Award Tour


"Award Tour" is a song by A Tribe Called Quest, released as the first single from their third album Midnight Marauders. It features rapper Trugoy on the chorus, from the fellow Native Tongues group De La Soul. It contains a sample of "We Gettin' Down" by Weldon Irvine, from his 1975 album Spirit Man. The B-side of the single is the original version of the Midnight Marauders track "The Chase, Pt. 2", which notably features the first known verse by future Tribe collaborator Consequence. The song remains Tribe's highest charting single to date, experiencing large success in America and overseas.
The second half of the song's chorus calls out names of cities and states in this order: New York City, New Jersey, North Carolina, Virginia, Oakland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, St. John, Chi-town, Spokane, London, Tokyo, Houston, Delaware, Washington, D.C., Dallas, South Carolina, Maryland, New Orleans and Detroit. In addition, one line in the second verse mentions two Major League Baseball teams, the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees.

Background

Speaking with Vibe, Q-Tip revealed his process for the song's production:

Music video

The music video of "Award Tour", which featured an appearance by De La Soul, was released in November 1993. Filmed in the perspective of a painting, it featured Q-Tip and Phife Dawg rapping in New York City whilst De La Soul member Trugoy sings the chorus.

Legacy