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about this album
Kamaal the Abstract is the third solo album released by Q-Tip, but it was supposed to be his second. Following the success of Amplified and dancefloor movers like “Vivrant Thing” and “Breathe and Stop,” Q-Tip’s then-record label Arista Records balked at the hip-hop/jazz fusion album citing its lack of commercial appeal and shelved it from release in 2002. After years of being bootlegged and it’s limited promotional release, it was fortunately rescued by Battery Records, a subsidiary of Jive Records. Kamaal/The Abstract was finally released September 19, 2009 with new artwork. The original promo artwork used a black-and-white version of an image of Q-Tip in profile; this image previously appeared in the liner notes of Amplified. With the renewed interest in Q-Tip after he signed a new deal with Universal and released The Renaissance in 2008, the time was right to unearth Kamaal. Though his label was correct that no early 2000’s smash singles were anywhere to be found on the project, the set is a sprawling creative feat in Q-Tip’s discography. Mostly employing live musicians with extended jazz breaks and very few drum machines, as on “Barely In Love” and “Abstractionisms,” Q-Tip dips in and out of rapping, sometimes eschewing it entirely to sing instead (“Blue Girl”). The whole album is so avant-garde, it borders on being the bebop equivalent of hip-hop. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
