Native Tongues is one of Hip Hop’s greatest ever collectives. Between De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Jungle Brothers so many memorable song collaborations happened and much success came to each group. It wasn’t always roses however and in a recent sit-down interview with Vlad TV, De La explained some of the group’s tension early on, which would eventually play out on wax.
On the song “I Am I Be,” from Buhloone Mindstate, Posdnous questions the loyalty of members from both Tribe and Jungle. He recently explained why he wrote it and what it was about.
“That was when me and [Q-Tip] and [Afrika Baby Bam] was going through our little growing pains and going through a lot with each other so, that’s how I usually write,” Pos said when asked about the lyrics. “I write where if it was a good day, it was a bad day, I write about it. So those was one of those bad times where we as groups–in our own individual rights were becoming very successful and known–and friendships can get a little strained. [It’s] no difference with us as brothers. We go through it in our own way. That’s what that line is basically about.”
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Posdnous continued by explaining that loyalty is key but regrets writing the lyrics because of their never-ending impact and because all groups have moved on since.
“[It’s] about how I felt, we were friends but in terms of being friends you’re supposed to treat each other life family and brothers opposed to what I thought maybe they weren’t,” he said. “Obviously we grew past that. I can honestly say I regret writing it. Not in terms of art and what I felt but it was only one instinct where I felt like that and wrote it and then it becomes a line that’s known forever.”
De La Soul is currently crowd-funding their forthcoming album and have already raised over $600,000 toward it. 11,000 people have contributed to the effort.
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