Rapper Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest Reportedly Dies at Age 45: The Hip-Hop Community Reacts

Hip-hop has lost another legend. Phife Dawg, a founding member of the rap group A Tribe Called Quest, passed away on Tuesday, according to various reports in the hip-hop community. Though the group has not released an official statement, numerous rappers and artists have tweeted about the loss, and #RIPPhife quickly became a trending topic on Twitter.

Phife, whose real name is Malik Taylor, suffered a series of medical complications in recent years, undergoing a kidney transplant in 2008 and has been vocal in the past about his struggle with diabetes.

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A Tribe Called Quest, which was comprised of the late Phife, Q-Tip, and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, paved the way for many other hip-hop groups after forming in the mid-'80s. They released five albums between 1990 and 1998, the year they split. Since then they've had several reunions, including a November appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.

The group's album Beats, Rhymes and Life hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in 1996 and they are known for classic songs like "Bonita Applebum," "Can I Kick It?," "Electric Relaxation," and "Check the Rhime."