When asked about his favourite non-US rap album, Hanif Abdurraqib names RAG’s “Pottential,” a German rap obscurity from the early 2000s. That’s the level of insight and curiosity we’re talking here.
Hanif Abdurraqib is a writer, poet and cultural critic from Columbus, Ohio. He is a columnist for the Paris Review, a Pushcart Prize nominee, and his 2017 essay collection “They Can’t Kill Us, Until They Kill Us” – assembling pieces on everything from “Trap Queen” to Carly Rae Jepsen – was named a book of the year by NPR, Pitchfork, the Los Angeles Review, and more. His new book, “Go ahead in the Rain: Notes on A Tribe Called Quest,” is a deeply personal memoir of what it means to be a fan.
On this episode of Calling in a Favour, Hanif and Julian talk about Tribe, their legacy and the difficulties of writing a eulogy about the living and the dead. Plus: was the Jadakiss 16 on the new Giggs album necessary? How hard did MTV News mess it up when they “pivoted to video”? What are the similarities between Q-Tip and the Dixie Chicks? And, of course, who won Camp Lo –Sonny Cheeba or Geechi Suede?
1. A Tribe Called Quest – Mr. Incognito (Chairman Jeff Mao pick)
2. Swizz Beatz feat. Giggs – Come Again
3. A Tribe Called Quest – Buggin’ Out
4. Phife Dawg – Flawless
5. Q-Tip feat. D’Angelo – I Believe
6. A Tribe Called Quest – Lost Somebody
7. Camp Lo – Say Word
