The Native Tongues took their name from a line in the song "African Cry", by Motown-offshoot funk group
New Birth, which features the lyric, "took away our native tongues".[4]
History
The
New York City-based Native Tongues crew was a collective of like-minded hip hop artists who would help bring abstract and open-minded lyricism that addressed a range of topics—from spirituality and modern living to race, sex, and just having fun—to the mainstream. Together with the use of eclectic samples that would take on an increasingly jazzy sound, they would be pioneers of so-called
conscious hip hop,
alternative hip hop, and
jazz rap.
De La Soul's
Trugoy the Dove recalled: "The Native Tongues came about where, basically, we had a show together in Boston. [De La Soul], Jungle [Brothers] and we linked from there. We had a natural love for the art and a natural love for each other on how we put stuff together. So we invited [the Jungle Brothers] to a session, and when they hooked up with us, we happened to be doing "Buddy." It wasn't business; it wasn't for a check. It was just trading ideas and just seeing what you're doing. Bottom line, it was just having fun."[5]
According to
Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest: "I remember
Afrika [Baby Bam] called me that night, like, two in the morning. "Yo these kids, De La Soul, you gotta meet ’em! I swear we're just alike!" I went there, met them, and it was just fuckin' love at first sight. It was disgusting. In hip hop, it praises individualism. I think that's the main achievement of the Native Tongues. It just showed people could come together."[6]
Fostered by
Kool DJ Red Alert, the success of the
Jungle Brothers would pave the way for
De La Soul and
A Tribe Called Quest; together, these three groups would form the core of the crew and continue the spirit of
Afrika Bambaataa and the
Zulu Nation. By 1989 they had been joined by
Queen Latifah and the United Kingdom's
Monie Love, and soon by the
Black Sheep &
Chi-Ali. Collectively, the members of the Native Tongues had a huge effect on the style and trends of hip hop during its most important period, the
golden age of the late 1980s–early 1990s.
A Tribe Called Quest and
De La Soul's albums of this time are considered among the best and most important in the hip hop genre.
If you’re old enough, recall the naive early-'90s moment when young rappers from
Nassau County and so forth were so brave they considered mellow and humorous a righteous path as well as a commercial ploy.
While featuring an extensive discography, the collaborations of the Native Tongues have been fairly limited: the collective never recorded anything under that name, and the number of notable
crew cuts can be counted on one hand. The various groups grew distant with time, and, by 1993, De La Soul's
Trugoy the Dove proclaimed, "That native shit is dead." The collective would, however, reunite in 1996 for the Jungle Brothers’ "How Ya Want It We Got It (Native Tongues Remix)"; collaborators in this period, such as
Common,
The Roots, Truth Enola,
DJ S.T.R.E.S.S.,
Da Bush Babees, and
Mos Def, could be seen as latter-day additions to the crew.[8] In 1998 on A Tribe Called Quest's album
The Love Movement, the last track ("Rock Rock Ya'll") features Jane Doe, Mos Def, Punchline & Wordsworth. Q Tip states near the track's end that "this right here is a family".
Legacy
The Native Tongues are regarded as one of the first
alternative hip hop movements; by diverging from popular models of hard-edged braggadocio, pursuing more experimental subject matter, and
sampling more diverse types of music, they renewed the focus on individualism in hip hop. The innovations of the Native Tongues have been credited with facilitating the emergence of artists such as
OutKast,
Kanye West, and
Pharrell Williams.[9]
There are several collectives today—with overlapping membership—that can be seen as the spiritual heirs to the Native Tongues crew: the Spitkicker crew (founded by De La Soul's Trugoy and
Posdnuos in 2000), the
Okayplayers, and the
Soulquarians.
Chris Lighty was a member of the Native Tongues-affiliated street crew the Violators and began his career carrying records for Zulu Nation
DJs, and later as the Jungle Brothers'
roadie. Until his death in 2012 he ran the successful
Violator Management company, which represented Busta Rhymes and Q-Tip, among other high-profile clients.
In 2019, the
9:30 Club in
Washington, D.C. launched an annual Native Tongues Festival to celebrate the musical legacy of the Native Tongues.[10]
† According to De La Soul interview on
MuchMusic's
RapCity in 1996.
†† According to Q-Tip interview the BBC Radio 1 special The Story Of Q-Tip.
According to Dres of Blacksheep, Dj CaveM Moetavation ( Known for Eco Hiphop )
Collaborations
Collaborations involving the original members, those that could be considered true Native Tongues
crew cuts, are in bold. Note that this list is incomplete.
"The Promo" by Jungle Brothers feat. Q-Tip, from Straight out the Jungle
1989
"Buddy" by De La Soul featuring Jungle Brothers and Q-Tip from A Tribe Called Quest, from 3 Feet High and Rising
"Description" De La Soul featuring Q-Tip and Prince Paul, from 3 Feet High and Rising
"Buddy (Native Tongues Decision)" by De La Soul featuring Jungle Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest, Monie Love, and Queen Latifah, from "Buddy" 12-inch single
"The Mack Daddy on the Left" by De La Soul from "
Say No Go" 12-inch single
"Fanatic Of The B Word" by De La Soul featuring Dres and Mike G, from De La Soul is Dead
"What Yo Life Can Truly Be" by De La Soul featuring A Tribe Called Quest (Including Jarobi) and Black Sheep, available on the "A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays" vinyl single.
1992
"Scenario (Remix)" by A Tribe Called Quest feat. Kid Hood and Leaders Of The New School, from "Scenario" 12" single
"Let The Horns Blow" by
Chi Ali feat.
Dres, Dove, Fashion and Phife Dawg, from The Fabulous Chi-Ali
"La Schmoove" by The Fu-Schnickens feat Phife Dawg, from "F.U. "Dont Take It Personal""
"Check It Out" by the Fu-Schnickens feat Dres, from "F.U. "Dont Take It Personal""
"What's That? (¿Que Eso?)" by
Tony Touch featuring Mos Def and De La Soul, from The Piece Maker
"The Questions" by Common featuring Mos Def & Monie Love, from Like Water for Chocolate
"One for Love Part 1" by Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Posdnuos, Pharoahe Monch,
Kool G Rap,
Rah Digga,
Sporty Thievz, and Shabaam Sahdeeq, from Hip-Hop for Respect