A Tribe Called Quest‘s Phife Dawg has reportedly passed away, aged 45.
The founder member of the pioneering hip-hop group has battled ill-health for decades, having been diagnosed with diabetes in 1990.
He established A Tribe Called Quest in 1985 alongside Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Q-Tip (pictured above alongside Phife Dawg and Jarobi White). They went on to release albums including ‘The Low End Theory’ and ‘Beats, Rhymes and Life’.
Phife Dawg pursued a short-lived solo career with his only album, ‘Ventilation: Da LP’, released in 2000.
The news of his death was also confirmed by Statik Selektah with many more figures from the hip-hop world, including Public Enemy’s Chuck D and El-P of Run The Jewels, taking to social media to express their condolences.
See below for the first tributes to Phife Dawg.
http://storify.com/nmemagazine/tributes-to-a-tribe-called-quest-s-phife-dawg