De La Soul’s first albums soon available for streaming

“We can’t believe this day has finally come, and we’re thrilled to be able to share our music with our fans, old and new,” confides the group in a press release.

After years of trying to make their albums playable on all streaming platforms, the big day has finally arrived. The first six albums of the group, available for 35 years only in physical version, will land in streaming from March 3, 2023. You will be able to discover or rediscover 3 Feet High and Rising (1989), From Soul Is Dead (1991), Buhloone Mindstate (1993), Stakes Is High (1996), Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump (2000) and AOI: Bionix (2001). These six albums will join the three albums the group has released since 2001, which were already available for streaming.

Rights issues

During all these years, the three members Kevin Mercer alias “Posdnuos”, Dave Jolicoeur alias “Trugoy” and Vincent Mason alias “Maseo” encountered disagreements with their former record company Warner Bros, as well as copyright problems on certain samples that they should have been checked when the streaming platforms came into existence.

In 2019, De la Soul attempted to upload some tracks from the first six albums. Unfortunately, due to disagreements between the band and their label Tommy Boy Records, which owned the rights to the back catalog, it didn’t work out.

The group saved by Reservoir Media

Then in 2021, according to the BBC, a company called Reservoir Media purchased the original Tommy Boy and De La Soul recordings. The operation would have cost them 100 million dollars. Faith Newman, head of Reservoir, said: “When Reservoir acquired Tommy Boy, the first call we made was to De La Soul.” So it’s March 3, the date of the 34th anniversary of the first album 3 Feet High and Risingthat the six highly anticipated debut albums from hip-hop legends De La Soul will hit all streaming platforms.