The inaugural ‘Native Tongue Fest: Celebrating 30 Years Of Hip Hop’ event gets underway next month in Washington, D.C and boasts a crazy line up. With a humble and honest mission to honour three decades of Hip Hop, the event will feature performances from some of the original Native Tongues crew members. Performers on the bill include Jungle Brothers, Monie Love, De La Soul’s Maseo, A Tribe Called Quest’s Jarobi, Black Sheep, Kool DJ Red Alert, Brand Nubian, Chi-Ali, Leaders Of The New School, Fu-Schnickens, Da Bush Babees and The Beatnuts, among others.
The event will also pay special tribute to the late Phife Dawg by donating a portion of the proceeds to The American Diabetes Association. The much missed A Tribe Called Quest star had held a long battle with the illness, which is much documented in Michael Rapaport’s film, ‘Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest’. Formed in the late ’80s, the Native Tongues collective was unique. With Afrocentric lyrics and often eclectic, jazz-influenced beats, members of Tribe merged with The Jungle Brothers and the De La Soul boys to form the group with notable additions from Monie Love and Queen Latifah among many others.
The Native Tongue Fest takes place on July 18 at The Anthem in D.C. and is hosted by Poet Taylor and DJ Bee.
Tickets range from $85 to $125 and are available here.
