On Tuesday (Nov. 19), author Marcus J. Moore published his new book High And Rising: A Book About De La Soul on Dey Street Books. Today, the legendary hip-hop group took to social media to denounce the “unauthorized” book, saying they’re “exploring all of our legal options.”
“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,” the statement begins. It continues:
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.
We’re cooking up something special for Spring 2025—so the wait won’t be long for more of that authentic “De La.”
Fans are not quite loving this situation, defending Marcus J. Moore and his right to pay homage to the crew. In 2020, he also published the book The Butterfly Effect: How Kendrick Lamar Ignited The Soul Of Black America. In April, he wrote on social media about the De La Soul endeavor:
It is my extreme pleasure to share with you the cover of my new book HIGH AND RISING, publishing via @deystreet in November 2024.
This book has been a labor of love and struggle over the past four years. Completed in the wake of Dave’s passing and my mother’s death, parts of it wrestle with grief and mourning in public, how to move forward when the body and mind refuses.
HIGH AND RISING is a cultural biography with critical analysis. It’s also a memoir that not only celebrates De La, it unpacks my coming of age. At the behest of friends and colleagues, I’m asserting my voice and perspective a lot more (in this book and elsewhere moving forward). For those who ask, “Marcus, what are *your* thoughts?,” this one’s for you.
Ultimately, HIGH AND RISING gives flowers to De La for inspiring a Black boy from Landover to be his genuine self. It doesn’t give passes to albums and attitudes that were less than ideal.
It honors my family. I’m embracing what the universe keeps telling me I am.
The preorder is live and available here: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/high-and-rising-marcus-j-moore?variant=41562461208610 (Also in my bio for easier linkage)
With love,
Marcus
Find High And Rising: A Book About De La Soul here.
