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Listen to Every Single Sample on De La Soul's '3 Feet High and Rising'
YouTube user Nama Hecc uploaded a video diving through every sample used in the album's creation.
This past March marked the 30th anniversary of De La Soul's debut album 3 Feet High and Rising. In a tribute to the album's legacy, Polish YouTube user Nama Hecc has compiled every sample used throughout the project. The video is nearly eleven minutes long.
In addition to early hip-hop classics, Prince Paul heavily sampled the British funk band Cymande, as well as Steely Dan and Hall and Oates. Additionally, "The Magic Number" samples country legend Johnny Cash and New York City Mayor Fiorello La Guardia. De La Soul credited sampled artists as songwriters for four tracks on the album, but this mashup goes above and beyond to list a full bibliography.
READ: De La Soul Says They're "Unable to Reach an Agreement" With Tommy Boy
The samples have been a point of contention for the group and their former label for years now. This past March, Tommy Boy planned to release De La Soul's first six albums digitally for the first time. Subsequently, the group notified their fans that they were against this decision. According to the group, they would only receive 10% of royalties from streams and digital sales. In late February, they joined the Sway in the Morning show to discuss the conflict.
Maseo alleges that sometime in the early 2000s, Tommy Boy lost their catalog to Warner Bros. due to debt. Over the years, Maseo claims Tommy Boy's former president Tom Silverman handled sample clearances informally, not thinking the record would be as successful as it turned out to be. When the record took off, copyright infractions began to pile up.
At the point of Warner Bros' acquisition, the label believed it wouldn't be worth the trouble to resolve the issues with sample clearances needed to make the De La Soul discography available in the digital marketplace. As a result, the group's first six albums aren't available on streaming platforms.
H/T: Ambrosia For Heads
