The song that confirmed De La Soul “knew we had something special”
De La Soul are one of the most influential hip-hop groups of all time. The group, made up of Posdnuos, Maseo and the late Trugoy the Dove, became known for their lyrics and sampling in the jazz rap space, releasing classic albums such as 3 Feet High and Rising, De La Soul Is Dead and Buhloone Mindstate.
The trio formed in Amityville on Long Island, New York in 1988 and caught the attention of producer Prince Paul, who produced their first three albums, with a demo tape of the song ‘Plug Tunin’. It was also the moment they knew they had recorded something special for the first time.
During an interview with Rolling Stone last year, the group discussed the record being a “left-turn” in the genre. “‘Plug Tunin’, to an extent, was a big-words record, with the inspiration of Ultramagnetic MCs and even LL Cool J or some Run[-D.M.C.] freestyles that were just really big words,” he said. “T La Rock. It’s in the spirit of their songs, but it takes a little bit of a left turn in hip-hop.”
At the time, they had confidence in the track but also knew that it was something “obscure” and just different from what was going on. “Listening now, it was one of those records where it was just brave,” he said. “We didn’t know we had something that was gonna be on the radio or be sold or played. We just thought, in the midst of our own circle, we had something special.”
He continued, “The reception and camaraderie from other artists made it feel that was what it was supposed to be. ‘Plug Tunin’ was the introduction of De La Soul and what we stood for. Tapping into our creative sense, overcoming that fear and just going for it.”
Posdnuos also revealed that the song birthed nicknames for each of the members, Plug One, Plug Two and Plug Three, without meaning to do so. Recorded at Calliope Studios in New York City, ‘Plug Tunin’ laid down the foundation for their debut album 3 Feet High and Rising, which was released in 1989. Speaking on Art Official Intelligence Radio earlier this year, Pos explained how a head injury inspired the song.
“The cadence of Plug Tunin’, it came from me just sitting in my room one day. I had sat down by my bed and hit my head,” he said. “Dead up. I hit my head and I was like [to the beat], ‘Ow ow ow ow.’ Bing! Dead up. I made the cadence from me just being hurt. And you know we don’t have no tape recorder. I just grabbed the pen and [wrote it down].”
He continued, “The first words of ‘Plug Tunin’ is me just using the words to hold up the cadence that I did. Those first two lines were just me trying to make sure I remembered the cadence.”