Phife Dawg‘s posthumous album, Forever, will be arriving soon. On Saturday (Nov. 20) the rapper’s estate announced that the highly anticipated record will be released on March 22, 2022 — the six-year anniversary of his untimely death. The news also arrived on what would have been Phife’s 51st birthday.
The former A Tribe Called Quest member worked on Forever with executive producer, Dion Liverpool, under their imprint Smokin’ Needles Records. Additional details about the release have yet to be revealed, though the album will include “Nutshell PART 2 (Ft. Busta Rhymes & Redman),” which debuted earlier this year.
“When I found out we were going to be able to announce his album date on his birthday, I was so excited. We faced a lot of ups and downs trying to get the album completed, and only by God’s grace and patience were we able to,” Liverpool said in a statement about the album. “I would like to thank his fans for being patient and understanding that nothing that is good and timeless will happen overnight. I took on the responsibility to help the family complete Forever and honored that I was trusted to do so. Happy bday Phifey.”
Phife (born Malik Taylor) made a name for himself in the rap industry as a founding member of A Tribe Called Quest alongside Q-Tip (born Jonathan Davis), DJ Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Jarobi White (White later departed the group at their peak). After singing with Jive Records, the group released their first of several critically acclaimed albums, People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, in 1990.
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Phife was nicknamed “Five Foot Assassin” and “The Five Footer” due to his petite stature (5 ft. 3 in) during his time in A Tribe Called Quest. The MC released a solo album, Ventilation: Da LP, in 2000.