De La Soul: Tributes pour in for David Jolicoeur, also known as Trugoy the Dove, after death aged 54

Tributes have poured in for Trugoy the Dove, a founding member of US hip hop group De La Soul who has died aged 54. Geraint Vincent looks back at his legacy

Tributes have poured in for David Jolicoeur, a founding member of the landmark rap trio De La Soul, who has died at the age of 54.

No cause of death has been given for the rapper, who went by the stage name Trugoy the Dove, and later in his career as Dave. In recent years, Jolicoeur had said he was battling congestive heart failure.

The rapper co-founded the legendary Long Island trio - alongside Vincent Mason (Pasemaster Mase) and Kelvin Mercer (Posdnuos) - transforming the hip-hop landscape in the late 1980s and early 1990s with their pioneering sound.

Their first album, '3 Feet High and Rising', is widely considered a masterpiece, and includes hit singles like 'Me Myself and I', 'The Magic Number' and 'Eye Know'.

Tributes poured in on social media shortly after the reports of his death - which has since been confirmed by Jolicoeur's representative Tony Ferguson - emerged on Sunday.

“Dave! It was a honor to share so many stages with you,” wrote rapper Big Daddy Kane on Instagram.

Rapper Erick Sermon posted on Instagram that: “This one hurts. From Long Island from one of the best rap groups in Hiphop # Delasoul #plug2 Dave has passed away you will be missed… RIP.”

Adding to the tributes, B Real - part of the hip-hop group Cypress Hill - described Jolicoeur as a "legend of hip hop music and culture".

"His music will allow him to live in our hearts and minds," he wrote on Twitter.

"But not only was he a great musician but he was a great human being. He meant a lot to us."

Released in 1989 by Tommy Boy Records, De La Soul’s debut studio album '3 Feet High and Rising' signalled the beginning of alternative hip-hop, sampling everyone from Johnny Cash and Steely Dan to Hall & Oates.

In 2010, the album, praised by many for its optimistic and positive tone, was added to the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress for its historic significance. “It’s a hip-hop masterpiece for the era in which it was released,” Jolicoeur told Billboard earlier this year.

“I think the element of that time of what was taking place in music, hip-hop, and our culture, I think it welcomed that and opened up minds and spirits to see and try new different things.

"I think the innocence that we had back then was brave, but we were in a time where innocence was so cool."

De La Soul released eight albums - including 'De La Soul is Dead' and 'Stakes is High' - and in March were going to make their streaming service debut, on Spotify, Apple Music and others after a long battle with Tommy Boy Records about legal and publishing matters.

The trio was part of the hip-hop tribute at the Grammy Awards last week, but Jolicoeur was not onstage with his fellow bandmates.

Over the years, the group was nominated for six Grammy Awards, winning one for Best Pop Vocal Collaboration for the Gorillaz song 'Feel Good Inc'.

During the pandemic, Jolicoeur said, there were talks of solo albums and branching out - which weren’t new. “We support each other in those ideas, but at the same time, I think the magic really happens when it’s the three of us,” he said. “I’m not trying to crack that formula, and I don’t think anyone else is, either.” Asked what advice he would give to groups about how to stay together, he said you have to fight, but remember you’re fighting for the team.

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