De La Soul Is Dead is the second studio album by American hip hop group De La Soul, released on May 13, 1991.[1][2] The album was produced by Prince Paul, whose work on 3 Feet High and Rising was highly praised by music critics. The album was one of the first to receive a five-mic rating in the hip-hop magazine The Source,[3] and it was also selected as one of The Source's "100 Best Albums" in 1998.[4] The album's cover refers to the death of the "D.A.I.S.Y." (Da Inner Sound, Y'all) age, or a distancing from several cultures including hippies and mainstream hip hop.[5]
De La Soul Is Dead departed from the image that the group had fostered on their previous album, 3 Feet High and Rising. While De La Soul Is Dead retains the humorous approach of its predecessor, its humor is darker, featuring more biting parodies and a more cynical mood.[5][7][8] Particular attention has been paid to the album's discussion of weightier topics, especially the discussion of drug addiction on "My Brother's a Basehead" and the story of sexual abuse in "Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa".[6][5][8][9] Lead single "Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)" has been seen as emblematic of the album's prevailing mood: the lyrics, where the group complains about being harassed by aspiring artists trying to ride their coattails, showcases the album's wearier attitude, while the production counterbalances that cynicism with a "playful post-disco groove".[5][8][10]De La Soul Is Dead also features tracks that feature a more fully lighthearted attitude, such as the summery, disco-influenced "A Roller Skating Jam Named "Saturdays"", and the back-and-forth banter of "Bitties in the BK Lounge".[5][8]
Reflecting on the album and its goals, producer Prince Paul has stated:
We were trying to prove we weren't just a one-album act. And there was a lot of disillusionment with the music industry. When I listen to it now, the raps sound—shall we say—bitter?[11]
In 2008 the album was re-released on vinyl without the CD version's bonus tracks.
Title and cover artedit
De La Soul chose the title De La Soul Is Dead to emphasize their departure from their previous style.[2] The group's separation from the "D.A.I.S.Y Age" imagery of 3 Feet High and Rising is visually demonstrated by the album cover, which shows a broken pot of daisies,[5] as well as by the music video for "Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)", which depicts a pot of daisies being smashed.[11]Maseo has stated that the group's goal was "breaking the stereotype and the stigmatism that was put on us with the hippy concept when D.A.I.S.Y. just was an acronym for Da Inner Sound."[1]
Skitsedit
The album features a series of separate, ongoing skits. The introduction to the album features Jeff, a teenage character (introduced in the B-sides to "Eye Know" and "Me Myself and I": "Brain Washed Follower," "The Mack Daddy on the Left," and the rare "Double Huey Skit"). In a parody of old children's book-and-record read-along sets, Jeff finds a cassette tape copy of a De La Soul album in the garbage. Bullies appear, beat up Jeff, and steal the tape. Ensuing skits feature these bullies harshly criticizing the songs on the album. Mista Lawnge of Black Sheep provides the voice of the lead antagonist called Hemorrhoid, P.A. Pasemaster Mase voices the second bully, while a third gets ridiculed and abused by Lawnge for his admiration of the album. Throughout the skits, the sound of the signal that lets the reader know that it's time to turn the page is heard. In the end, they throw the tape back in the trash, exclaiming, "De La Soul is dead." The album also introduces a fictional radio station called WRMS that plays nothing but "De La Slow" music.
After the widespread acclaim that 3 Feet High and Rising attained, De La Soul Is Dead became a highly anticipated album for which listeners built high expectations.[3][7] However, when De La Soul Is Dead was ultimately released, its change in stylistic direction led to a divided critical reception. Outlets that reviewed the album positively included Rolling Stone, who described it as "an unruly, seemingly effortless hip-hop masterpiece",[14] and The Source, who characterized the album as featuring "musical and lyrical talent combined with unlimited creativity and an ingenious sense of humor".[3] Conversely, the Los Angeles Times opined that De La Soul were "bitter" and "riding a bummer" on the album,[7]NME felt that they "sound thoroughly bored" and their attempts at humor "seem an after-thought or forced",[12] while Entertainment Weekly described the album's mood as "smug and self-righteous".[10] The production on the album attained a more broadly positive consensus: reviews variously stated that "most of the music slams",[7] that the album featured "unique music and overall slammin' production",[3] and that it was "knee-deep in hooks and rhythmic reversals that play like a history of pop experimentalism".[14] The Chicago Tribune stated that "the samples are less instantly infectious [and] the tempos slower" than on 3 Feet High and Rising, but that De La Soul Is Dead was nevertheless "nearly as rewarding";[9] conversely, Entertainment Weekly found the album to be "full of songs that are tuneless or slight".[10]
In the years since the album's release, critics have come to view De La Soul Is Dead more positively. In 1998, it was included in The Source's "100 Best Albums" list.[4] The album placed 228th on Rolling Stone's 2020 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time,[6] and 74th on Spin magazine's list of the best albums of the 1990s;[11] further, Exclaim! magazine labeled De La Soul Is Dead as the best album in De La Soul's catalogue.[17] A retrospective review from NPR praised the album for its "wild, creative swings" into eclectic samples and boundary-pushing concepts, describing it as one of the most "creatively sprawling" entries in an era of hip hop where numerous artists were attempting stylistic experimentation.[8] The Exclaim! review, meanwhile, identified De La Soul Is Dead as the album on which the group established their "signature sound and style" and "street philosopher image".[17] A more mixed retrospective review came from Steve Huey of AllMusic, who found the album "less cohesive and engaging" than its predecessor, but still "fascinating in spite of its flaws".[5]
Commercial performanceedit
The album was certified gold on July 18, 1991, selling over 500,000 copies.
The LP and cassette versions of the album did not include all of the tracks found on the CD release. The LP omitted "My Brother's a Basehead", "Afro Connections at a Hi 5 (In the Eyes of the Hoodlum)", "Who Do U Worship?", "Kicked Out the House" and "Not Over till the Fat Lady Plays the Demo", while the cassette omitted "Johnny's Dead AKA Vincent Mason (Live From The BK Lounge)", "My Brother's a Basehead", "Who Do U Worship?" and "Kicked Out the House".
^ abHernandez, Victoria (11 May 2016). "De La Soul Reflects On Da Inna Sound For 25th Anniversary Of "De La Soul Is Dead"". HipHopDX. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
^ abAllah, Sha Be (May 13, 2022). "De La Soul Dropped Their Second LP 'De La Soul Is Dead' 31 Years Ago". The Source.
^ abcdeAtco (June 1991). "De La Soul: De La Soul Is Dead". The Source. No. 21. Retrieved June 13, 2012.
^ ab"100 Best Albums". The Source. No. 100. January 1998. Retrieved March 1, 2010.
^ abcdefghHuey, Steve. "De La Soul Is Dead – De La Soul". AllMusic. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
^ abc"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. September 22, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
soul, dead, second, studio, album, american, group, soul, released, 1991, album, produced, prince, paul, whose, work, feet, high, rising, highly, praised, music, critics, album, first, receive, five, rating, magazine, source, also, selected, source, best, albu. De La Soul Is Dead is the second studio album by American hip hop group De La Soul released on May 13 1991 1 2 The album was produced by Prince Paul whose work on 3 Feet High and Rising was highly praised by music critics The album was one of the first to receive a five mic rating in the hip hop magazine The Source 3 and it was also selected as one of The Source s 100 Best Albums in 1998 4 The album s cover refers to the death of the D A I S Y Da Inner Sound Y all age or a distancing from several cultures including hippies and mainstream hip hop 5 De La Soul Is DeadStudio album by De La SoulReleasedMay 13 1991Recorded1990 1991StudioCalliope Studios midtown Manhattan New York GenreAlternative hip hopLength73 30LabelTommy Boy Warner Bros ProducerDe La SoulPrince PaulDe La Soul chronology3 Feet High and Rising 1989 De La Soul Is Dead 1991 Buhloone Mindstate 1993 Singles from De La Soul Is Dead A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays Released March 5 1991 Ring Ring Ring Ha Ha Hey Released May 27 1991 Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa Keepin the Faith Released 1991The song Oodles of O s was featured on the soundtrack of Tony Hawk s Pro Skater 4 In 2020 Rolling Stone placed the album at number 228 on their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list 6 Contents 1 Music and lyrics 1 1 Title and cover art 1 2 Skits 2 Critical reception 3 Commercial performance 4 Track listing 5 Charts 5 1 Weekly charts 5 2 Year end charts 6 Certifications and sales 7 ReferencesMusic and lyrics editDe La Soul Is Dead departed from the image that the group had fostered on their previous album 3 Feet High and Rising While De La Soul Is Dead retains the humorous approach of its predecessor its humor is darker featuring more biting parodies and a more cynical mood 5 7 8 Particular attention has been paid to the album s discussion of weightier topics especially the discussion of drug addiction on My Brother s a Basehead and the story of sexual abuse in Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa 6 5 8 9 Lead single Ring Ring Ring Ha Ha Hey has been seen as emblematic of the album s prevailing mood the lyrics where the group complains about being harassed by aspiring artists trying to ride their coattails showcases the album s wearier attitude while the production counterbalances that cynicism with a playful post disco groove 5 8 10 De La Soul Is Dead also features tracks that feature a more fully lighthearted attitude such as the summery disco influenced A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays and the back and forth banter of Bitties in the BK Lounge 5 8 Reflecting on the album and its goals producer Prince Paul has stated We were trying to prove we weren t just a one album act And there was a lot of disillusionment with the music industry When I listen to it now the raps sound shall we say bitter 11 In 2008 the album was re released on vinyl without the CD version s bonus tracks Title and cover art edit De La Soul chose the title De La Soul Is Dead to emphasize their departure from their previous style 2 The group s separation from the D A I S Y Age imagery of 3 Feet High and Rising is visually demonstrated by the album cover which shows a broken pot of daisies 5 as well as by the music video for Ring Ring Ring Ha Ha Hey which depicts a pot of daisies being smashed 11 Maseo has stated that the group s goal was breaking the stereotype and the stigmatism that was put on us with the hippy concept when D A I S Y just was an acronym for Da Inner Sound 1 Skits edit The album features a series of separate ongoing skits The introduction to the album features Jeff a teenage character introduced in the B sides to Eye Know and Me Myself and I Brain Washed Follower The Mack Daddy on the Left and the rare Double Huey Skit In a parody of old children s book and record read along sets Jeff finds a cassette tape copy of a De La Soul album in the garbage Bullies appear beat up Jeff and steal the tape Ensuing skits feature these bullies harshly criticizing the songs on the album Mista Lawnge of Black Sheep provides the voice of the lead antagonist called Hemorrhoid P A Pasemaster Mase voices the second bully while a third gets ridiculed and abused by Lawnge for his admiration of the album Throughout the skits the sound of the signal that lets the reader know that it s time to turn the page is heard In the end they throw the tape back in the trash exclaiming De La Soul is dead The album also introduces a fictional radio station called WRMS that plays nothing but De La Slow music Critical reception editProfessional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingAllMusic nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 5 Chicago Tribune nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 9 Entertainment WeeklyC 10 Los Angeles Times nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 7 NME6 10 12 Q nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 13 Rolling Stone nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 14 The Rolling Stone Album Guide nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 15 The Source5 5 3 Spin Alternative Record Guide7 10 16 After the widespread acclaim that 3 Feet High and Rising attained De La Soul Is Dead became a highly anticipated album for which listeners built high expectations 3 7 However when De La Soul Is Dead was ultimately released its change in stylistic direction led to a divided critical reception Outlets that reviewed the album positively included Rolling Stone who described it as an unruly seemingly effortless hip hop masterpiece 14 and The Source who characterized the album as featuring musical and lyrical talent combined with unlimited creativity and an ingenious sense of humor 3 Conversely the Los Angeles Times opined that De La Soul were bitter and riding a bummer on the album 7 NME felt that they sound thoroughly bored and their attempts at humor seem an after thought or forced 12 while Entertainment Weekly described the album s mood as smug and self righteous 10 The production on the album attained a more broadly positive consensus reviews variously stated that most of the music slams 7 that the album featured unique music and overall slammin production 3 and that it was knee deep in hooks and rhythmic reversals that play like a history of pop experimentalism 14 The Chicago Tribune stated that the samples are less instantly infectious and the tempos slower than on 3 Feet High and Rising but that De La Soul Is Dead was nevertheless nearly as rewarding 9 conversely Entertainment Weekly found the album to be full of songs that are tuneless or slight 10 In the years since the album s release critics have come to view De La Soul Is Dead more positively In 1998 it was included in The Source s 100 Best Albums list 4 The album placed 228th on Rolling Stone s 2020 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time 6 and 74th on Spin magazine s list of the best albums of the 1990s 11 further Exclaim magazine labeled De La Soul Is Dead as the best album in De La Soul s catalogue 17 A retrospective review from NPR praised the album for its wild creative swings into eclectic samples and boundary pushing concepts describing it as one of the most creatively sprawling entries in an era of hip hop where numerous artists were attempting stylistic experimentation 8 The Exclaim review meanwhile identified De La Soul Is Dead as the album on which the group established their signature sound and style and street philosopher image 17 A more mixed retrospective review came from Steve Huey of AllMusic who found the album less cohesive and engaging than its predecessor but still fascinating in spite of its flaws 5 Commercial performance editThe album was certified gold on July 18 1991 selling over 500 000 copies Track listing editAll tracks written by P Huston K Mercer D Jolicoeur V Mason additional writers credited below De La Soul Is Dead track listingNo TitleWriter s Length1 Intro C Johns L Farrow2 142 Oodles of O s T Waits3 313 Talkin Bout Hey Love S Gainsbourg S Wonder C Paul2 274 Pease Porridge A Goodhart A Hoffman H Magidson5 025 Skit 1 0 256 Johnny s Dead AKA Vincent Mason Live from the BK Lounge 1 577 A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays R Matthews J Davis4 038 WRMS Dedication to the Bitty J Sample0 469 Bitties in the BK Lounge K Nix R Isley R Isley O K Isley5 4010 Skit 2 0 3111 My Brother s a Basehead C Ballard Jr R Krieger4 2012 Let Let Me In B McCracken L Fulson B Birthright3 2513 Afro Connections at a Hi 5 In the Eyes of the Hoodlum 4 0214 Rap de Rap Show 2 1915 Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa G Clinton G Cook4 1016 Who Do U Worship 1 5917 Skit 3 0 3118 Kicked Out the House 1 5619 Pass the Plugs E Wright W Smith J Perry3 3020 Not Over till the Fat Lady Plays the Demo S Gainsbourg J C Vannier1 2921 Ring Ring Ring Ha Ha Hey G Skinner5 0622 WRMS Cat s in Control J Sample0 3423 Skit 4 0 1224 Shwingalokate K McCord G Clinton B Nelson4 1425 Fanatic of the B Word featuring Dres M Jones D Kinsey A Titus4 0926 Keepin the Faith B Marley R Temperton M Adams4 4527 Skit 5 0 32Total length 1 13 30 The LP and cassette versions of the album did not include all of the tracks found on the CD release The LP omitted My Brother s a Basehead Afro Connections at a Hi 5 In the Eyes of the Hoodlum Who Do U Worship Kicked Out the House and Not Over till the Fat Lady Plays the Demo while the cassette omitted Johnny s Dead AKA Vincent Mason Live From The BK Lounge My Brother s a Basehead Who Do U Worship and Kicked Out the House Charts editWeekly charts edit Weekly chart performance for De La Soul Is Dead Chart 1991 Peak positionAustralian Albums ARIA 18 12Austrian Albums O3 Austria 19 20Dutch Albums Album Top 100 20 20German Albums Offizielle Top 100 21 12New Zealand Albums RMNZ 22 6Swedish Albums Sverigetopplistan 23 32Swiss Albums Schweizer Hitparade 24 17UK Albums OCC 25 7US Billboard 200 26 26US Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Billboard 27 242023 weekly chart performance for De La Soul Is Dead Chart 2023 Peak positionBelgian Albums Ultratop Flanders 28 127Belgian Albums Ultratop Wallonia 29 152 Year end charts edit Year end chart performance for De La Soul Is Dead Chart 1991 PositionDutch Albums Album Top 100 30 77German Albums Offizielle Top 100 31 94New Zealand Albums RMNZ 32 47Certifications and sales editCertifications and sales for De La Soul Is Dead Region Certification Certified units salesFrance 50 000 33 United States RIAA 34 Gold 500 000 Shipments figures based on certification alone References edit a b Hernandez Victoria 11 May 2016 De La Soul Reflects On Da Inna Sound For 25th Anniversary Of De La Soul Is Dead HipHopDX Retrieved 16 May 2016 a b Allah Sha Be May 13 2022 De La Soul Dropped Their Second LP De La Soul Is Dead 31 Years Ago The Source a b c d e Atco June 1991 De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead The Source No 21 Retrieved June 13 2012 a b 100 Best Albums The Source No 100 January 1998 Retrieved March 1 2010 a b c d e f g h Huey Steve De La Soul Is Dead De La Soul AllMusic Retrieved August 25 2011 a b c The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone September 22 2020 Retrieved June 5 2021 a b c d e Gold Jonathan May 12 1991 Another Great Rap Hope Falters Los Angeles Times Retrieved January 10 2016 a b c d e Wang Oliver March 3 2023 De La Soul Is Streaming NPR Retrieved May 19 2023 a b c Kot Greg May 16 1991 De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead Tommy Boy Chicago Tribune Retrieved January 10 2016 a b c d Browne David May 24 1991 De La Soul Is Dead Entertainment Weekly Retrieved June 13 2012 a b c The 90 Greatest Albums of the 90s Spin September 1999 a b McCann Ian May 11 1991 Misery Cuts NME p 34 De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead Q No 209 December 2003 p 149 a b c Poulson Bryant Scott May 30 1991 De La Soul Is Dead Rolling Stone No 605 Archived from the original on April 16 2023 Retrieved June 13 2012 Caramanica Jon 2004 De La Soul In Brackett Nathan Hoard Christian eds The New Rolling Stone Album Guide 4th ed Simon amp Schuster pp 224 225 ISBN 0 7432 0169 8 Weisbard Eric 1995 De La Soul In Weisbard Eric Marks Craig eds Spin Alternative Record Guide Vintage Books pp 104 105 ISBN 0 679 75574 8 a b Ayiku Vernon March 7 2023 De La Soul s Albums Ranked from Worst to Best Exclaim Retrieved May 19 2023 Australiancharts com De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead Hung Medien Retrieved September 28 2020 Austriancharts at De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead in German Hung Medien Retrieved September 28 2020 Dutchcharts nl De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead in Dutch Hung Medien Retrieved September 28 2020 Offiziellecharts de De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead in German GfK Entertainment Charts Retrieved September 28 2020 Charts nz De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead Hung Medien Retrieved September 28 2020 Swedishcharts com De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead Hung Medien Retrieved September 28 2020 Swisscharts com De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead Hung Medien Retrieved September 28 2020 Official Albums Chart Top 100 Official Charts Company Retrieved September 28 2020 De La Soul Chart History Billboard 200 Billboard Retrieved September 28 2020 De La Soul Chart History Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Billboard Retrieved September 28 2020 Ultratop be De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead in Dutch Hung Medien Retrieved June 4 2023 Ultratop be De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead in French Hung Medien Retrieved June 11 2023 Jaaroverzichten Album 1991 dutchcharts nl Retrieved September 28 2020 Top 100 Album Jahrescharts GfK Entertainment in German offiziellecharts de Retrieved September 28 2020 Top Selling Albums of 1991 Recorded Music NZ Retrieved September 28 2020 Legrand Emmanuel September 14 1991 FNAC Music Steps Onto The Dance Floor PDF Music amp Media p 7 Retrieved March 5 2023 American album certifications De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead Recording Industry Association of America Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title De La Soul Is Dead amp oldid 1181633947, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
