Just a couple of days ago, we reported that the A Tribe Called Quest documentary, Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest will be debuting at the Sundance Film Festival in January. Member of the influential hip hop group, Q-Tip, tweeted his disapproval of the film later that day.
“I am not in support of the a tribe called quest documentary,” Q-Tip tweeted. “The filmmaker should respect the band to the point of honoring the few requests that’s was made abt the piece. The filmmaker shld respect the band enough to honor our request regarding the film.“
While the requests Tip is speaking about are unspecified, there were shots in the movie trailer of Q-Tip and Phife Dawg getting into an argument. The breakup of the group was a hot topic before their reunion at the 2008 Rock The Bells tour so we know there was some tension between the members, the portrayal of which might be the requests he is referring to.
Another hint giving rise to this speculation is in the trailer, director Michael Rapaport claims the title of the film as Beats, Rhymes & Fights, which also displays at the end. Since this was a leaked trailer, it may have been a tentative title, an alternate title or perhaps simply just a joke. Until these requests are clarified by the parties, all we have is speculation.