The De La Soul song Pos called one of his favourites of all time: “Just a really dope record”
Only months before the tragic demise of Trugoy The Dove last year, De La Soul sat down for an interview to celebrate the release of their debut album, 3 Feet High And Rising, decades after it was first presented to the world. The groundbreaking project was one of many, and as they reflected on their journey and peculiar rise to fame, the trio members named some of their favourite creations from the past.
As David ‘Trugoy The Dove’ Jolicoeur, Kelvin ‘Posdnuos’ Mercer and Vincent ‘Mase’ Mason reunited, it seemed strange to longtime fans who hadn’t seen the three assembled as De La Soul for over two decades. However, it was a joyous occasion in more than one way as, after years of legal battles, the trio’s phenomenal catalogue was finally available on streaming services.
With the interviewer ready to take them all the way back, it was straight to 1989 as the collective reflected on the creation of 3 Feet High And Rising, a project that sounded unlike anything else in hip-hop at the time. From its artwork to its instrumentals, a new frontier was being explored.
As they hopped into the time machine, the three-piece were questioned about their favourite tracks from the album and why they held them so dear to their hearts. Commencing the interview, Posdnuos (Pos) unveiled that his chosen song from the 24-track LP was ‘Tread Water’.
Detailing its timelessness, Pos explained, “Definitely ‘Tread Water,’ man. Especially in this day and time, I just feel like it’s such a great, positive message. Cause it’s just about keeping your head and trudging on, above all the negativity.”
With all the violence and materialism of contemporary hip-hop, it’s easy to understand why Pos selected ‘Tread Water’ as his preferred song. Reasserting its superiority, Pos added, “[The] song is just a lighthearted but really powerful record in terms of cleverly using animals.”
As they concluded with their thoughts about the impact of their debut project, the topic of discussion soon turned to De La Soul Is Dead, the trio’s epic 27-track sophomore LP. Trugoy the Dove was the first to select his favourite, citing ‘Bitties In The BK Lounge’.
Educating the interviewer about why Burker King (BK) was so central to the song, Joliceur explained, “My choice would be ‘Bitties in the BK Lounge’ because it’s like reading De La’s Journal, something that really happened—an actual situation that took place in life, and we put it to song. Our experiences working as employees of Burger King definitely adds to it. it’s just kind of cool that we actually documented a moment in our lives and put it to music.”
Joliceur also recalled how for the song, they stepped out of their comfort zone more and began experimenting with the track’s arrangement. The emcee concluded, “Also, what was really cool to me at that time is that we experimented with everybody having a part in that record, but changing the music [for each part]. It was just interesting how we put that song together and also where it stemmed from and what it really, truly meant.”
As each member picked their favourite, the interviewer became more aware of the collective’s varied creative process and the extraordinary amount of thought that was put into each track. After more input from Trugoy, The Dove and Mase, the year was 1993, and the focus was turned to the group’s third album, Buhloone Mindstate.
Posdnuos has two picks as he became unstuck, split between mind and heart. Revealing his true feelings, the lyricist stated, “I mean, anyone who knows me knows ‘I Am I Be’ is one of my favourite records of all time. But for this particular conversation, I have to say ‘En Focus.’
The reason for the selection of ‘En Focus’ featuring Shortie No Mass and Dres was due to the incredible way it came to fruition. Exploring this, Pos reflected, “That was just fun putting that record together. It was me saying, ‘Yo man, we’re about to use this sample that Masta Ace had used, and I think he’s gonna love the way we used it.’”
The track sampled by Masta Ace was the 1970 single ‘Nothing Is The Same’ by Grand Funk Railroad. Ace had used it in his 1990 song ‘Music Man’ and Pos loved using the sample and found collaborating with Dres and Shortie No Mass fantastic.
Elaborating on the experience, Pos continued, “That was just a really dope record. Even with Shortie already being kind of put throughout the entire album, I just love her. And I think Dres’ rhyme on that was just fuckin’ amazing.”