76. A Tribe Called Quest - “We The People….”

This track is like A Tribe Called Quest’s take on the Declaration of Independence. It’s their reclamation of ‘we the people’, a reassignment of the term so that it fits everyone – especially those who originally weren’t included within its usage, and who sadly continue to find themselves marginalized and excluded from the mostly affluent white Christian heteronormative narrative that composes America.

It’s a reading between the lines, like someone took a magnifying glass to the original document to see the invisible ink written within its margins. Its the unspoken words of the founding fathers, the words they didn’t have to say (because actions of course speak louder than words), and the words their progeny – our current politicians, still profess, pretending to be for the many when in reality they only representing those who look like them, or better yet, those who already have wealth and power and can in turn help increase their own share of wealth and power.

It’s calling out the self-perpetuating cycle for what it is, cutting to the core of the issue while still holding onto that veneer of witty and sarcastic humor that has always made A Tribe Called Quest such a fresh and dynamic voice.