The music community is still openly mourning the passing of Phife Dawg, a pioneer in hip-hop and incredibly influential artist to many. His unexpected death shocked the world, and tributes have been flowing thick and fast. An event held last week saw hip-hop royalty express their grief for the late great, with Kanye West, Andre 3000, KRS-One and more talking personally about Phife Dawg’s effect on them and their lives, but it seems that wasn’t quite enough for KRS-One who has now turned to creating music to help him with his mourning.
Titled The Phife Tribute, KRS-One has teamed up with DJ Static to release a booming new track featuring KRS-One’s growling vocals and touching lyrics from a friend missing another friend. It doesn’t stop there though. KRS-One is encouraging MCs to jump on the track, with all proceeds said to be going to Phife’s wife and children. You can check out the song below, and purchase the track for a minimum of $5 here.
It’ll be interesting to see who jumps on the second verse after KRS-One’s touching, personal first verse. However considering the full extent of Phife’s influence on the world and the inspiration he gave to so many, I wouldn’t be surprised to see more than a few allstars offering up their 16 bars. Check out Phife Dawg’s posthumous single, Nutshell with J Dilla here.
Image: Stereogum