De La Soul Disavow ‘Unauthorized’ Book, Fans Disapprove of Them Threatening Lawsuit

De La Soul condemned the new book about the trio, High and Rising.

The group shared a lengthy statement on X on Thursday, writing that they, “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,” the statement continued. “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,” they wrote. “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.”

Written by Marcus J. Moore, High and Rising is described as, “the first book about De La Soul.” The synopsis continues, “De La Soul is Black history, American history, world history, our history. This is a tale about staying the course, and how holding true to your virtue can lead to dynamic results.”

Fans and writers responded to De La’s post by asking the group to reconsider and show support for Moore. High and Rising arrived on Nov. 19, published via Dey Street Books, and follows Moore’s 2020 biography, The Butterfly Effect: How Kendrick Lamar Ignited the Soul of Black America. Moore hasn’t responded.

While many disagree with the group denouncing Moore’s book, fans are destroying a new article from The Atlantic, which unpacks Moore’s book and De La Soul’s legacy.

Take a look at what fans said in response to De La’s statement below.