On Sunday, Feb. 12 news broke that hip-hop lost another legend. David Jolicoeur — who rapped as Trugoy the Dove, Plug Two, Dove, and recently, Dave, as part of the hip-hop trio De La Soul — passed away at age 54. 

Born on Sept. 21, 1968, in Brooklyn and raised on Long Island in Amityville, New York, Jolicoeur was a founding member of the groundbreaking East Coast group. Renowned for dropping frank and satirical statements covering heavy topics on upbeat, dialogue-driven, sample-heavy tracks, De La Soul were innovative outliers on a late '80s and early '90s hip-hop scene flourishing with tough-tongued gangster rap. 

Last month Jolicoeur told Billboard, "I think the element of that time of what was taking place in music, hip-hop, and our culture,I think [De La Soul] welcomed that and opened up minds and spirits to see and try new different things." 

Distinctly true to themselves, an up-tempo, bright and playful form reverberated through their sound and style. This is apparent from their very beginnings in everything from the funky floral album art that covers their debut album Three Feet High and Rising, to the music video for "Me, Myself, and I" where the group is seen side-eyed by fellow classmates in gold chains and dark shades. An accompanying bonus track titled "Ain’t Hip To Be Labeled A Hippie"on the single features a sample from "Hard Times" by Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band and a lyrical breakdown of an acronym for D.A.I.S.Y. which rejects any notions of their assumed status as hippies.

Nominated for six GRAMMY Awards through their career, De La Soul became GRAMMY-winners in 2006 for best pop collaboration with the Gorillaz for "Feel Good Inc."  Their indelible mark on hip-hop was most recently celebrated at the 2023 GRAMMYs where Jolicoeur’s fellow group-mates Vincent Mason a.k.a Maseo and Kelvin Mercer a.k.a Plug One and Posdnuos appeared without him as part of the Recording Academy’s massive tribute to celebrate 50 years of hip-hop. 

De La Soul is part of the soul of hip-hop, pushing storytelling, dialogue and music sampling ahead in the genre (the latter was ultimately responsible for the group’s difficulty reaching mainstream audiences on digital streaming platforms). Recently the group reportedly cleared samples after a protracted two-year battle over sample rights and was gearing up to re-release a body of their work to streaming services on March 3 including 3 Feet High and Rising, De La Soul Is Dead, Buhloone Mindstate, Stakes Is High, Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump, and AOI: Bionix.

Jolicouer will be deeply missed by his fans, the music communities he inspired and his fellow artists, including Pharell who shared his sentiments on Twitter, stating, "Trugoy Dave from De La Soul has gone up to be with the day of the stars with the Master. Sending love, light and positive vibrations to his family, The Soul and everyone whose lives have been touched by his existence. Oodles and Oodles and Oodles of O’s." Rapper and producer Erik Sermon also posted a heartfelt statement in a post on Instagram that starts simply, "This one hurts."

Enjoy a sampling of just a few of De la Soul’s essential tracks, below. 

"Me, Myself and I" (1989)

Released as a single from the group’s debut album 3 Feet High and Rising, the track begins with Jolicouer asking “mirror, mirror on the Tell me, mirror, what is wrong? Can it be my de la clothes? Or is it just my de la song?” It was the group’s only track to make it to number one on Billboard’s U.S. R&B charts. An undeniable bopper, it ranked number 46 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop and still instantly gets crowds going today.

The song is also great evidence of their smatter-sampling capabilities, with samples taken from five other artists: "(Not Just) Knee Deep" by Funkadelic (1979); "Rapper Dapper Snapper" by Edwin Birdsong (1980); "Funky Worm" by the Ohio Players (1973); "The Original Human Beatbox" by Doug E. Fresh (1985) and "Gonna Make You Mine" by Loose Ends (1986). 

"Breakadawn" (1993)

A soulful groove that serves as a soundtrack for sweltering summers in New York City, "Breakadawn" was released in 1993 as a single from De la Soul’s third album, Buhloone Mindstate. It samples "Quiet Storm" by Smokey Robinson, the intro to Michael Jackson's "I Can't Help It" from his Off the Wall album. The song also samples "Sang and Dance" by the Bar-Kays.

“Rock Co.Kane Flow ft. MF DOOM” (2004)

From De La Soul’s seventh album, Jake One produces the MF DOOM feature track "Rock Co.Kane Flow" while Posdnuos lays it down: "So systematically inclined to pen lines, without saying the producer’s name all over the track. Yeah I said it! What you need to do is get back to reading credits." The track represented a masterful mashup of minds that ultimately helped Jake One raise his profile. 

In an interview with Passion of the Weiss, Jake One told David Ma, "I don’t even think [De La Soul] knew who I was, but they ended up picking like five different beats and ‘Rock Co.’ was one of them. It was the one that surprised me out of what they picked. And what they do is, [Posdnuos] grabs a bunch of stuff he thinks is dope and Dave listens and has to agree on it. They make sure they’re on the same wavelength but they’re not always on the same wavelength [laughs]." 

"Feel Good Inc." - Gorillaz (2005) 

Released as a single from the Gorillaz second studio album, Demon Days, "Feel Good Inc." featuring De La Soul, secured the group’s GRAMMY-winner status in 2006. 

The song climbed the charts, with the single topping the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart for eight consecutive weeks and appearing on the Billboard Hot 100 year-end rankings for both 2005 and 2006. The song peaked at No. 14 in the U.S. and within the top 10 in 15 countries, reaching No. 1 in Spain and Greece, No. 2 in the United Kingdom and has been certified five times platinum in Canada and double-platinum in the United Kingdom. 

"The Magic Number" (1989)

Originally released in 1989 on their debut album 3 Feet High and Rising, "The Magic Number" was also featured as the end-credit song in "Spiderman: No Way Home” in 2021 and was re-released in January 2023 to streaming platforms. The Spiderman feature sparked a renewed interest in the group among a new audience of fans, but remained unavailable on streaming platforms due to continuing legal battles over sample rights with the group’s former label, Tommy Boy Records.

5 Things We Learned At "An Evening With Chuck D" At The GRAMMY Museum

The Recording Academy has announced 10 recordings to be newly inducted to the distinguished GRAMMY Hall Of Fame as part of its 2024 inductee class and in celebration of its 50th anniversary this year. This year's GRAMMY Hall of Fame additions, the first inductions since 2021, include four albums and six singles that exhibit qualitative or historical significance and are at least 25 years old. The inducted recordings, which will be added to the iconic catalog residing at the GRAMMY Museum, will be honored at GRAMMY Museum's inaugural GRAMMY Hall Of Fame Gala and concert, presented by City National Bank, taking place Tuesday, May 21, at the NOVO Theater in Los Angeles. Tickets for and performers at the Gala will be announced at a later date. 

The 2024 GRAMMY Hall Of Fame inducted recordings range from Lauryn Hill's The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill to Guns N' Roses' Appetite For Destruction. Others include recordings by De La Soul, Buena Vista Social Club, Donna Summer, Charley Pride, Wanda Jackson, Kid Ory's Creole Orchestra, the Doobie Brothers, and William Bell. Eligible recipients will receive an official certificate from the Recording Academy. With these 10 newly inducted titles, the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame currently totals 1,152 inducted recordings.

See below for a full list of the 2024 recordings inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame, and see the full list of all past GRAMMY Hall Of Fame inducted recordings.

Full list of 2024 GRAMMY Hall Of Fame Inducted Recordings:

3 FEET HIGH AND RISING
De La Soul
Tommy Boy (1989)
(Album)
Inducted: 2024

APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION
Guns N' Roses
Geffen (1987)
(Album)
Inducted: 2024

BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB
Buena Vista Social Club
World Circuit/Nonesuch (1997)
(Album)
Inducted: 2024

“I FEEL LOVE”
Donna Summer
Casablanca (1977)
(Single)
Inducted: 2024

“KISS AN ANGEL GOOD MORNIN'“
Charley Pride
RCA Victor (1971)
(Single)
Inducted: 2024

“LET'S HAVE A PARTY”
Wanda Jackson
Capitol (1960)
(Single)
Inducted: 2024

THE MISEDUCATION OF LAURYN HILL
Lauryn Hill
Ruffhouse/Columbia (1998)
(Album)
Inducted: 2024

“ORY'S CREOLE TROMBONE”
Kid Ory's Creole Orchestra (As Spike's Seven Pods of Pepper Orchestra)
Nordskog (1922)
(Single)
2024

“WHAT A FOOL BELIEVES”
The Doobie Brothers
Warner Bros. (1978)
(Single)
Inducted: 2024

“YOU DON'T MISS YOUR WATER”
William Bell
Stax (1961)
(Single)
Inducted: 2024

"We're proud to unveil the diverse mix of recordings entering the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame in its 50th year," Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. said in a statement. "The music showcased here has played a pivotal role in shaping our cultural landscape, and it's a true honor to recognize these albums and recordings, along with the profound influence each has had on music and beyond."

"The artists, songwriters, producers, and engineers who composed this year's inducted recordings are a reflection of the sheer talent and hard work that goes into creating such seminal music," GRAMMY Museum President/CEO Michael Sticka said in a statement. "It's a privilege to be able to welcome these new additions into our distinguished catalog and celebrate the recordings at our inaugural gala on May 21."

The GRAMMY Hall Of Fame was established by the Recording Academy's National Trustees in 1973. The inducted recordings are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of the recording arts with final ratification by the Recording Academy's National Board of Trustees.

This year, the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame Gala will be the first of what will become an annual event and includes a red carpet and VIP reception on the newly opened Ray Charles Terrace at the GRAMMY Museum, followed by a one-of-a-kind concert at the NOVO Theater in downtown Los Angeles. 

The inaugural gala and concert is produced by longtime executive producer of the GRAMMY Awards, Ken Ehrlich, along with Chantel Sausedo and Ron Basile and will feature musical direction by globally renowned producer and keyboardist Greg Phillinganes. For sponsorship opportunities, reach out to halloffame@grammymuseum.org.

Explore the history of the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame

When people fondly refer back to hip-hop’s golden age, they are talking about hip-hop’s adolescence — an experimental era when no idea was too risky, no innovation too bold, no boundary too established to be broken. This period between the mid 1980s and mid '90s saw hip-hop’s elders transported into new directions as the culture transitioned into the capitalist mainstream.

It is impossible to document this golden era without acknowledging the contributions of the Native Tongues. The New York-based collective — whose core members included now household names such as the Jungle Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest, Queen Latifah, De La Soul and Monie Love — played a pivotal role in reshaping the cultural landscape of both hip-hop and jazz in the mainstream. As a whole, the Native Tongues opted for a more introspective and bohemian approach to their lyricism and melodies.

The Jungle Brothers’ Mike Gee, DJ Sammy B and Baby Bam led the wave with an Afrocentric philosophy. Their 1988 debut album Straight Out the Jungle, set the vanguard of fusing hip-hop with jazz elements. "Black is Black" is perfectly representative of the first tendrils of what would become the canonical Native Tongues sound: an almost whimsical approach to with race relations and social commentary in America, structured with a boom-bap drums and an impressive array of samples (Gil-Scott Heron, Prince, Kool & The Gang). At the opening beats, Q-Tip introduces himself, going "I’m from A Tribe Called Quest" — a harbinger of the yearslong future association as part of the most influential young collectives of the '90s.

Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad of Tribe were classmates of the Jungle Brothers in the lower Manhattan high school Murray Bergtraum, and began collaborating as classmates. With additional members Jarobi White and the since departed Phife Dawg, the quartet — and occasional trio — had an impressive five album run: People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm (1989), The Low End Theory (1991), Midnight Marauders (1993), Beats, Rhymes and Life (1996), and The Love Movement (1998). Each release featured a panoply of inspired and progressive approaches to hip-hop, with lyrics and intricate rhyme schemes that ranged from pensive to cheekily adolescent; production drew influence from jazz, bossa nova, rock, and everything in between.

"Check the Rhime" of the classic Low End Theory is exemplary of their dexterity and appeal. Couplets that are deceptively laid back yet remarkably complex — seamlessly veering from discussing capitalism to general braggadocious flair — while the beat integrates everyone from Minnie Ripperton to a Scottish funk & R&B.

De La Soul rounded out the core groups at the heart of Native Tongues. The Long Island-based trio — Kelvin "Posdnuos" Mercer, Vincent "Maseo" Mason Jr, and the late Dave "Trugoy The Dove" Joliceur — played with a colorful and eclectic approach to their jazz tinged sound and visuals (their debut album declared it the age of the DA.I.S.Y. (Da Inner Sound, Y'all) ). De La Soul were unafraid to lean into a sense of whimsy with songs like "Transmitting Live  from Mars," which sampled the Turtles while integrating a looped French lesson. Unfortunately the result would be precarious: the Turtles sued and won for using their sample, setting a dangerous precedent for the industry.

It would not be the end of De La Soul's legal troubles in the industry. Due to negotiations and disputes with Tommy Boy Records, most of De La Soul’s discography was not available on streaming and younger generations. That is, until March 2023, when De La Soul regained the rights to their releases under the label.

Rounding out the Native Tongues are Newark's Queen Latifah and London’s Monie Love (the only non-New Yorkers in the core crew). Each artist is a pioneer  in not just hip-hop’s consciousness space, but leaders for women in the industry. Latifah and Love’s "Ladies First" is an example of their dual function in the collective as chroniclers of both women's and Black issues. The hit record confronted feminist themes and women’s liberation with punch, verve, and dizzying rhyme patterns; the music video addressed trans-continental Black struggles including the plight of South African racial apartheid. The song was an embodiment of the Native Tongues spirit.

There was never an official dissolution to the Native Tongues; rather, fractures, regroupings and  internal conflicts that stopped the collective's momentum in the mid-'90s. Combined with the rise of Bad Boy Records and a new style of hip-hop star.

Yet as the years progressed, there would be multiple extended members that would be affiliated with the Native Tongues movement — Black Sheep, Black Star, Brand Nubian, the Beatnuts, Leaders of the New School, the incomparable J Dilla — showcasing the impact the Native Tongues’ craft and approach had on '90s hip hop. That influence extends to present day, with popular artists such as Tyler, the Creator and Pharrell  crediting the Tongues’ renegade spirit in their own journeys as individuals, rappers, and producers.

The Native Tongues shifted the myopic perspectives of what people believed hip-hop could, would and should be; their influence encouraged hip-hop to expand, shift and impact the mainstream pop world. The collective's legacy remains as a reminder to ignore narrow-minded criticisms of hip-hop culture (and sound) as a single narrative.

6 Highlights From "A GRAMMY Salute To 50 Years Of Hip-Hop": Performances From DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Queen Latifah, Common & More

This article was updated Sunday, Dec. 10, to add the full performer lineup.

The Recording Academy, Jesse Collins Entertainment and CBS have announced “A GRAMMY Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop,” a once-in-a-lifetime live concert special celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. Airing Sunday, Dec. 10, at at 8:30 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT on the CBS Television Network and streaming live and on demand on Paramount+, the two-hour tribute special will feature exclusive performances from hip-hop legends and GRAMMY-winning artists including Black Thought, Bun B, Common, De La Soul, Jermaine Dupri, J.J. Fad, Talib Kweli, The Lady Of Rage, LL COOL J, MC Sha-Rock, Monie Love, The Pharcyde, Queen Latifah, Questlove, Rakim, Remy Ma, Uncle Luke, and Yo-Yo. Newly announced performers include rap icons and next-gen hip-hop superstars 2 Chainz, T.I., Gunna, Too $hort, Latto, E-40, Big Daddy Kane, GloRilla, Juvenile, Three 6 Mafia, Cypress Hill, Jeezy, DJ Quik, MC Lyte, Roxanne Shanté, Warren G, YG, Digable Planets, Arrested Development, Spinderella, Black Sheep, and Luniz. See the full performer lineup.

Read More: 50 Artists Who Changed Rap: Jay-Z, The Notorious B.I.G., Dr. Dre, Nicki Minaj, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem & More

The “A GRAMMY Salute To 50 Years Of Hip-Hop” live concert will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 8, at YouTube Theater at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, California. The concert will then air on Sunday, Dec. 10, at 8:30 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT, as a live concert TV special celebrating the profound history and monumental cultural impact that hip-hop has made around the world.

The “A GRAMMY Salute To 50 Years Of Hip-Hop” live concert is open to the public. Tickets are on sale now.

Full concert details are below:

Concert:
Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023 (tonight)
Doors: 6 p.m. PT
Concert: 7 p.m. PT          

Venue:
YouTube Theater
1011 Stadium Dr.
Inglewood, CA 90305

Full List Of Confirmed Performers For "A GRAMMY Salute To 50 Years Of Hip-Hop": 

2 Chainz

Akon

Arrested Development

Battlecat

Big Daddy Kane

Black Sheep

Black Thought

Blaqbonez

Boosie Badazz

Bun B

Chance The Rapper

Coi LeRay

Common

Cypress Hill

D-Nice

De La Soul

Digable Planets

DJ Diamond Kuts

DJ Greg Street

DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince

DJ Quik

DJ Trauma

Doug E. Fresh

E-40

GloRilla

Gunna

J.J. Fad

Jeezy

Jermaine Dupri

Kool DJ Red Alert

The Lady of Rage

Latto

LL Cool J

Luniz

MC Lyte

MC Sha-Rock

Monie Love

Mustard

Nelly

The Pharcyde

Public Enemy

Queen Latifah

Questlove

Rakim

Remy Ma

Rick Ross

Roddy Ricch

Roxanne Shanté

Spinderella

Styles P

T.I.

Talib Kweli

Three 6 Mafia

Too $hort

Tyga

Uncle Luke

Warren G

YG

Yo-Yo

^Names in bold indicate newly added artists.

Purchase tickets here.

Stay tuned to GRAMMY.com for more news and updates about "A GRAMMY Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop."

A GRAMMY Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop is produced by Jesse Collins Entertainment. Jesse Collins, Shawn Gee, Dionne Harmon, Claudine Joseph, LL COOL J, Fatima Robinson, Jeannae Rouzan-Clay, and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson for Two One Five Entertainment serve as executive producers and Marcelo Gama as director of the special.

Hip-Hop Just Rang In 50 Years As A Genre. What Will Its Next 50 Years Look Like?

The handful of rap songs released in the 1970s opened doors for the onslaught of creative variation that marked rap albums of the 1980s. Diss tracks, party anthems, socially minded material and gangsta rap all had a place in this era, defined by groups and solo efforts that strove to differentiate themselves from one another. Debuts from the likes of MC Lyte, De La Soul, Slick Rick and others kickstarted not only legendary careers, but a wave of innovations that undeniably led to rap’s commercial takeover in the ‘90s. 

Hip-hop’s four elements (rap, DJjing, breakdancing and graffiti) grew independently and exponentially in form and acknowledgment in the ‘80s. Seldom was it deemed legitimate in the ‘70s but the ‘80s came with it a realization: that big business and big money could be squeezed from the culture. For better or worse, hip-hop began to lodge itself into the mainstream during this decade.  

MTV placements, such as RUN-D.M.C.’s bloated collab with Aerosmith, brought posters into teenagers’ bedrooms and cross promotional ideas to the forefront. Films like as Breakin’ and Beat Street used hip-hop as a dramatic vehicle. And while there was a sense of underlying exploitation, it catapulted hip-hop culture nationally and worldwide. Graffiti was once viewed as vandalism was now on walls and podiums at art galleries, praised as “street art.” Sugar Hill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" seemed light years ago, and there was a palpable sense of maturation and explosion of ideas in the music. 

A colorful cast of new artists pushed boundaries of the time. For one, Marley Marl, of the Juice Crew, was an innovator who preceded Wu-Tang as a super producer who surrounded himself with a motley crew of MCs, each with distinct approaches and personalities. He pioneered methods of drum programming and sampling, all of which began as early as 1983 when he was slowly piecing together the collective. Artists at his helm include Biz Markie, Roxanne Shanté, Kool G Rap, and Big Daddy Kane — all of which were innovators in their own right. 

We’d be remiss not to cite just a handful of the many adventurous artists whose careers began in the '80s:  EPMD, LL Cool J, Ultramagnetic MCs, Ice-T, Jungle Brothers and more. Their work and that of many others ushered in the beginning of hip-hop's golden age, as seen by numerous breakthrough albums in the later part of the decade; 1988 in particular, was a historically fruitful year. 

This late ‘80s era encapsulates the genre's most consequential releases, ones that paved the way for rap to be where it is now. The following  albums took the genre into warp speed, pushing its creative limitations to where it is today.

RUN-D.M.C - Raising Hell (1986)

RUN D.M.C.’s third studio album, produced by Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin, is arguably their greatest — not only in terms of commercial success, but also influence. Their distinct fashion and sound catapulted hip-hop culture (which was still foreign to many at the time) into the commercial realm. 

In addition to juggernaut singles "My Adidas," "It’s Tricky," and "You Be Illin," this album featured "Walk This Way," a wildly ambitious crossover single in collaboration with none other than Aerosmith. It was rap’s first leap into another genre, garnering MTV plays and placing the album all over various music charts. It also was the first rap album to go platinum. Their popularity propelled rap albums that followed later in the decade, and also helped hip-hop gain unprecedented attention in the mainstream.     

Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded (1987)

KRS-One’s solo career had many highpoints but his early era with BDP is what cements his legacy. While one of the first albums to have true elements of street edge, its approach vastly differed from that of Schoolly D or NWA. KRS lectured more than rap, he was spiritual and scholarly, weaving more stray observations and warnings of street life rather than glamorizing the violence. 

Scott LA Rock and Ced Gee’s production was also progressive, opening up the sample palette to rock and obscure soul even further. This was not only their first album but also the only one that featured LA Rock, who was murdered about six months after the album’s release. "9mm Goes Bang" and "The Bridge Is Over" are classics that gave the country a peek into the worldview of  New York natives. 

Eric B & Rakim - Paid In Full (1987)

It's hard to think of a greater gamechanger in the art of rap than Rakim, a phenom who rightly went as Kid Wizard on tapes before releasing 1986's "My Melody" with Eric B. At a time when MCs were innocently basic, both structurally and lyrically, Rakim added internal rhymes schemes and multi-syllabic rhymes into his sentences. His voice was a calm monotone. His rhymes were writerly, filled with metaphors and a complexity unseen prior. His many one-liners would be referenced and repeated by generations of rappers including Wu-Tang and Jay-Z. 

Paid In Full was a debut brimming with bonafide classics, "I Ain't No Joke," "Eric B. Is President," and "I Know You Got Soul." On Paid In Full, Rakim moved the needle miles forward for lyricism, altering every rapper that followed.  

Beastie Boys - Licensed To Ill (1987)

Just behind RUN-D.M.C.’s Raising Hell, this rap debut from the brothers Beastie was the second to go platinum in the genre. It was also the only rap album by a Jewish hip-hop group to receive the coveted "5 Mic" rating from The Source, a magazine that was the hip-hop bible of its time. 

The album was unquestionably hip-hop but was also multi-faceted. The track "No Sleep Til Brooklyn" featured a guitar solo from Slayer’s Kerry King, a call-back to the Beasties original rock roots. Songs like "Brass Monkey," "Paul Revere," "Girls," and "Fight For Your Right" were party anthems that kept his-hop’s positive party ethos afloat during a time when the music was shifting towards more serious directions. 

The Beasties were fun, earnest, and distinct — beloved by both purveyors of the culture and fans of it, proving that hip-hop, if done right, is such an inclusionary artform. 

Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back (1988) 

Public Enemy's second album saw the group vastly mature from their debut, Yo! Bumrush The Show. The Bomb Squad's surgical studio techniques raised the bar for production and what was possible in terms of sample layering. 

Chuck D, whose voice is one of the most powerful in all of recorded music, deepened his lyrical content even further, speaking on race, politics, class, power structures, and overall, more socially focused material. Songs like "Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos," "Don't Believe The Hype" and "Rebel Without A Pause" were a gut punch, a jolt of seriousness and bombast unheard prior and unmatched in its era. It Takes A Nation... charted for 47 straight weeks on the Billboard 200 and many of its profound themes arguably are still relevant today. 

NWA - Straight Outta Compton (1988)

 Eazy-E and company were having a breakthrough moment when this song furthered their ascent into stardom and public infamy. A cacophonous origin story, it gave listeners a worldview most hadn’t heard and a taste of individual talent that was to come. Ice Cube and Dr. Dre soon became huge solo artists thereafter once the group disbanded. As posterboys of the gangsta rap, they had politicians, police, and the FBI all shook. 

By 2015, when N.W.A.’s biopic film cemented their place in popular culture, they had long made history as one of the most consequential groups ever, both musically and culturally. Straight Outta Compton was their unflinching first step that had suburbia clutching its pearls en masse.   

Slick Rick - The Greatest Adventures of Slick Rick (1988)

The ability to tell a succinct story with engaging detail is what makes an MC truly well rounded. Masters of this, Ghostface, Nas, and Black Thought, all have all cited Slick Rick as highly influential. 

This was Rick's solo debut with production from RUN-D.M.C.'s Jam Master Jay as well as the Bomb Squad (of Public Enemy). Greatest Adventures... is forever colorful, anchored by Rick's charisma and ability to spin visual tales. Strikingly imaginative, he raps in different voices and cadences, able to be hilarious and vulgar, making his songs feel like comic strips. "Children's Story" remains a watershed moment of which all future storytelling raps would be measured by.

MC Lyte - Lyte As A Rock (1988)

The involvement of women in hip-hop culture cannot be overstated, despite  being historically marginalized. Case in point:  MC Lyte’s debut was commercially overlooked but its ripples are still felt today. 

With production from Prince Paul, Audio Two and other innovative giants of the time, Lyte’s lyrics addressed drug use, racism, and womanhood. The album’s lead single, "10% Dis," is not only one of the greatest did tracks ever, but was also subsequently sampled and referenced years after, notably by the likes of A Tribe Called Quest, Common, Mobb Deep, and Biggie. Here, at prodigious 18 years old, Lyte solidified herself as not just a formidable female artist, but one the all-time greatest MCs.

Too Short - Life Is Too Short (1989)

In 1989, the West Coast certainly didn’t see the same attention or action as the East Coast, but one Todd Shaw a.k.a. Short Dogg a.k.a. Too Short had been around since 1983, selling homemade cassettes from the trunk of his car in Oakland. Life Is was his fifth album, independently released in 1988 but officially re-released on a major label, Jive, with major distribution a year later.

Short's  presentation was uniquely his own — part street stories, part party music, part pimp fiction. The production eschewed samples for more keyboard and drum machines. It utilized replayed funk riffs and Short’s lyrics were almost cartoonishly misogynistic and obscene. This album in particular exposed him to a national audience, placing  Oakland— and the West Coast — on the map as a new region for rap music. 

 De La Soul - 3 Feet High & Rising (1989)

Prince Paul opened up a new galaxy of innovations on De La Soul's debut. His sampling of kids' records, doo-wop, and left-field sounds coupled with unconventional son structure made 3 Feet High & Rising kaleidoscopic and sunny. 

Paul’s use and insertion of skits became his trademark, adding a movie-like feel to this children’s book of an album. Singles like "Plug Tunin'," "Potholes In My Lawn," and "Me Myself and I" lampooned the gangsta image, making De La's flowery reputation as hip-hop’s hippies even more pronounced. 

Their attempt to shed this persona is why their follow-up was called De La Soul Is Dead. The foundational creativity that informs their brilliant career not only forever altered hip-hop, but it started here. 

Essential Hip-Hop Releases From The 1970s: Kurtis Blow, Grandmaster Flash, Sugarhill Gang & More