Everything about De La Soul totally explained
De La Soul is a
Grammy Award-winning
hip hop group from
Amityville,
New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling and quirky, surreal lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the
jazz rap subgenre. The members are
Kelvin Mercer (Posdnuos, Mercenary, Plug Wonder Why, Plug One),
David Jude Jolicoeur (Trugoy the Dove, Dave, Plug Two) and
Vincent Mason (P.A. Pasemaster Mase, Maseo, Plug Three). The three formed the group in high school and caught the attention of
producer Paul Huston (
Prince Paul) with a demo tape of the song "
Plug Tunin'". Prince Paul was also sometimes referred to as Plug Four.
With its playful wordplay, innovative sampling, and witty skits, the band's debut album,
3 Feet High and Rising, was hailed as a hip-hop masterpiece. It is also the band's biggest commercial success to date, with their subsequent albums selling progressively less, despite receiving praise from critics. A measure of 3 Feet High and Rising's cross-over appeal was the fact that it was voted
Album of the Year by
NME Magazine, a title better known for its taste in guitar-based music.
De La Soul has influenced numerous other hip hop artists such as
Camp Lo,
Black Eyed Peas, and
Digable Planets. They were also instrumental in the early stages of rapper/actor
Mos Def's career, and are a core part of the Spitkicker collective. They are the longest standing
Native Tongues Posse group, after the
Jungle Brothers.
History
3 Feet High and Rising
De La Soul's debut album,
3 Feet High and Rising (1989, but available in August 1988 in Germany), was a critical smash hit in the hip hop genre. They quickly became prominent members of the
Native Tongues Posse along with
A Tribe Called Quest,
Black Sheep,
Queen Latifah,
The Jungle Brothers and others.
The single "
Me, Myself and I" became a huge hit, further cementing the group's popularity. However, rock group
the Turtles sued the group for
sampling "You Showed Me" without permission on De La Soul's "Transmitting Live from Mars". From that point on, sampling required permission from the sources before it was released.
Lyrically, much of
3 Feet High and Rising focused on striving for peace and harmony — a message that was slowly fading from the rap community in the late 1980s.
3 Feet High and Rising also introduced De La Soul's concept of the "D.A.I.S.Y. Age" (an acronym standing for "da inner sound, y'all"). As a result, audiences were quick to peg the members of De La Soul as
hippies. This stereotype greatly agitated the group's members, as they always envisioned their career as a constantly changing style. This frustration would influence their next recording sessions.
De La Soul is Dead
De La Soul's second album,
De La Soul Is Dead (1991) was a much more mature album. It featured a wealth of material that criticized the violent, careless direction that hip hop was heading in at the time, though it still managed to maintain a light, absurd sense of humor.
The cover of the album features a broken daisy flower pot, symbolizing the death of the "
D.A.I.S.Y. Age" and the imagery that went along with it. The album spawned several singles, including the dark "
Millie Pulled A Pistol on Santa," a tale of a young girl who could no longer take the sexual abuse from her father, and the lead single "
Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)," a story about the people who used De La's recent fame to try and launch their own careers.
De La collaborated with the
Black Sheep on "
Fanatic Of The B Word,"
Q-Tip from
A Tribe Called Quest on "
A Roller Skating Jam Named 'Saturdays'", and
Prince Paul makes an appearance on the mic in "
Pass the Peas" with a verse of his own. The album also more prominently featured
Vincent Mason as a rapper, providing verses of his own on "
Bitties in the BK Lounge," "
Afro Connections at a Hi-5," and "
Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)."
Though it received mixed reviews and didn't sell as well as
3 Feet High..., it eventually became a cult classic and was recognized as being underrated and underappreciated by a increasingly fickle public. "Score" magazine listed the album as one of their top 100 Hip Hop albums of all time, stating that "it's true genius is rarely understood". There are several major differences between the CD version of this album and the other formats, as the tracks "
Johnny's Dead AKA Vincent Mason," "
My Brother's a Basehead," "
Kicked Out the House," and "
Who Do U Worship?" are only available on the CD. The limited edition double vinyl promotional copies of the album distributed to the media before the official release didn't feature these.
Buhloone Mindstate
1993's
Buhloone Mindstate saw the group evolve a new sound and cemented their position as mainstays of the
alternative hip hop movement. There were several moments on the album which proved the band had matured. "I Be Blowin'" was a departure as the track was an instrumental featuring saxophone playing by the legendary
Maceo Parker. The introspective "I Am I Be" showed De La at their most mature to date with subject matter about Pos' daughter Ayana Monet as well as his grandmother. "Long Island Wildin'" was a collaboration with Japanese hip-hop artists Kan Takagi (Major Force) and trio Scha Dara Parr (SDP). First single "
Breakadawn" used a sample of Michael Jackson's "I Can't Help It" throughout. De La Soul collaborated for the first time with
Gang Starr's
Guru on "Patti Dooke." Female MC Shortie No Mas, a cousin of Posdnuos, was prominent on many tracks on the album, showcased particularly "In The Woods." The album ended with a fun old school Biz Markie collaboration called "Stone Age." Missing from vocal duties is Mase, whose voice can only be heard on "Area" in a break near the end of the track. Also rarely featured is his scratching which was heard often on previous albums, with only "In the Woods" showcasing his talent in that area. The album was a critical success, but it was the biggest commercial failure for the group at the time of its release. Many publications, such as Rolling Stone, have listed this album as one of the best hip-hop albums of all time.
In 1993, De La Soul performed together with
Teenage Fanclub for the soundtrack of
Judgment Night, on a track called "
Fallin'".
In 1994, 500 copies of a promotional
EP called
Clear Lake Audiotorium were released on clear vinyl and CD. The 6 track EP contained edited versions of tracks off of
Buhloone Mindstate but also featured the tracks "Sh.Fe.MC's" (Shocking Female MC's) which was a collaboration with A Tribe Called Quest, and "Stix & Stonz" which featured old-school hip hop artists Grandmaster Caz, Tito of Fearless Four, Whipper Whip, LA Sunshine and Superstar. The EP was widely bootlegged afterwards.
Stakes Is High
1996's
Stakes Is High was the first album not produced by
Prince Paul, with overall production credits given solely to the trio, and again, was met with mixed results and poor sales. The title track and first single, produced by
Jay Dee, wasn't a hit, but second single
Itsoweezee (HOT), with only Dave on vocals, did fare better due to its creative music video. The album spawned a third single
4 More featuring
Zhane which failed to chart. The album did provide a launching pad for future star rapper and actor
Mos Def, who appeared on the track "Big Brother Beat." The album also featured collaborations with
Common (Sense), Truth Enola, and the
Jazzyfatnastees.
Art Official Intelligence
Four years later, De La Soul announced that they'd release a triple album series entitled "Art Official Intelligence" (or AOI). All three albums were intended to be released within a year, beginning with the release of . This was followed by in late 2001. After this, however, the public saw no release of the third and final album in the AOI series. For the next two years, the only De La Soul releases were singles or remix compilations. Jolicœur (Dave) stated in an interview that it usually takes about four years for the group to record an album, promote it with advertisements, touring and so on. The group was having trouble finishing the last AOI installment for many reasons, one of which being an ongoing struggle with
Tommy Boy Records, which had been releasing their albums ever since their debut.
In 2003, De La Soul and
Yummy performed "
Much More" on an episode of
Chappelle's Show.
The Grind Date
In 2004, De La Soul released a new full album:
The Grind Date on Sanctuary/BMG Records because the venture between Tommy Boy and Warner Bros. Records was shut down and the group’s contract was shopped to the other
WEA labels. The band thought about having its contract absorbed by
Elektra Records, but it decided to leave WEA altogether. Although it wasn't the third AOI album fans had been expecting, the album was released to some critical acclaim and was well-received by most fans. The album features guests
MF Doom,
Ghostface Killah, Butta Verses and
Flavor Flav, with production from Jake One,
Madlib and more. The lead single “
Shopping Bags (She Got From You)” didn't fare very well and set the tone for disappointing commercial acceptance.
In 2005, it was featured on the
Gorillaz single "
Feel Good Inc." and on the
LA Symphony single "Universal." "
Feel Good Inc" also won a
Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Collaboration. Also in 2005, Posdnuos collaborated with the Portuguese emcee
Boss AC on a track called "Yo (Não Brinques Com Esta Merda)" (Don't play with this shit). In 2006, it released a mixtape of new and old songs, entitled, on its AOI Records label.
In the summer of 2002 the De La Soul toured with
Cake, Modest Mouse, The Flaming Lips, Kinky, and the Hackensaw Boys during the Unlimited Sunshine Tour.
In 2002, De La Soul was briefly featured in the video game
PaRappa the Rapper 2 with the song "
Say "I Gotta Believe!"" (with Double).
In 2003, the song "Oodles of O's" was featured on the soundtrack for
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4.
De La Soul were nominated for 5 Grammys with
Gorillaz for their collaboration on the song "
Feel Good Inc.".
In 2006, De La Soul collaborated with the athletic sneaker giant, Nike, to produce two versions of the Nike Dunk under their skateboarding division, Nike SB. The sneakers were an instant hit, and sold out at most retail stores that carried them.
In 2008, the group is slated to join
A Tribe Called Quest,
Nas,
The Pharcyde and others on the annual
Rock The Bells tour.
Discography
Further Information
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