Common and Mos Def, could be seen as latter-day additions to the crew.

As of 2007, Monie Love retired from recording, Queen Latifah is primarily a jazz and standards singer and actress, Chi-Ali is in jail for murder, and, despite hopeful press reports, Black Sheep and A Tribe Called Quest reunions have never materialized; De La Soul and the Jungle Brothers are still active, but the time of the Native Tongues has apparently passed. There are several collectives today - with overlapping membership - that can be seen as the spiritual heirs to the Native Tongues crew: the Spitkicker crew (founded by De La Soul's Trugoy and Posdnuos in 2000), the Okayplayers, and the Soulquarians. Chris Lighty—a member of the Native Tongues-affiliated street crew the Violators, who began his career carrying records for Zulu Nation DJs and later as the Jungle Brothers' roadie—now runs the successful Violator Management company, which represents Busta Rhymes and Q-Tip, among other high-profile clients. They have influenced many other artists in the music industry.

[edit] Members

[edit] Founding members

[edit] Other flagship members

[edit] Later additions (c. 1989-1998)

[edit] Peripheral members

[edit] Collaborations

Collaborations involving the original members, those that could be considered true Native Tongues Posse "posse cuts", are in bold. Note that this list is incomplete.

1988

  • "Black Is Black" by Jungle Brothers feat. Q-Tip, from Straight Out The Jungle
  • "The Promo" by Jungle Brothers feat. Q-Tip, from Straight Out The Jungle

1989

  • "Buddy" by De La Soul feat. Jungle Brothers and Q-Tip, from 3 Feet High And Rising
  • "Description" De La Soul feat. Q-Tip and Prince Paul, from 3 Feet High And Rising
  • "Buddy (Native Tongues Decision)" by De La Soul feat. Jungle Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest, Monie Love and Queen Latifah, from "Buddy" 12" single
  • "Brain Washed Follower" by De La Soul feat. Chi-Ali, from "Me Myself And I" 12" single
  • "The Mack Daddy On The Left" by De La Soul feat. Chi-Ali, from "Say No Go" 12" single
  • "Acknowledge Your Own History" by Jungle Brothers feat. Vinia Mojica, from Done By The Forces Of Nature
  • "Done By The Forces Of Nature" by Jungle Brothers feat. DJ Towha Towha, from Done By The Forces Of Nature
  • "Doin' Our Own Dang" by Jungle Brothers feat. De La Soul, Queen Latifah, Q-Tip and Monie Love, from Done By The Forces Of Nature
  • "Mama Gave Birth to the Soul Children" by Queen Latifah feat. De La Soul, from All Hail The Queen
  • "Ladies First" by Queen Latifah feat. Monie Love, from All Hail The Queen

1990

  • "Swiney Swiney" by Monie Love feat. De La Soul, from Down To Earth

1991

1992

  • "Scenario (Remix)" by A Tribe Called Quest feat. Kid Hood and Leaders Of The New School, from "Scenario" 12" single
  • "Let The Horns Blow" by Chi Ali feat. Dres, Dove, Fashion and Phife Dawg, from The Fabulous Chi-Ali

1993

1994

  • "Sh. Fe. MC's" by De La Soul feat. A Tribe Called Quest, from Clear Lake Auditorium EP

1996

  • "Ill Vibe" by Busta Rhymes feat. Q-Tip, from The Coming
  • "3 MC's" by Da Bush Babees feat. Q-Tip, from Gravity
  • "S.O.S." by Da Bush Babees feat. Mos Def (prod. by Ali Shaheed Muhammad), from Gravity
  • "Love Song" by Da Bush Babees feat. Mos Def (prod. by Posdnous), from Gravity
  • "Flashlight (Remix)" by George Clinton feat. Q-Tip, Busta Rhymes & Ol Dirty Bastard, from Greatest Funkin Hits
  • "Out For The Cash (Remix)" by DJ Honda feat. Fat Joe, The Beatnuts & Common

1997

  • "Wild Hot" by A Tribe Called Quest & Busta Rhymes, from Rhyme & Reason Soundtrack
  • "Big Brother Beat" by De La Soul feat. Mos Def, from Stakes Is High
  • "Stakes Is High (Remix)" De La Soul feat. Truth Enola and Mos Def, from "Itzsoweezee (HOT)" 12" single
  • "Rumble In The Jungle" by The Fugees feat. John Forté, A Tribe Called Quest and Busta Rhymes, from When We Were Kings Soundtrack
  • "How Ya Want It We Got It (Native Tongues Remix)" by Jungle Brothers feat. Q-Tip and De La Soul, from Raw Deluxe

1998

1999

  • "Do It Now" by Mos Def feat. Busta Rhymes, from Black On Both Sides
  • "The Truth" by Pharoahe Monch feat. Common and Talib Kweli, from Internal Affairs
  • "It's Going Down" by Dres feat. Chi-Ali and Droop Dog, from Sure Shot Redemption
  • "Slam Pit" by The Beatnuts feat. Common and Cuban Link, from A Musical Massacre
  • "Vivrant Thang (Remix)" by Q-Tip feat. Busta Rhymes & Missy Elliott
  • "N.T." by Q-Tip feat. Busta Rhymes, from Amplified

2000

  • "I.C. Y'All" by De La Soul feat. Busta Rhymes, from Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump
  • "What's That? (¿Que Eso?)" by Tony Touch feat. Mos Def and De La Soul, from The Piece Maker
  • "Lyrical Fluctuation 2000" by Jigmastas feat. Mos Def, Pharoahe Monch, Talib Kweli, Shabaam Sahdeeq and Mr. Complex, from Grass Roots
  • "The Questions" by Common feat. Mos Def & Monie Love, from Like Water For Chocolate
  • "One For Love Part 1" by Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Pos, Pharoahe Monch, Kool G Rap, Rah Digga, Sporty Thievz and Shabaam Sahdeeq, from Hip-Hop For Respect
  • "Protective Custody" by Mr. Khaliyl, Talib Kweli, Nine, Breeze Brewin, El-P, Dante, Imani Uzuri, John Forte, Main Flow, Mr. Len, Jah-Born, Punchline, Tiye Phoenix & What? What?, from Hip-Hop For Respect

2001

2002

  • "Get By (Remix)" by Talib Kweli feat. Mos Def, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z & Kanye West
  • "Joy" by Talib Kweli feat. Mos Def, from Quality
  • "Stand To The Side" by Talib Kweli feat. Vinia Mojica & Res, from Quality

2003

2004

  • "She Wants To Move (Native Tongues Remix)" by N*E*R*D feat. Common, Mos Def, De La Soul and Q-Tip, from "She Wants To Move Remixes" 12" single
  • "Wack Niggaz" by Consequence feat. Kanye West, Common and Talib Kweli, from Take Em To The Cleaners
  • "Yelling Away" by Zap Mama feat. ?uestlove, Common & Talib Kweli, from Ancestry In Progress
  • "Ghetto Show" by Talib Kweli feat. Common & Anthony Hamilton, from The Beautiful Struggle
  • "Days f Our Lives" by De La Soul feat. Common, from The Grind Date
  • "The Corner (Remix)" by Common feat. Mos Def, Scarface, The Last Poets & Kanye West
  • "Get Em High" by Kanye West feat. Common & Talib Kweli, from The College Dropout

2005

2006

2007

[edit] External links

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