Souls of Mischief: Hip Hop’s Most Underappreciated Rap Group
The Souls of Mischief are responsible for arguably one of the most popular instrumentals coming out of the late-20th Century into the 21st-Century, yet the group goes largely unnoticed in the greater scheme of 90s hip hop today.
Hip hop’s ‘Souls of Mischief’, featuring its four main members from Northern California aka “the bay area”, all diversely gifted in lyricism and seeping with talent is, unknowingly to most, responsible for what I believe is one of the most iconic songs in hip hop to date. With this said, however, if I were to share a few lyrics from their biggest hit, one may not be able to immediately recollect which song I am referring to. This would have a lot to do with the fact that the song in question, which shot to fame immediately after its release, may be recognised by many through its instrumental, and not necessarily by the group’s enticing lyrics.
Souls of mischief - no man’s land (1995)
In 1991, A-Plus, Phesto, Tajai and Opio are said to have officially formed the group ‘Souls of Mischief’, which evolved as a derivative of the rap collective ‘Hieroglyphics’, whose notable members apart from the Souls of Mischief crew feature Del tha Funkee Homosapian, Domino and Casual to name a few. The group’s debut album would be released two years later, finally exposing mass audiences to their unique lyricism and abundant talent.Titled “93’ til Infinity”, their debut album title perfectly reflected the lasting effect that their biggest single of the same name, which featured on the album, would have on the future of Hip Hop.
Souls of mischief - 93’ till infinity (1993)
The entire album is good as it contemplates issues of the capitalist agenda and how it affects the black population with the track “Tell Me Who Profits”, examines the implications of gang life, criminality and the HIV epidemic in black communities in “What a Way to Go Out”, or discusses trivial issues such as sex from the minds of young men in their late teens in “A Name I Call Myself”, whilst featuring a number of other songs that simply show off the crew’s interesting wordplay. Nevertheless, one track in particular, “93’ Til Infinity”, was an obvious standout from the beginning.
Known for its flow and having what some have noted as an “ethereal” air to it, the song became a hit in hip hop spheres and beyond in the 1990s. Although 90s hip hop fans, and fans of the group today might be able to recite the song’s lyrics word-for-word, with its smart flow changes and its ability to showcase each member’s unique lyrical takes, with full credit to the group’s undeniable talents, I believe that it's rather the song’s instrumental, produced by member A-Plus, that has influenced the song’s staying power. The instrumental has been sampled by Freddie Gibbs in “How We Do”, J Cole in his song “Til Infinity”, and is likely to have been reconstructed in a number of other songs. If not the original version, reconstructed versions of the song have come alive over the years, bringing the iconic instrumental back into the public sphere decades later, remaining true to the implications of its own title, transcending eras and existing as a popular piece of hip hop from “93’ til infinity”.
Unfortunately for the group, however, as mentioned in a documentary about them available on YouTube, their former record label, ‘Jive Records’, wanted to transform their art into a more commercial crossover between pop and rap, straying from the group’s original style, a problem that many artists have come face-to-face with in the greedy world of entertainment. This artistic conflict resulted in their second album, “No Man’s Land”, released in 1995, receiving no promotion at all, and the group’s troubles later reached their peak in a lengthy process during which they attempted to be released from their contract. Despite this, however, the group as part of the Hieroglyphics crew began an independent label known as ‘Hieroglyphics Imperium’, under which they sold merchandise, CD’s and tapes, and produced their own music, remaining active under their independent label to this day. Nonetheless, the group’s ability to create their own success does not offset the fact that their influence over hip hop and rap still goes largely under-appreciated today.
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