Beats Rhymes and Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest brings the story behind the titular hip-hop band – Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Jarobi White to the big screen this year’s Glasgow Music and Film Festival. Taking its title from the band’s first album, the film traces the band’s meteoric rise to fame within the hip-hop community. The band takes us back to their former hang-outs, illustrating the music scene of the late 80s and early 90s as they go. In its best moments, the film is a Behind the Music style mash-up of interviews and music video footage, but digs deeper into the psyches of its subjects. Quest’s chilled out sounds soon clash with strains of disagreement as Phife’s diabetes and artistic differences caused a rift between band members. Beats, Rhymes and Life gets caught up in its own life-based dramas but redeems itself with consistently engaging characters and cool jams.
Beats, Rhymes & Life screens at Glasgow Film Festival this Saturday 25 February at 10.45pm. Book tickets here.