Wednesday (July 28, 2004) night and the feeling’s right. Oh yeah! De La Soul is about to drop their 8th album on September 28. Gathered in a newly redone listening room (complete with candles and wall hangings) at Sony Studios in midtown Manhattan, media elite, Posdnuos, Maseo and Matthew Knowles feasted on treats for the mouth and ears. First up, Knowles talked about Sanctaury Records (De La’s new label) and his new position. Sanctuary is a UK-based label dominating the rock market. Recently, it has been acquiring urban projects, i.e. RZA’s Birth Of A Prince. Knowles has joined forces with them to form the powerhouse, Sanctuary Urban Records Group. In addition to a label, they manage Jadakiss, Mary J. Blige, Angie Stone and so many more I couldn’t even keep track.
But I digress, this night was about the music. A shy Pos stepped up explain that De La have always been on the grind. Life is a grind, so their album title is a play on words for blind date, The Grind Date. The first singles to drop are the title track and “Shopping Bags.” All I can say is, FIRE! Everybody’s head bobbed to the bass-blowin’ beats and nodded to the free-flowin’ lyrics. It seems we were all fiending for a lil’ De La. Guests on The grind Date include Spike Lee, Flavor Flav, Ghostface, Carl Thomas and Common. The group is also producing a custom shoe with Nike, the ‘De La Dunk’ and will teach a class this Fall at NYU on Hip-Hop.
