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CRITIC REVIEWS
80
Phife's lyrics are all about his love for his family and all the lessons he learned on the way to adulthood. Released six years to the day after Phife's death, Forever serves as both the final realization of his artistic statement, and a loving tribute to the memory of the artist himself.
80
With Forever’s existence and his openness, we can find solace that the legend achieved a semblance of peace in his final years.
80
A Tribe Called Quest rapper sounds at peace with his past as he gestures toward the future.
80
Forever serves as a fitting cap to Don Juice’s career. It shows how much he had to give and leaves the listener grieving that there won’t be any more.
70
The posthumous Phife Dawg album, a showcase for his dexterous vocal style, reveals what had become most important to the rapper’s life in his post-Tribe years.
70
Despite being mainly comprised of demos and unfinished tracks, Forever serves as a perfect memorial for Phife. It encapsulates exactly who he was, highlights what fans have always loved about him and gives them new insight into the man that he'd grown to be.
70
While not without fault, ultimately ‘Forever’ emerges as a tender salute to Phife Dawg. Six years on, he remains a key aspect of the rap firmament – a light that has not dimmed.
70
Forever will last as a suitable and memorable salute to the rapper so beloved and honored, with enough merit for listeners old and new to return to for years to come.
67
The longtime rapper’s final project, Forever, is a nostalgic consideration of his life and legacy—for good and ill.
It’s so cool to hear Phife’s voice again. I was quite excited when this was announced, but it’s one of those projects where I had no idea wether it would suck or if it would be a great, quality project. This actually is a very quality project overall! Great production choices, and great rapping as well. The vocals match the chill vibe of the album quite well.
So yeah, great project! Definitely one of my favorite posthumous rap albums of the decade
First half is great, and the cohesiveness throughout the entire project makes it sound like Phife was around for the entire record's development. I know some of it was made in the 2010s, seeing how he shouted out Steph Curry. Either way, all the sounds on this record are pleasant, satisfying, without a single harsh noise in sight. However, the second half tends to drag the overall score down a bit - not dogshit, just a bit lesser compared to the very, very solid first half.
The best tracks ... read more
An incredibly respectful and faithful send-off to one of the most charismatic and influential MC's ever. I was a little worried going into this just knowing how posthumous records can often end up, but this was beautifully done. Any fan of Tribe's work should check this out. Long Live Phife Dawg.
FAVORITE TRACKS: Only a Coward, Fallback, Nutshell Pt. 2, Dear Dilla - Reprise, Wow Factor, God Send, 2 Live Forever, Forever
LEAST FAVORITE TRACK: Round Irving High School
I appreciate how respectful this record is to Phife's memory, really good for posthumous standards. RIP Phife!
Great to hear Phife again. Whole album was consistent and enjoyable. Dear Dilla made me cry the first time I listened 😂
a great send off to the don juice phife dawg with great features :) only thing i wish the album had was a proper q-tip feature.
phife forever
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Track List
| 1 | Cheryl's Big Son [Intro] 0:43 feat. V.Rich | |
| 2 | Only a Coward 4:02 | 72 |
| 3 | Fallback 4:15 feat. Rapsody, Renee Neufville | 79 |
| 4 | Nutshell Pt. 2 3:41 feat. Busta Rhymes, Redman | 70 |
| 5 | Sorry 4:05 feat. V.Rich | 77 |
| 6 | Dear Dilla [Reprise] 3:51 feat. Q-Tip | 87 |
| 7 | Wow Factor 2:43 feat. Maseo | 82 |
| 8 | Residual Curiosities 4:20 feat. Lyric Jones | 66 |
| 9 | God Send 4:52 feat. Dwele | 76 |
| 10 | Round Irving High School 5:07 | 59 |
| 11 | French Kiss Trois 3:58 | 69 |
| 12 | 2 Live Forever 5:24 | 80 |
| 13 | Forever 5:57 | 90 |
Total Length: 53 minutes
Year End Lists
| #24 | / | Albumism |
| #24 | / | Good Morning America |
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2y
i’m excited for this but idk how it’ll play out since posthumous albums typically don’t flow well…
then again, it’s ATCQ so there’s a good chance at this being very good
then again, it’s ATCQ so there’s a good chance at this being very good
2y
Tracklist, features, and production credits just dropped. Interested to see how this plays out.
Added on: November 24, 2020