Now y'all know that something or someone has to be special for me to buck the trend and post on a Wednesday when this blog is New Problem Tuesdays. However, if special exceptions are made when popes, kings, queens, princes, princesses, presidents and political leaders pass away, then the same must be done for hip-hop royalty. When I was scrolling through my Facebook news feed last night before bed and saw a report that Malik Taylor aka Phife Dawg--one-fourth of one of my favorite hip-hop groups of all time, A Tribe Called Quest--had passed away at the age of 45, my heart immediately sunk and I knew that his storied bout with diabetes was the culprit--although the family hadn't confirmed it yet. It made me feel two different things: 1) I felt like I lost one of my favorite uncles or older brothers and 2) I hate diabetes with a passion because of what it can do to people over time, especially if not properly handled. I immediately resigned myself to listen to my two favorite albums of theirs, The Low End Theory (1991) and Midnight Marauders (1993)--the latter being the very first hip-hop album that I ever purchased. Then I thought, "How can I honor Phife Dawg without unveiling my 'Rave & Favorite Five' hip-hop duos & groups too soon and going out of order again and waiting until next Tuesday to do it?" The answer is threefold: 1) Tribe albums will be "In Heavy Rotation" for a while; 2) by the time this post hit the Innanets, it will be an "11th Hour Post of the Week"; and 3) I can share my "Rave & Favorite Five" Phife Dawg verses. (You see what I did there...you're welcome.) Hence, I bring you the first "3-for-1 After Tuesday Special" in NPT history. Let's roll...
