Talib Kweli is the posterboy for conscious and underground hip-hop in the aughts. Signed to Rawkus Records, the Brooklyn MC first gained notoriety as one half of Reflection Eternal with DJ Hi-Tek. The duo's debut single, “Fortified Live,” led to the birth of Black Star, whose debut Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star is an underground classic. RE issued its critically acclaimed Train of Thought LP in 2000. Kweli made his solo debut with Quality (2002), featuring the Kanye West-produced “Get By.” West credits Kweli for taking him on tour before the release of his 2004 debut, The College Dropout. Kwe's one of hip-hop's most respected lyricists. Jay famously rhymed, “If skills sold truth be told, I'd probably be lyrically Talib Kweli” on The Black Album's “Moment of Clarity.”