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album, brooklyn, hip hop, kanye west, legend, mos def, political activist, rapper, retirement, south africa, world passport, yasiin bey

Mos Def (aka Yasiin Bey) Announces Surprise Album Before Retirement

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Yasiin Bey – formerly known as Mos Def – has had quite the tumultuous 2016 (haven’t we all?). All year long the Brooklyn hip-hop legend, outspoken political activist and silver-screen actor has been caught up in legal troubles. He tried to travel out of South Africa under a fraudulent “World Passport” document , and as a result, he and his family were detained in January. (He’s now on the country’s “undesirables” list, apparently unwelcome to return…)

Whether his legal troubles had anything to do with it or not, they coincided pretty closely with the rapper’s announcement that he would be retiring from the game unexpectedly. In a statement posted to Kanye West‘s website just a few days after his detainment, he wrote:


“I’m retiring from the music recording industry as it is currently assembled today, and also Hollywood, effective immediately. I’m releasing my final album this year, and that’s that.” 

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a tribe called quest, deisha taylor, epic records, hip hop, honor, L.A. Reid, legend, linden boulevard, malik taylor, memory, phife dawg, producer, q tip, queens, rap, street name

Hip Hop Legend Phife Dawg to get Street named in his honor

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The street named after the late Phife Dawg will officially be unveiled in November. The unveiling ceremony is scheduled to take place on Nov. 19 at 1 p.m. in St. Albans, Queens.

Linden Boulevard at 192nd Street is the location where Phife Dawg will be immortalized. The spot holds a specific significance as it is where Phife met Q-Tip. A Tribe Called Quest would famously reference Linden Boulevard in their classic single “Check the Rhime.”

“The thought of having Linden Boulevard at 192, renamed to Malik ‘Phife Dawg’ Taylor is indescribable,” Phife’s wife Deisha Head Taylor said in a statement. “This is a perfect representation of who Malik was, and what Queens meant to him. Whenever he mentioned Queens, Linden Boulevard at 192, was a focal point of reference, so I am certain he would be pleased with having it renamed in his honor.”

Phife Dawg’s memory will receive further recognition with a new A Tribe Called Quest album. Epic Records Chairman and CEO L.A. Reid let the news slip back in August.