Phife Dawg passes away at 45 years old

dam... id like to express my shock and condolences at the passing of Phife of A Tribe Called Quest. such a groundbreaking group, these dudes were part of the definition of the sound of an era. thats no small feat. hip hop is feeling the absence of a vital part of its legacy. and we can all feel it.

this is what we experienced and what i tell my son all the time, 'we came up in an era where being EXCELLENT was celebrated. being original, actually being the inventor of a new idea or concept. Phife was part of that era. he helped define it. and he died from the same illness that took my mother. RIP...

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RIP to the original LEE, LEE 163d, NY graffiti legend

today i was saddened to hear about the passing of one of the easily most unsung bombing legend from NYC, the incomparable LEE163d, from the Bronx, NY. with all due respect to LEE, the one from Wild Style, THIS is the guy that set off the franchise.

a contemporary of the legendary PHASE 2, LEE163d was a writer from the early 70s, sometime after 1971 and was said by many to have tore the city up on the streets as well as the trains. me personally, i loved the way he wrote his name with style that was all his own. its impossible to confuse his tag with any other. for me, style is when u can see something, going by at 40mph and STILL be able to know exactly what u just saw. tell me u cant do that with his style.

Nuff respect to the pioneers, wherever they come from. Nuff respect to a legend that doesnt get his just due.

Here we see LEE163d with his man, the legendary PHASE 2, somewhere in NYC. date unknown, early 70s most likely. also pictured, BARBARA 62, a female graff legend from NYC.

LEE 163d on the front of the train, alongside one of the first graff writers in NY, JUNIOR 161. also appearing in the photo is TOP CAT 126, a Philly native that moved to NY, rocking the Broadway Elegant style that he brought with him to NY from Philly. You can see how different his style of writing is next to everything else.

I was very suprised when i found this picture online. a LEE 163d with a TC126, for TOP CAT 126. Two very legendary and influential graffiti writers, at the same time in one place.

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