Ali Shaheed Muhammad (born August 11, 1970) is an American hip hop DJ, record producer, rapper and bass guitarist, best known as a member of A Tribe Called Quest. With Q-Tip and Phife Dawg (and sometimes Jarobi White), the group released five studio albums from 1990 to 1998 before disbanding; their final album was released in 2016. He was also a member of the R&B group Lucy Pearl, and is known in recent years for his jazz collaborations with producer Adrian Younge.

Early life

Muhammad was born in Brooklyn, New York City, and was raised in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood. He began to DJ at age eight, and began programming music at age 13. He befriended Q-Tip as a freshman at Murry Bergtraum High School in Manhattan, and in 1985, they began making demos together, using recording equipment provided by Muhammad's uncle. Shortly thereafter, Phife Dawg and Jarobi White joined the duo, forming the hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. Muhammad is a Muslim.

Career

Together with Jay Dee and Q-Tip, Muhammad formed the music-production collective, the Ummah. After A Tribe Called Quest disbanded, Muhammad formed the R&B supergroup Lucy Pearl with Dawn Robinson, formerly of En Vogue and Raphael Saadiq, formerly of Tony! Toni! Toné!, releasing one album in 2000. On October 12, 2004, he released his debut solo album, Shaheedullah and Stereotypes. In 2013, Muhammad moved to Los Angeles to work with producer Adrian Younge on the Souls of Mischief album There Is Only Now, as the album's narrator. Since then Muhammad and Younge have collaborated to co-produce the soundtrack for both seasons of the Luke Cage TV series, and they have toured together since 2018 as the Midnight Hour, releasing an album by the same name. In 2019, Muhammad contributed to Saadiq's fifth album, Jimmy Lee. In 2020, Muhammad and Younge launched the Jazz Is Dead album series, in which the two of them collaborate with jazz musicians. Album partners in this series have included Roy Ayers, Marcos Valle, Doug Carn, Gary Bartz, João Donato, and the trio Azymuth. Muhammad is the main bass guitarist for the project. In 2024, Muhammad was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a member of A Tribe Called Quest.

Radio show

In 2013, Muhammad began co-hosting the Microphone Check radio show, which ran on NPR until 2016, and on Spotify until 2019.

Discography

Studio albums

with Lucy Pearl

with Adrian Younge

Selected solo production credits

A Tribe Called Quest - Check the Rhime 12"

Fu-Schnickens - F.U. Don't Take It Personal

Fu-Schnickens - True Fuschnick 12"

Boogie Down Productions - We in There 12"

Greg Osby - 3-D Lifestyles

Shaquille O'Neal - Shaq Diesel

Young MC - What's the Flavor?

Gil Scott-Heron - Spirits

Ice Cube - What Can I Do? 12"

Simple E - Colouz Uv Sound

Da Bush Babees - Ambushed

Faith Evans - You Used to Love Me 12"

D'Angelo - Brown Sugar

Naughty by Nature - Feel Me Flow 12"

Stepchild - Hangin' Around (Sicka Gettin' Treated) 12"

Jon B. - I Do (Watcha Say Boo) 12"

Various artists - Ride (soundtrack)

Angie Stone - Black Diamond

Shola Ama - In Return

Eric Benét - A Day in the Life

Scritti Politti - Tinseltown to the Boogiedown: The Variations

Various artists - The PJs (soundtrack)

Mos Def - Black on Both Sides

Laurneá Wilkerson - II

Angie Stone - Mahogany Soul