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RTB Exclusive: Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick's 'La-Di-Da-Di' Entered Into the Library of Congress

RTB Exclusive: Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick's 'La-Di-Da-Di' Entered Into the Library of Congress

Published Wed, April 17, 2024 at 5:15 PM EDT

Doug E. Fresh & Slick Rick's 1985 classic "La-Di-Da-Di" has been inducted into the National Recording Registry. Today (4/17) Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden named 25 recordings as "audio treasures worthy of preservation for all time based on their cultural, historical or aesthetic importance in the nation's recorded sound heritage."

The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready To Die, Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine", Green Day's "Dookie", Blondie's Parallel Lines, and the comedy of Lily Tomlin are amongst the 25 pieces inducted into the prestigious registry.

quotes
Who would have known that two youngins from different parts of the world would come together and create a 4 min and 58 second song with just their vocal cords and imagination...no music!

- Slick Rick to Rock The Bells, 2024

Photo Credit: Slick Rick

"La-Di-Da-Di", which is the b side to the equally classic and game changing, "The Show" (credited to Doug E. Fresh & The Get Fresh Crew) created a new subgenre of story telling rhymes over human beat box backdrops upon its 1985 release. The enduring classic has been sampled or interpolated in more than 1000 songs, and was remade by Snoop Dogg as "Lodi Dodi" on his 1993 debut album Doggy Style.

The Notorious B.I.G.'s game changing 1994 debut Ready To Die is credited as a game changing classic which brought back east coast Hip-Hop, which had been in the shadow of the west coast for quite some time. Biggie's multisyllabic flow, witty wordplay, and ability to deliver music that captivated the streets as well as the charts made Ready To Die a classic, and one of Hip-Hop's greatest debuts.

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious 5,The Sugar Hill Gang, A Tribe Called Quest, The Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z,Run-DMC, NWA, De La Soul, and Public Enemy have previously had music inducted into the Library of Congress.

Photo Credit: Norman De Shong

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