By Molly Tursi
Staff Writer
Amidst the streaming world, audio services such as Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube and Amazon Music are relied upon as the complete digital storehouse of music, with any artist, song or album at one's fingertips. As physical media is thrown to the wayside, a pivotal contribution to hip-hop history has been left behind, that being the influential hip-hop group De La Soul.
Formed in in 1988 by New York natives Kelvin “Posdnuos” Mercer, David “Trugoy the Dove” Jolicoeur and Vincent “Maseo” Maso, De La Soul have stood at the forefront of the hip-hop genre since its formative years and continue to inspire the present sound today. Although their pioneering sound is lauded as one of the great contributions to the hip-hop genre, contract issues posed a hindrance to the digital release of their catalog to digital audio services.
Fortunately for ardent De La Soul fans, the first six (of ten total) albums made it to streaming on March 3, 2023. Sadly a month later, Jolicoeur passed away leaving De La Soul to complete their discography without their beloved member and friend.
On Nov. 21, De La Soul released their first album in nine years, “Cabin In The Sky.” As a homage to Jolicoeur, remaining members Mercer and Maso used the project to process their grief and honor their friend through the medium that brought them together — music.
“Cabin In The Sky” boasts twenty tracks, opening with a titular introduction by Giancarlo Esposito. The album took a village, featuring many collaborators listing hip-hop artists Yummy Bingham, Killer Mike, Jay Pharoah, Gareth Donkin, Yukimi, Q-Tip, Nas, Gina Loring, Black Thought, STOUT, K. Butler & The Collective, Common, Slick Rick and Bilal.
From the jump, the first song “YUHDONTSTOP” establishes that the album will remember Jolicoeur in honorable fashion and avoid melancholy from eclipsing their signature sound. “Cabin In The Sky” continues their tradition of media sampling, inventive lyricism, and eccentric musicality that gave rise to the golden age of hip-hop, fulfilling an authentic return to music.
Memorable tracks include “Sunny Storms,” “The Package,” “Day In The Sun (Gettin’ wit U),” “Run It Back,” “Different World” and the titular “Cabin In The Sky.”
Discussing “Cabin In The Sky,” Mercer told Billboard, “It felt like Dave was working with us from heaven. So that’s how it is. It’s like, I could speak about him and you know the next song is him. He’s very much a part of this album and I think it’s just beautiful.”
Remembering their humble beginnings, De La Soul remain faithful to alternative hip-hop while embedding modernity to their old school sound. “Cabin In The Sky” feels like a blast from the past, with sage wisdom from the visionaries of hip-hop bringing forth the novelty that makes music exciting.
“Cabin In Sky,” introduces De La Soul to a different world that elicits music as a response to grief. In the face of tragedy, the twenty tracks memorialize the labor of creativity, dedication and friendship that defined their sound. De La Soul conclude their discography with the message that “Trugoy the Dove” lives on through their music, whether it be in the first or the last.
