Album

Beats, Rhymes and Life 1996

By A Tribe Called Quest

  • hip hop, jazz rap, alternative hip hop, boom bap
  • 51 min
  • 15 tracks
  • Jive

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 The Ummah, the album is a departure from the joyful, positive vibe of the group's earlier albums and is regarded as their darkest album in content. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on October 27, 1998.

hip hopjazz rapalternative hip hopboom bapeast coast hip hoppsychedelic

Log it

Sign in to log this.

Character

Character-led, spare, grave and earnest.

  • character-ledplot-driven
  • sparerichly built
  • gravecomic
  • earnestironic
  • classical in formformally daring

Who loves it, who doesn't

The ProvocateurThe Provocateur: loved by 11loved (4★+)disliked (2.5★ or less)

1 profiled raters. Loved most by The Provocateurs.

Where do you stand?

Answer first; then see how everyone, and your circle, split.

  • “Is this A Tribe Called Quest's best work?”

    Sign in to answer.

    Be the first to answer.

  • “Would a little humor have helped?”

    Sign in to answer.

    Be the first to answer.

  • “Is Beats, Rhymes and Life too earnest?”

    Sign in to answer.

    Be the first to answer.

Ask the title

A yes-or-no question, answered from what people wrote here, on TMDB and on Wikipedia. Never made up.

YesNoUnclear