De La Soul returned to Australia with a celebratory live performance at Melbourne’s Palace Foreshore, reminding fans why De La Soul remain one of hip hop’s most influential and beloved groups.
by Paul Cashmere
After nearly a decade away from Australian stages, De La Soul finally returned to Melbourne on Friday night, delivering a joyous, deeply nostalgic performance at the Palace Foreshore in St Kilda that doubled as both celebration and remembrance.
Between 2003 and 2011, the pioneering New York trio visited Australia almost annually, building a loyal local following that aged alongside their music. Their last Australian appearance came in 2016. The 27 February 2026 performance marked a long-awaited reunion between artist and audience, and from the opening moments it felt less like a comeback and more like a continuation of a shared cultural history.
Set against the open-air backdrop between the Palais Theatre and the St Kilda Sea Baths, the Palace Foreshore has quickly established itself as one of Melbourne’s defining summer music spaces. The seaside setting, sunset skies and relaxed atmosphere created an ideal environment for De La Soul’s warm, community-driven style of hip hop, a sound that has always prioritised connection over spectacle.
The crowd reflected the band’s enduring legacy. Many in attendance appeared to be in their forties and fifties, fans who first encountered De La Soul during hip hop’s golden era of the late 1980s and early 1990s. The atmosphere carried the energy of reunion, friends reconnecting through songs that formed part of their youth. Throughout the night, smiles rarely faded, with audience members dancing freely and rapping along word-for-word to classics that have remained culturally embedded for more than three decades.
De La Soul’s influence traces back to their groundbreaking 1989 debut album 3 Feet High And Rising, a record that reshaped hip hop through inventive sampling, humour and philosophical lyricism. At a time when rap was still defining its mainstream identity, the group expanded its possibilities, blending jazz, funk and psychedelic influences into something entirely new. That spirit remained intact at St Kilda, where their performance balanced reverence for history with the vitality of a living catalogue.
The show also carried emotional weight. Surviving members paid tribute throughout the evening to co-founder David Jolicoeur, known to fans as Dave and Trugoy The Dove, who passed away in 2023. His presence was deeply felt, acknowledged through heartfelt moments that underscored how central he remains to the identity and message of De La Soul. Rather than slowing the energy, the tributes strengthened the communal feeling of the night, reminding the audience that the group’s legacy extends beyond individual performances.
Musically, the setlist drew heavily from the band’s defining era while incorporating newer material, including songs connected to their recent album Cabin In The Sky, released in November 2025. The pacing moved fluidly between introspective tracks and celebratory anthems, reflecting the group’s ability to navigate humour, social commentary and pure party energy within a single performance.
Audience reaction peaked during the unmistakable opening grooves of Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey) and A Roller Skating Jam Named “Saturdays”. Both tracks triggered an immediate surge of recognition across the crowd, transforming the foreshore into a collective dance floor. The response demonstrated how deeply these songs remain embedded in popular culture, transcending generations while retaining their original spirit.
Elsewhere, classics including Me Myself And I, The Magic Number and Eye Know reinforced the group’s reputation as innovators whose music still feels vibrant decades later. Even deeper cuts were greeted with enthusiasm, evidence of an audience deeply familiar with the catalogue rather than simply revisiting hits.
The performance formed part of the Palace Foreshore’s 2026 summer season, which continues to position the venue as a cross-genre destination for international and Australian acts. The “Droppin’ Science” event celebrated hip hop culture across generations, with additional performances from Oddisee & Good Compny and Australian artist Miss Kaninna contributing to the evening’s broader cultural scope.
For De La Soul, the Melbourne show confirmed the lasting bond between the group and Australian audiences. Their music has long carried themes of positivity, individuality and creative freedom, values that translated effortlessly to an outdoor crowd gathered beside Port Phillip Bay.
As the final notes rang out across St Kilda, the sense was clear that this was more than nostalgia. It was a reminder of hip hop’s enduring capacity to unite listeners across decades, and of De La Soul’s continuing role as one of the genre’s most human voices.
De La Soul – Palace Foreshore, St Kilda
27 February 2026 Setlist
Run It Back!!
The Package
Stakes Is High
Say No Go
Peg (Steely Dan Song)
Eye Know
The Bizness
Dinninit
Oooh
YUHDONTSTOP
Day In The Sun (Gettin’ Wit U)
Potholes In My Lawn
Much More
Change In Speak
Yours
A Quick 16 For Mama
Cabin In The Sky
Just How It Is (Sometimes)
Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)
A Roller Skating Jam Named “Saturdays”
Different World
Me Myself And I
The Magic Number
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