By Patrick Donachie
Phife Dawg, a founding member of the celebrated hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest, died earlier this year, and elected officials are seeking to memorialize the St. Albans native and his group. A new mural may grace the side of a Linden Boulevard storefront soon, according to the office of Councilman I. Daneek Miller (D-St. Albans).
The mural would be created on the side of Nu-Clear Cleaners on 192nd Street and Linden Boulevard. The store was featured in the group’s music video for “Check the Rhime,” the first single from their 1991 album “The Low End Theory.”
Malik Taylor, also known by his stage name Phife Dawg, died from complications from diabetes on March 22. He was 45 years old and grew up in St. Albans. A memorial service was held for him at St. Albans Memorial Park April 4.
A spokesman for Miller said he supported the creation of the mural, and also supported a Chang
“I fully support the idea of preserving a piece of hip-hop history for our future generations through a street co-naming,” Miller said. “A Tribe Called Quest is as fundamentally important to the history of Queens as the DJ or the MC is to hip-hop.”
Leroy McCarthy, who started the petition, said that the City Council might vote on the street re-naming towards the end of June.
“They put Linden Boulevard and St. Albans on the map,” he said, and noted that the store was renowned for its prominence in music video. “That became a landmark and a significant place in music history.
Artist Vince Ballentine designed the mural, and McCarthy said an artist who worked on A Tribe Called Quest’s original album covers supplied the typeface from those covers, which would be incorporated into the mural. McCarthy has also been in contact with the New York Mets in the hopes they might hold a “Phife Dawg Day” during a game, or fund an addition to Phife Dawg at the mural of St. Albans sports stars and entertainers at the St. Albans LIRR stop.
A Tribe Called Quest was formed in 1985 by Q-Tip, the stage name for Kamaal Ibn John Fareed and Phife Dawg, who grew up together in Queens, as well as Ali Shaheed Muhammad, who was originally from Brooklyn, and Jarobi White, who left the group in 1991. The group made five records between 1990 and 1998.
Reach reporter Patrick Donachie by e-mail at pdona
