q-tip

It's the rapper Q-Tip, and there's an uncommon urgency to his voice as he shouts: "No! You can't play that. Not in front of Prince!"

Critics loved the acerbic, funny lyrics, that saw Doechii unpack the trials and tribulations of the last two years; and heaped praise on bars that recalled greats such as Q-Tip, Lauryn Hill and Slick Rick, while keeping pace with contemporaries like Kendrick Lamar.

Q-Tip: It’s just his horn, the construction of the songs, his ability to pull something deep and throw it up in the sky and then watch it float or land on the track.

Q-Tip: I guess music is like the connectivity to life’s evolution.

Around the same time, Mendes began to incorporate elements of hip-hop into his sound, collaborating with the Black Eyed Peas on a new version of Mas Que Nada, and recording songs with rappers including Common and Q-Tip.