MaseoWhen it comes to hip-hop, youth rules supreme. The adjective “Young” or “Lil’ ” comes before a slew of rappers’ pseudonyms, and urban music stations tend to label anything released in 2006 or prior as being from “back in the day.” It’s enough to make hip-hop fans over the age of 30 rip out what little hair they have left on their heads.
The rip-hair-from-head reaction is melodramatic, though. Your favorite acts from the “golden era” aren’t all dead and gone, with an excellent example being De La Soul. For a quarter century, the Long Island trio has been constantly working, including their latest stint on the “Kings of the Mic” tour where they’re featured along with a few of their contemporaries: LL Cool J, Public Enemy and Ice Cube.
Unfortunately, the closest the show will get to the District is Baltimore. However, Vincent Mason, aka Maseo, aka Plug Three, will be using his day off to DJ a special set at Tropicalia tonight at 8 p.m. In anticipation, Maseo was good enough to answer a few questions DCist posed to him.
De La Soul has probably been one of the steadiest musical groups in the last 25 years in terms of album quality and by the fact you all have stuck together. What’s been the key to the group’s consistency and longevity?
The key to the group’s longevity is having the common goal to be a group and loving the music. But I think most important key to it is our friendship.
You’re now in the midst of the “Kings of the Mic” tour with the rest of De La Soul, as well as LL Cool J, Public Enemy and Ice Cube. How has it been being part of a show where every act is a legendary in their own right?
It’s definitely amazing to be a part of this tour. We’ve had the pleasure of touring with these same groups back in 1989 on LL Cool J’s “Nitro” tour. So, we’re pretty much getting a chance to relive a moment with the years of experience we’ve acquired.
Inevitably, people have looked at this tour’s lineup and reflexively attached the label “old school” to it. Do you appreciate being tagged as “old school hip-hop,” or is the “old school” concept an idea you think should be dropped?
I really don’t mind the term “old school,” I guess. It’s all dependent on how it’s used. I wear it like a badge of honor when I look at what I was a part of accomplishing, not just with my group but with hip-hop in general. Undeniably, we were a part of paving the way for new artists to come and be successful. With a program like “Kings of the Mic” and the platform it’s on, it’s allowing kids to go back to the Internet to research all of us and for them to develop a new respect for the “old school,” the best school you can ever attend.
On De La’s latest single, “Get Away,” you all take aim at the current state of hip-hop. Back in 1996, you all had the track “Stakes Is High” and it had a similar theme. Do you think things have fallen off even more in the past 17 years? If so, why?
I think there is a lot of good, diverse hip-hop out there, but unfortunately you have to really search. The music industry might only support one style that appears to be the money maker without taking an interest in the other stuff that might just have a niche but a much longer life in the business. Then there is the new artist who feels they have to make a certain type of record because of what’s popular based on how the industry still presents music, which is redundant. I can’t ever knock an artist at truly wanting to make a living off of their love and passion for music. But the compromise for business does suck. It’s not a situation that we look to continue to harp on, although it’s still very obvious. Overall, it was just the track with the Wu-Tang sample that inspired the concept of the song.
In an interview you did a few years back regarding your son, Tre, you talked about some of his musical favorites (folks like Lil’ Wayne and Waka Flocka Flame). Based on even your own experience with him, do you see a middle ground where younger and older hip-hop fans can meet?
Yes, I remember that [interview], but I also remember saying he loves Big Daddy Kane just as much after I put him on [to Kane], which really proves to me that we came up in an era that is 100 percent classic. The middle ground right now, or attempt for middle ground, is the Internet and its new ways of advertising. Satellite radio as well as internet radio programs like the “Kings of the Mic” tour … I mean we definitely need more support from our traditional formats such as BET, MTV, VH1 and mainstream radio to help present balance. I would have to say the people overseas have been getting it for years. It’s America’s lack of preservation for the music.
Going back to your current projects, is it true that there will be a special roll out of new De La Soul music over the course of the year? If so, what can people expect in terms of the number of tracks, production and collaborations?
We have always been meticulous about the music we’ve chosen and the same method shall continue. It’s really important to us to put out music that we feel is quality, but the overall challenge is not to take so long this time around. So, that part of it is going to be fun. I think the main thing we are reverting back to is allowing spontaneity [and] being care-free to take presence in the creative process. But the main challenge is meeting the timeline we set for ourselves.
For your trip to D.C. you’ll be doing a DJ set. What can folks look forward to in a Maseo mix?
I’m always pretty much expected to play a De La Soul/A Tribe Called Quest set, but I hope I can get to play a lot of the artists and groups I liked over the years. And depending on the vibe, my alter ego Vinny Merlot may show up, where I get into a vibe that I call a “Merlot Moment.”
Beyond this current tour and the forthcoming new music, does De La Soul have a rough sketch of how the group would like to see their next few years play out?
De La Soul has never stopped! We’ve been blessed to put out some really good music that allowed us to have an extensive touring record for 25 years. It’s pretty much all about continuing the legacy at this point and meeting new challenges. Now that we have a website, the old fans and new fans will know what we’re doing from from here on out.
Maseo will be at Tropicalia along with Fort Knox Five. 8 p.m. $10 in advance.
