De La Soul
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De La Soul is a massively influential alternative hip hop group, best known for their eclectic sampling and quirky, surreal lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap subgenre. Kelvin Mercer (Pos, Posdnuos, Plug One), David Jude Jolicœur (Trugoy, Trugoy the Dove, Plug Two) and Vincent Mason (Pasemaster Mase, Maseo, Plug 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'".
Their debut album, 3 Feet High and Rising (1989), was a critical smash that saw the group labeled hippies due to the message of peace and love. 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. "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.
De La Soul's second album, De La Soul Is Dead (1991) received mixed reviews and did not sell as well. 1993's Buhloone Mindstate and 1996's Stakes Is High saw the group evolve a new sound, that although again did not garner commercial success, did cement their position as mainstays of the alternative rap movement. Four years following that, De La Soul made a sort of comeback with the first of a three-part series entitled Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump. This was followed by Art Official Intelligence: Bionix in late 2001. In 2004 De La Soul released The Grind Date, their seventh album.
In 2005, they featured on the new Gorillaz single, "Feel Good Inc." and on the LA Symphony single "Universal".
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Discography
Albums
- 3 Feet High and Rising, 1989
- De La Soul Is Dead, 1991
- Buhloone Mindstate, 1993
- Stakes Is High, 1996
- Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump, 2000
- AOI: Bionix, 2001
- Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump (Instrumental), 2001
- Live at Tramps, NYC, 1996, 2004
- The Grind Date, 2004
Singles
- "Me Myself and I", 1989 - #22 UK
- "Say No Go", 1989 - #19 UK
- "Eye Know", 1989 - #14 UK
- "The Magic Number"/"Buddy", 1989 - #7 UK
- "Mamma Gave Birth To The Soul Children" (with Queen Latifah), 1990 - #14 UK
- "Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)", 1991 - #10 UK
- "A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays", 1991 - #22 UK
- "Keepin' The Faith", 1991 - #50 UK
- "Breakadawn", 1993 - #39 UK
- "Stakes Is High", 1996 - #55 UK
- "4 More" (featuring Zhane), 1997 - #52 UK
- "Oooh" (featuring Redman), 2000 - #29 UK
- "All Good?" (featuring Chaka Khan), 2000 - #99 US, #33 UK
- "Baby Phat", 2002 - #55 UK
- "Feel Good Inc." (Gorillaz featuring De La Soul), 2005 - #17 US, #2 UK
Samples
- Download sample "My Brother's a Basehead" from De La Soul Is Deadde:De La Soul