Historic rap group De La Soul have had a troubled past regarding the ownership of their music. In an effort to be the primary voice behind their work, they do not endorse a newly released biography on their story.
The book – High and Rising: A Book About De La Soul – covers the trio and their ascension into stardom, while also giving insight into author Marcus J. Moore's life with De La as a backdrop. Moore describes the book on Instagram as "giving flowers to De La for inspiring a Black boy from Landover to be his genuine self."
However, De La have some contention with the production of the biography, stating plainly that "this is an unauthorized book, and [they] are not connected to it in any way." They continue and mention their history with music ownership, alluding to their catalog dispute with Warner Music Group and Tommy Boy Records, a conflict that left their music off digital streaming platforms for several years. The whole story is marred with dated copyright laws and general corporate greed.
Naturally, De La Soul have become very defensive regarding the ownership of their music, so they are doing their best to control the narrative of their own lives. The group emphasizes that their story is theirs to tell: "Our story will be told in our words, in our way, with the style you’ve come to know and love."
While the book is a De La Soul biography, it is not entirely about the rap group. On the book's announcement in April, Moore states that the book is "completed in the wake of Dave's and [Moore's] mother's death, parts of it wrestle with grief and mourning in public, how to move forward when the body and mind refuses."
De La Soul may have another dispute on their hands, saying that they are "exploring all of our legal options." There have been no books released on De La Soul – the Amazon listing for it even describes it as the first. Fans are split on the issue, with some fully backing De La Soul and others defending Moore and his right to publish.
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