30 Days/30 Songs. Day 18: A Song That you Wish you Heard on the Radio

Shaka - Q-Tip

Let's just be real here.
Fact: (well should be universally accepted as a fact) Q-Tip is the greatest producer/rapper in hip-hop history. (Some of you are gonna scream, Dilla. I love you guys.)

Before RZA was making 'Bobby Digital' records, there was 'The Brother Abstract'

Before T.I. was fighting himself on records, there was Tip. (which in reality is why T.I. had to change his name from Tip when he hit the mainstream)

Now why you wanna go and do that, love huh? (see what I did there?)

Before Kanye was stroking his ego and ya'll were stanning him for basically biting the RZA's approach to music- there was Q-Tip.
Hell, before Kanye decided to croon about 808s and Heartbreaks, Andre invited us to The Love Below, and before that-
Q-Tip got laughed at and shelved for making Kamaal/The Abstract

Yes. The brother from The Tribe ...who introduced us to Dilla.

So it really pisses me off when in 2008 all I heard on the radio was 'Lollipop' and 'Heartless' and whatever trash Gucci Mane was talking about at the moment. I never once- not once heard anything from Q-Tip's offering, The Renaissance. 

Even to this day, as I scan the iPods of friends and so called hip-hop heads I see every single Lil' Wayne mixtape but I don't see anything from Tribe or Q-Tip. But I digress. 

This particular song was not released as a single, it's the last track on The Renaissance and it's a sweet but banger worthy yet poetically calm tribute to his fallen brothers. If this (or any of the actual singles from the album) would've gotten radio play I'm sure you would've agreed. ...but it didn't.

Good thing I don't listen to the radio.

(I couldn't find a decent video for 'Shaka' so I embedded another song from the album called 'Gettin Up')