Left to Right: Pos, Dave, Maseo
Some of De La Soul's more esoteric samples ranged from Curiosity Killed The Cat to Steely Dan, though their mellow approach belied difficult subject matter. De La Soul Is Dead, however, saw them return to tougher rhythms and a less whimsical melodic approach. Evidently they had grown tired of the "hippies of hip-hop" tag dreamt up by their press officer. With over 100 artists sampled, they sidestepped injunctions by gaining clearance from all concerned artists, having previously been sued by the Turtles for sampling "You Showed Me" on the 3 Feet High And Rising track "Transmitting Live From Mars". The painstaking procedure delayed the album for over a year. When it did emerge it was roundly denounced by critics, who were not taken by De La Soul's drastic gear change. However, infectious songs like "Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)" kept their profile high in the singles chart. Buhloone Mind State saw them move back towards the stylings of their debut, and received better press, although by now the trio's fortunes had waned and the album quickly dropped off the charts. A similar fate befell 1996's Stakes Is High, which, despite returning to the tougher stylings of De La Soul Is Dead, struggled against the commercial ascendancy of gangsta rap.
Then in 2000, De La Soul made a comeback with Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump, the first part of a projected triple-album project, not only helped reassert their reputation as hip-hop pioneers but proved to be one of the year's most inventive albums.
Then in late 2001, De La Soul released the second AOI instalment with AOI:Bionix featuring the lead single, "Baby Phat", which is "a dedication to the large percentage of women in the world who do not get picked to be in videos" Pos says. "They are the everyday real women you talk to. They're doing their thing, they're out here and they got the little inches on the side, the hug muscles." Nice, huh?
In 2004 De La Soul made a shock departure from Tommy Boy Records and set up their own independent label, Sanctuary Records, releasing The Grind Date, which was their first album released under that label.
Sound Files (MP3)
Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey) - from the album De La Soul Is Dead
A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays (w/Q-Tip) - from the album De La Soul Is Dead
Me Myself And I - from the album 3 Feet High And Rising
All Good (w/Chaka Khan) - from the album Art Official Intelligence:Mosaic Thump
Oooh! (w/Redman) - from the album Art Official Intelligence:Mosaic Thump
Breakadawn - from the album Buhloone Mind State
Feel Good Inc (w/Gorillaz)
