De La Soul have criticised an “unauthorised” new book written about them, saying that they’re “exploring all of our legal options”.
The book High & Rising – a reference to the group’s 1989 album ‘3 Feet High and Rising’ – was written by Marcus J. Moore and published on November 19. It is the first cultural biography to have been written about the legendary hip hop group.
However, the group have now released a statement about it, suggesting they could take legal action.
“Friends and De La Family. We’ve been receiving congratulatory messages about a book titled High & Rising. However, we want to make it absolutely clear: this is an unauthorized book, and we are not connected to it in any way.
“For years, you’ve stood with us in our fight for ownership of our catalog and the right to benefit from the music we created. That same dedication to protecting what’s ours extends to being the ones who tell OUR story—something deeply personal and “De La” to the core.
“Our story will be told in our words, in our way, with the style you’ve come to know and love. Until then, we encourage you to indulge in the authentic DA.I.S.Y. Age by supporting projects backed by us.
“If you choose to support this book, that’s your right. We just want it to be clear that we do not and we are exploring all of our legal options. Even within this book’s title, the “3” Is missing which shows how inauthentic it is because for us, “3” will always be the magic number.
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“We’re cooking up something special for Spring 2025—so the wait won’t be long for more of that authentic “De La.”
Moore has not yet commented on the incident.
De La Soul have been criticised for their actions, particularly by writers and those who know Moore and his work. The journalist and author Dan Ozzi wrote in the comments of their Instagram post: “It especially sucks to see a group that made art by sampling the works of others talk about “exploring legal options” against a fellow artist. Hoping you’ll reconsider this approach and delete this.”
Author Justin Tinsley added: “Marcus J. Moore is one of the best in the world at covering our culture in a fair, honest and beautiful way. This isn’t the look a lot of people think it is. You’re missing out on a damn good book that pays homage to the group in a very real way.”
In other news, the group will be performing a pay-what-you-want concert at New York City’s Lincoln Center. The band’s hometown show will mark their first in the city for 16 months and will take place on January 17th, 2025 at the Wu Tsai Theater in David Geffen Hall, the home of the New York Philharmonic.