Q-Tip's first album in over eight years almost ready

Two thousand eight is proving to be the year that keeps on giving for A Tribe Called Quest fans. Not only did Q-Tip ask his old buddies Phife, Ali and Jarobi if they could kick it again (Answer: Yes, they can.) for this year's Rock The Bells, Q also told Billboard he is no longer GNR'ing his long-awaited follow-up to 1999's Amplified.

Q-Tip talked to Billboard about The Renaissance, which is apparently nearly ready for the world, and discussed some of the tracks from the album tentatively scheduled for an October 14 release from Universal Motown.

In its current state, Renaissance is a nine-track album that features guest spots from Raphael Saadiq and Norah Jones, and even found the cave D'Angelo has been hiding in for the past decade, pulled him out of it, and put him on "Believe." The album is set to open with a track entitled "Shaka." The song, which still seeks a sample clearance, features several excerpts from a Barack Obama speech over a guitar-tinged beat.

Q wanted to make it clear he's not just making an Obama-related track because it's the new trend in hip-hop or anything, though. "I start the album off with the Obama speech not just because I'm African-American, but because I really feel like he's a fresh new voice and alternative from what we've seen in the political scene in some time," he told Billboard. "I see similarities in his way of thinking and my way. I really like him a lot."

Renaissance's debut single, "Gettin Up," is already out and currently being streaming on XXL, ready for you and yours to start bugging out to its laid back flows at your leisure.

Related links:
Q-Tip on MySpace
ATribeCalledQuest.com
YouTube: Q-Tip - "Vivrant Thing"

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