De La Soul to Play Special Pay-What-You-Want Show in New York City

Perennial pioneers De La Soul will play a special show in New York City early next year where tickets will be available on a pay-what-you-want basis.

The gig will take place on Jan. 17, 2025, at the Wu Tsai Theater, David Geffen Hall, located in NYC’s historic Lincoln Center performing arts complex (the Wu Tsai is typically home to the New York Philharmonic). An on-sale date for tickets hasn’t been announced yet, but the suggested price per ticket is $35. 

The Choose-What-You-Pay ticketing model is an ongoing Lincoln Center series designed to make various events more accessible. Other upcoming shows this year with flexible pricing include the metal band Sunn O))), the Portuguese fado singer Mariza, Polish guitarist Raphael Rogiński, and organist Kali Malone.

The Lincoln Center show will mark De La Soul’s first hometown gig in New York in 16 months, following a Sept. 2023 show opening for Nas and the Wu-Tang Clan at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The group has played a handful of shows since then in the U.S. and Europe, including recent sets at the Newport Folk Festival and Pitchfork Festival. 

Last year marked a bittersweet return for De La Soul, who were finally able to release their legendary catalog to streaming services after years of delays and legal disputes (mostly over the myriad of uncleared samples that defined the sound of the group’s classic records). But one month before the March 2023 re-release of those albums, founding member Dave “Trugoy the Dove” Jolicoeur died suddenly at the age of 54.

At their recent gigs, De La Soul’s surviving members, Posdnuos and Maseo, have been joined by fellowed hip-hop luminaries like Pharoahe Monch and Talib Kweli.