does anyone else prefer "Stakes Is High" to De La's first three classics?

[Ziggiy]

Salute. I see your perspective but as someone who heard "Plug Tunin" as a child I couldn't fully accept the album. Their approach to every song became more standard but they were dissing people for being uncreative.

And being in NYC it didn't go with the times, the people that grew up on De La were kinda on the up and up. Piecing everything together I think it's fair to say their record label stole their money & made them point the finger at other people.

If De La, Tribe & Black Sheep were able to properly monetize of their huge cross cultural impact they wouldn't have changed their music.

I don’t believe true artists don’t switch it up just because they’re successful monetarily. Michael Jackson dropped the biggest selling album of ALL TIME and made a ton of money and spent the rest of his career doing different things with his music. Bad, Dangerous and Invincible sound nothing like Thriller. Prince experimented. On the rap side Nas has continually experimented and evolved his sound. Jay-Z experimented during the latter part of his career. De La Soul seem like artists who were never going to allow themselves to be pigeonholed regardless of monetary success. Is not De La Soul Is Dead a direct and conscious rebellion against being typecast as Rap Hippies? Stakes Is High sounds almost nothing like what the “standard” of mainstream rap music was in 96.

 

[wizworld]

There were plenty of choices for standard "times is hard" hardcore hip-hop, I didn't need De La for that.

This song is about hard times (literally & figuratively) but it's way more clever & nuanced. Who else can make a song about crack addiction that still has a bop to it?

 

[Rev Leon Lonnie Love]

Dinninit

 

[wizworld]

I don’t believe true artists don’t switch it up just because they’re successful monetarily. Michael Jackson dropped the biggest selling album of ALL TIME and made a ton of money and spent the rest of his career doing different things with his music. Bad, Dangerous and Invincible sound nothing like Thriller. Prince experimented. On the rap side Nas has continually experimented and evolved his sound. Jay-Z experimented during the latter part of his career. De La Soul seem like artists who were never going to allow themselves to be pigeonholed regardless of monetary success. Is not De La Soul Is Dead a direct and conscious rebellion against being typecast as Rap Hippies? Stakes Is High sounds almost nothing like what the “standard” of mainstream rap music was in 96.

You stated in your own post that they had label pressure. There is another post in here that goes into more detail. And we ALL know Tommy Boy had them signed to an unfavorable deal. Once you work for a record label it's not about being a "true artist" anymore.

 

[Tribal Outkast]

One of the greatest groups ever. I def listen to Stakes the most but they had an incredible album run. This here is my shyt now

 

[I love Latina women]

Nah

3 Feet High And Rising >>>>>>

De La and Prince Paul made a masterpiece with that album

The first three De La albums with Paul >>>>

 

[I love Latina women]

It's cool but the first three albums are way better

Facts

 

[GeeEffKay]

De la soul is dead still my fav from them. although stakes is high (the track) is one of my most played songs ever

 

[Tribal Outkast]

Nah

3 Feet High And Rising >>>>>>

De La and Prince Paul made a masterpiece with that album

The first three De La albums with Paul >>>>

I call it a masterclass in sampling

 

[Yehuda]

I certainly do.

 

[I love Latina women]

I call it a masterclass in sampling

It is!

All those samples and the way they fit together so perfectly is amazing!

 

[315]

2nd behind ...Dead for me

 

[TrapHouse Rock]

No.

"Stakes Is High" made me realize I'm more of a Prince Paul fan than a De La Soul fan

It wasn't a bad album but it has very little replay value compared to the first three

I could go the rest of my life without ever hearing "Stakes Is High" again I play the first three joints constantly

 

[surv2syn]

Stakes was my most played so yeah for me.

 

[Tommy Gibbs]

first album on their own without prince paul, the production holds up

this album put mos def on, and early com makes an appearance

its generally a darker and weirder album which is why i like it i guess


3 feet high and rising - 8
de la soul is dead - 9
bahloone mindstate - 9
stakes is high - 10

just my two cents

I personally thought it was just me. Stakes is High is my favorite De la soul album. From the intro track with the 1 bar Jackson 5 loop to the title track(with hometown boy Stackhouse in the video), itsoweezee, and down syndrom(my 2nd favorite on the album). it should be considered a classic album. I can't believe how expensive De la's albums have gotten over the years. I personally have bought every album on cd and many of their 12"s as they are my favorite group of the Native Tongues. This album suffered the same fate as Rakim's Let the Rhythm Hit em. They were at their peak creatively, but no one paid attention to it as much as the previous albums.