A Tribe Called Quest

Released: September 24, 1991

Songwriter: Phife Dawg Q-Tip Ali Shaheed Muhammad

Producer: A Tribe Called Quest

[Intro: Q-Tip]
Do you know the importance of a skypager?
Uh, uh, uh, uh

[Verse 1: Q-Tip]
Those who don't believe, see you're laid behind
Got our skypagers on all the time
Hurry up and get yours cause I got mine
Especially if you do shows, they come in fine
If you're with a G and you're sipping wine
Eating cacciatore with a twist of lime
Gotta meet your lover at a quarter to 9
Joint by base, then you get your high

[Verse 2: Phife Dawg]
If you get your high, then mines is next
The 'S' in skypage really stands for sex
Beeper's going off like Don Trump gets checks
Keep my bases loaded like the New York Mets
At times I miss the pager so you don't get vex
Having bad days like a voodoo hex
Conceptually, a pager is so complex
That I be standing by the phone, ready to flex

[Chorus]
Welcome, wel-wel-welcome to the new skypager
Wel-welcome to the new skypager
Welcome to the new skypager, new skypager
Enter telephone number or other numeric message

[Bridge: Q-Tip]
Uh, so funky
Uh, so funky
Uh, so funky
Uh, so funky

[Verse 3: Phife Dawg]
The batteries I use are called Duracell
They last for three weeks so they do me well
Don't be going through no phases, my joint stays on
24-7, from dusk til dawn
If you're in Costa Rica on a sunlit beach
Your greed for the Phifer, I can be reached
A number of importance, I just put it on lock
You leave code '69", that means you want some (cock)

[Verse 4: Q-Tip]
People tend to think that a pager's foul
Well it kinda is cause it makes me scowl
But it really hurts when you're on the prowl
Brothas know it hurts when you're on the prowl
Grabbin' on my joint cause I'm an eager owl
Get paged by a G or a business pal
My shit is overflowin', they won't allow
Another page, so I'll just end this now

[Outro]
(Message sent, thank you for calling skypager)

A Tribe Called Quest is to Hip Hop what Pink Floyd is to Rock ‘n’ Roll. With humble beginnings in Queens, New York, the group blossomed from the friendship of Jonathan Davis (Q-Tip) and Malik Taylor (Phife Dawg). Along with acts like Jungle Brothers and De La Soul—their comrades in the Native Tongues rap collective—they vitalized East Coast Hip Hop, setting the stage for the rise of mainstream and alternative hip hop alike.

Their style, a synthesis of avant-garde production and authentic lyricism, paved the way for the conscious and jazz rap movements. Alongside other upbeat artists like Digable Planets, Us3, and Guru, ATCQ opened up the world of afrocentrism to a wider audience.

MEMBERS

more tracks from the album

The Low End Theory

From the album

The Low End Theory (1991)

A Tribe Called Quest popular songs

SkypagerA Tribe Called Quest

A Tribe Called Quest

The Low End Theory