Review of Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest (2011) by Philip P — 19 Jan 2012

I love music just about as much as I do movies and the genre of hip hop holds a special place in my heart. To see these two meshed so beautifully into a telling documentary is truly a gift. I found everything director Michael Rapaport explored here an interesting reason for why A Tribe Called Quest were the group they became and why they became who they are now.

To be honest, I had not listened to much of their music before seeing the film. I was more familiar with De La Soul from that generation or Run DMC and LL Cool J of the one just prior, but the funk, the feelings that hip hop embodied in the early 90's is something you can't deny.

It is exciting to see the process of songwriting and the what is now ease of rising to the top of the rap game. It was most certainly more of a slow climb in reality, but Rapaport doesn't just make this an extended "Behind the Music" like documentary, no, this is an in depth look at what motivated these guys and what still brings them together despite their personal differences: music.

Hit makers of today could learn a few things from these guys as it isn;t really about the level of fame, but the music that you make to get you there.