Review: De La Soul, Colston Hall

2016 may have been a rather questionable year, but it was also the year that two of the most influential hip-hop groups of all time released long-awaited reunion albums. Rumours of Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul’s return had been whispered for years and both albums unquestionably remind us why they are not only heroes from the golden era of rap, but also how every day they continuously lead the past, present and future of hip-hop talent. 

De La Soul have now begun a massive tour circuit and there was no chance we were missing out on their Bristol venture. With fans spanning over almost three generations as well as the trio’s royalty-like status, we could not have had this event anywhere else other than our city’s largest and most-loved concert hall, the Colston Hall.

After a few drinks at the bar, we headed in to catch support act, Jungle Brown. The four-member group only dropped their album Flight 314 in 2016, and although having no marketing budget or promo, still managed to reach in excess of 200,000 streams.

Praised for their energetic live performances and their dynamic approach to hip-hop, they were definitely a suitable act to warm up the stage for the three kings. They made many references to De La tunes like Magic Number and you could definitely sense a huge sense of pride in supporting a group they have looked up to their entire lives.

Unfortunately for them, I think that the crowd was so excited about DLS that they were slightly overlooked. It’s not uncommon for crowds to be a bit static during the support act, but there was a lot of people with tickets in the bar throughout a lot of their performance. They are a really talented group though, and I will definitely be keen to see them again – just maybe in a more intimate venue.  

As De La Soul honoured the stage, the now packed Colston Hall instantly roared. It didn’t matter if you were in the stalls or up on the balcony, you were bound to be on your feet and about to dance and sing along for the next 45 minutes (oh how I wish it went on longer).

Celebrating 30 years of breaking new ground, yet it felt as though they hadn’t aged at all. There was so much energy and their interaction with the crowd was impeccable. As you can probably imagine, the audience participation in Ego Trippin was top notch.

Throwing out classic after classic, I thought things couldn’t get any better. But then Dres from Black Sheep took to the stage. What a fantastic surprise! The crowd couldn’t have been more excited and The Choice Is Yours sent us all over the edge.

It felt as though we had been sucked back to the early 90s and we really didn’t want to leave. But, all good things must come to and end, it’s just a bit of a shame that it was only 10.30pm.