The 2023 inductees to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame were announced this week, and although at least one of the names included was a groundbreaking first for hip-hop, one of rap’s most pioneering groups was left out for the second year in a row. A Tribe Called Quest was eligible as of 2015 (People’s Instinctive Travels And The Paths Of Rhythm was released in 1990) but wasn’t nominated until 2022. The group has been officially defunct since 2016, with the death of founding member Phife Dawg and the release of their final album, We Got It From Here… Thank You 4 Your Service.
Former group member Consequence had plenty to say about what he perceived as a snub, telling TMZ, “This is the family tree for me. This the tree that brought you G.O.O.D Music. This the tree that allowed Common Sense to be Common. This is the right-hand man to De La Soul. Stop me when I’m lying. What we not gonna do is keep subjugating that name, A Tribe Called Quest, to a white popularity contest.” However, his sour grapes didn’t stop him from congratulating Missy Elliott, the first female rapper to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
This year’s induction ceremony is planned for November 3 at the Barclays Center in New York, which the broadcast to be announced at a future date.