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De La Soul had been out more than 15 years by the time I first found them with Grind Date (2004) running on my iTunes playlist. It was given to me by my good friend Adam Marauskas around my last year in college and I just put it aside (he had given me 45 other CDs at the same time) thinking that this was just another hip hop album. Though I had always heard of De La’s name, I never really found myself into them from what I heard. It sounded a little too old school for my taste with not enough danceable/fun beats. Then it magically started playing on my laptop after a Days of the New track and I just closed my eyes. They won my ears from there!
De La Soul’s most recent album is a great collaboration of their old school emcee style with new school soulful beats. I find it to be great chillen’ and drivin’ music. But on top of just that, this album really helps music lovers like me appreciate their true skills by giving me a gateway into their music. The gateway being soulful choruses from Glen Lewis and Carl Thomas and emcee collaborations with Common and MF Doom.
To give some accreditation (though they absolutely don’t need it), De La Soul has won a Grammy award. They are from New York which represents the foundation of hip hop music. They did start the group right out of highschool (back in the 1980’s) so their sound and flow is very polished. And they have served and still are an inspiration to artists like Black Eyed Peas, Digable Planets, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, and Common.
What I truly appreciate about De La Soul’s music is they lay back approach to rhyming, the metaphors they use to entwine their lyrics with their theme, and the collaboration of the three emcees. There are not many hip hop groups which have lasted as long as De La Soul nor are there people who can flow so well into one another’s stories/rhymes. Groups tend to break up into solo acts due to personal egos and/or growth from one member that doesn’t fit the feel of the other members. This happens more in hip hop than any other genre (except pop/r&b). And don’t get me wrong - I’m not happy that they stuck through it (sticking together implies forcefully staying together). I’m happy that they enjoy being around one another and work together better than when they first started. That’s not force, that is loving music and one another.
De La Soul’s most critically acclaimed album is their debut LP entitled 3 Feet High and Rising (1989). It comes preloaded with 24 full length tracks that are all amazing. If you like The Grind Date and can grasp their lyrical content, go back and purchase this album. With hits like “Me, Myself, and I” and “Buddy ft Q-Tip & Jungle Brothers”, this album hits all the right chords and is a fundamental album to own for true hip hop lovers. You’ll then start to understand (like me) how important De La Soul was and is to real hip hop.
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