In under a year, they managed to produce People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm to a lukewarm reception, reaching #91 on the Billboard 200, though it did achieve gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). After receiving many offers, they opted for the Jive Records label, an independent rap label.
In 1989 they signed a demo deal with Geffen Records, but not given a full-fledged recording contract. Phife Dawg was only persuaded to join when a fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, joined the group. The group was made up of rapper/main producer Q-Tip (Kamaal Ibn John Fareed, formerly Jonathan Davis), the late rapper Phife Dawg (Malik Taylor) and DJ/co-producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. They released six studio albums, five compilations, sixteen singles and two extended plays.
A Tribe Called Quest was an American hip hop group, formed in 1985.