On September 14, 1993, four teenagers from East Oakland released an album that would define Bay Area hip-hop for generations. 93 ‘Til Infinity by Souls of Mischief — Tajai, A-Plus, Opio, and Phesto — arrived fully formed: jazz-laced beats, intricate rhyme schemes, and a laid-back confidence that made it sound like nothing else coming out that year.

More than 30 years later, that album still sounds fresh. Here’s why.

Four Kids from East Oakland

Souls of Mischief formed in the late 1980s in Oakland, California — the same scene that would eventually become Hieroglyphics Imperium. Tajai, A-Plus, Opio, and Phesto grew up together, trading rhymes and developing a collective style built on jazz samples, East Bay cadences, and a deep love of the craft.

Their debut album was produced almost entirely by A-Plus, who was 18 years old at the time of recording. The beats drew heavily from jazz — Ahmad Jamal, Lonnie Liston Smith, Cannonball Adderley — giving the album a warm, sophisticated palette that stood apart from the harder production dominating rap in 1993.

The Title Track

“93 ‘Til Infinity” — the song — became the album’s defining statement. Built around a sample from the Ahmad Jamal Trio, the track floats rather than pounds. The four MCs pass the mic with a casual mastery that makes complex rhyme structures sound effortless. It is a perfect rap song: the kind you can put on in any decade and it sounds exactly right.

The phrase “93 ’til infinity” became shorthand for a certain approach to hip-hop: timeless over trendy, craft over commerce, Oakland forever.

Why It Still Matters

Many albums from 1993 sound dated. 93 ‘Til Infinity does not. Part of the reason is the jazz sample foundation — those sounds don’t age. Part of it is the writing: the four MCs on this album were already operating at a level of craft that transcends any era.

The album is also a document of Oakland at a specific moment — the West Coast underground scene before it was fully mapped by the industry, when a small group of teenagers could make something completely on their own terms and have it resonate for decades.

Souls of Mischief are still making music and still performing. Tajai is also a co-founder of Hieroglyphics Imperium and one of the key architects of the label’s DTC strategy. The legacy of 93 ‘Til Infinity is not a nostalgia project — it is an active foundation.

Stream It Now

Full album page with streaming links | Souls of Mischief artist page