The author of a biography of De La Soul said the group “literally judged a book by its cover” when publicly criticizing it.
Music journalist Marcus J. Moore published High and rising in November, a book that explores the history of the iconic New York rap trio. It was the first cultural biography ever written about the group.
However, shortly after its release, De La Soul released a statement distancing himself from the book and threatening legal action against it.
“We want to make it very clear: this is an unauthorized book and we are not connected to it in any way,” they said. “If you choose to support this book, that is your right. We just want to make it clear that this is not the case and we are exploring all of our legal options. Even in the title of this book, the “3” is missing, which shows how inauthentic it is because for us, “3” will always be the magic number.
Now, Moore has spoken out about the incident for the first time, in an interview on the Rolling Stones music now podcast.
“It was disappointing because they were literally judging a book by its cover, without having read it,” he said.
He added that he felt “betrayed,” adding: “I wanted to say something publicly, but then I realized, oh, I don’t need to say anything because my name is here and does all the work. »
Moore went on to say that he actually contacted the group regularly while writing the book, and also explained that he had some sympathy for why they reacted negatively to its existence.
“When you’ve been fighting an industry for 35 years, then naturally, yes, anyone who comes in who you think is trying to take your legacy or whatever, you’ll naturally make them your enemy,” he said.
Separately, De La Soul confirmed that they will release their rare 1994 EP “Clear Lake Auditorium,” which features A Tribe Called Quest, on March 7. You can get a copy here.
They will also perform an all-you-can-eat concert at New York’s Lincoln Center, their first hometown show in 16 months, this Friday, January 17. All remaining tickets can be purchased here.
