A Tribe Called Quest to sell off portion of song royalties as an NFT

A Tribe Called Quest have announced plans to sell off a portion of their song royalties as an NFT (non-fungible token).

The iconic hip-hop group have joined forces with music royalties marketplace Royalty Exchange for their first foray into the world of cryptocurrency.

The sale, which starts at $35,000, will encompass 1.5 per cent of sound recording royalties from the group’s first five albums, which starts with their 1990 debut ‘People’s Instinctive Travels And The Paths Of Rhythm’ and runs through to 1998’s ‘The Love Movement’.

While the winning bidder will be required to pay a ten per cent commission to Royalty Exchange and the group upon resale, they will also benefit from royalties gathered across sales, streaming, radio, digital downloads and TV/film use.

Meanwhile, last month saw the estate of the late Phife Dawg release a new posthumous track by the A Tribe Called Quest rapper titled ‘French Kiss Deux’.

The track, which was produced by Canadian hip-hop duo Potatohead People and features rapper Illa J, is the latest peek into ‘Forever’, the forthcoming posthumous Phife album due later this year via AWAL/Smokin’ Needles.

This follows February’s ‘Nutshell Pt. 2’, which features verses by Busta Rhymes and Redman.

In a statement on the collaboration, Illa J – the brother of the late J Dilla – said: “It was such an honor to work on this track with Phife. It’s bittersweet, I really wish he was here to celebrate the release of this song. But I know he’s here in spirit, and I’ll never forget him spittin his verse over the phone to me, always will be a special moment.”

Phife Dawg passed away in 2016 from diabetes complications, following his involvement in A Tribe Called Quest’s curtain call, their sixth and final album ‘We Got It from Here… Thank You 4 Your Service’.