De La Soul is a massively influential
alternative rap group, best known for innovating the
jazz rap style.
Posdnuos[?],
Trugoy the Dove[?] and
Pasemaster Mase[?] formed the group in high school and caught the attention of
producer Prince Paul with a demo tape of the song "Plug Tunin'". Their debut album,
3 Feet High and Rising, was a critical smash that saw the group labeled
hippies due to the message of peace and love. They quickly became the leaders 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[?].
latest album
Art Official Intelligence vol.2: Bionix