Local musicians’ collective Low End Theory Players will be playing a benefit concert in tribute to A Tribe Called Quest’s Phife Dawg at the Joy Theater on April 8.

Derrick Freeman at A Tribe Called Quest Tribute show at Tipitina’s. Photo by Noé Cugny.

The event, titled Beats, Rhymes and Phife, will feature a second line parade, a screening of the documentary Beats, Rhymes and Life about the legendary hip-hop band, after a set of music by the Low End Theory Players with special guests.

The concert, honoring the memory of Malik “Phife Dawg” Taylor who passed away on March 22, will benefit the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic and aim at raising awareness for diabetes, which caused the rapper’s early death.

“Phife influenced and inspired my work as a musician,” said Low End Theory Player Derrick Freeman of Phife Dawg in a press statement. “To know he passed at 45, too early, from a illness that could have been prevented? I have to help get the word out – not just to honor him but to let other musicians know they need to take care of themselves.”

A few weeks before Phife’s passing, Freeman and the Low End Theory Players sold out a Tribe Called Quest Tribute show at Tipitina’s. Click to view OffBeat’s coverage of the show.

“This is such an important issue for us,” said New Orleans Musicians Assistance Foundation managing director Erica Dudas. “The majority of patients at the Musicians’ Clinic have to manage diabetes – it’s a hidden part of musicians’ lifestyle and Phife’s death is a wakeup call to some musicians.”

Recently, local saxophonist Clarence “Trixzey” Slaughter’s sudden passing at the age of 28 due to diabetes complications stunned musicians including Freeman and the local community.

The Joy Theater will open its doors on Friday at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 for general admission, $20 for VIP, and available online at www.thejoytheater.com/tickets.