3 Feet High and Rising, Buhloone Mindstate, and Stakes Is High, are just some of the classic albums De La Soul has released in their storied 25 year career, and this past Valentine’s Day, the group released their entire catalogue at no cost, which of course thrilled their fans and probably secured some new fans for the group.
And while the Long Island natives still have millions of people who still love them and they constantly tour, member Dave Jolicoeur said releasing their catalogue for free has reinvigorated the group and gave them a greater sense of urgency to complete the albums they’re working on.
“It motivated us even more,” said Jolicoeur,” as he sat down for an interview at this year’s South By Southwest festival. “We’re already in the process of recording two albums, but actually it made us feel like we really, really need to get this done. People are still fans, still really love the music and let’s do it for them.”
But was releasing all of their music for free a good business decision?
Because some might say with so many people not buying music these days, and the group probably in need of some good sales numbers, De La should have worked a little harder to sell some units instead of giving them away.
However, Jolicoeur said the promotion the group has received far outweighs sales, because it allowed them to give a gift to their fans, and it also helped to put the De La Soul name back in the mainstream, because tons of publications covered their free music offer.
“I thought it was really cool,” stated Jolicoeur. “We had an opportunity to speak to our attorneys, and you know, in hindsight it was maybe not the smartest thing to do, but in the midst of it, a lot of people think, ‘Great campaign, great promotion, great publicity stunt,’ but it really wasn’t.”
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