The Roots co-founder Malik B has died at the age of 47. Black thought shares IG post.
Née Malik Abdul Basit, the rapper was a major presence throughout the group’s first four projects: 1993’s Organix, 1994’s Do You Want More?!!!??!, 1996’s Illadelph Halflife, and 1999’s Things Fall Apart. Malik B would leave the group shortly after, and group member Black Thought alluded to his drug issues on the Phrenology track “Water.”
Both Black Thought and Questlove shared their thoughts on their respective social media pages. “It is with heavy hearts and tearful eyes that we regretfully inform you of the passing of our beloved brother and long time Roots member Malik Abdul Basit,” the Roots’ Questlove and Black Thought said in a statement. “May he be remembered for his devotion to Islam, His loving brotherhood and His innovation as one of the most gifted MCs of all time. We ask that you please respect his family and extended family in our time of mourning such a great loss.”
Thought also added on Instagram, “We made a name and carved a lane together where there was none. We [resurrected] a city from the ashes, put it on our backs and called it Illadelph. In friendly competition with you from day one, I always felt as if I possessed only a mere fraction of your true gift and potential. Your steel sharpened my steel as I watched you create cadences from the ether and set them free into the universe to become poetic law, making the English language your bitch. I always wanted to change you, to somehow sophisticate your outlook and make you see that there were far more options than the streets, only to realize that you and the streets were one… and there was no way to separate a man from his true self. My beloved brother M-illitant. I can only hope to have made you as proud as you made me. The world just lost a real one. May Allah pardon you, forgive your sins and grant you the highest level of paradise.”
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