De La Soul’s Trugoy the Dove, LI Rapper, Dies At 54

AMITYVILLE, NY — David “Trugoy the Dove” Jolicoeur, a six-time Grammy winner and one-third of the iconic rap group De La Soul, died on Sunday at the age of 54, the New York Times reported.

Jolicoeur was born in 1968, in Brooklyn, and moved to Long Island with his family as a child.

While attending high school in Amityville, he befriended Kelvin Mercer, known as Posdnuos, and Vincent Mason, or Maseo.

The trio would go onto form De La Soul, a group which "expanded the stylistic vocabulary of hip-hop in the late 1980s and early ’90s with eclectic samples and offbeat humor", the New York Times reported.

In a 2000 interview, Jolicoeur told the publication that Long Island allowed the trio the "opportunity to see more things" and broaden their horizons, crediting the area for their success.

De La Soul was most known for their music in the early 90s, representing a fun balance to the
"then-burgeoning gangsta rap scene", the Rolling Stones reported.

Their early work is characterized by layers of disparate samples melded together, "serving as a jazzy, energetic canvas" for the trio.

Some of the group's most notable songs include "Stakes Is High," "Me, Myself and I," and "3 Feet High."

De La Soul went on to lead what was known as the Native Tongues, a loose collective of outsider hip-hop groups like A Tribe Called Quest and the Jungle Brothers, which influenced artists like Mos Def and Common, the New York Times reported.

Despite existing for decades, the group only began to recently digitize their work, releasing the notable song "The Magic Number" on Spotify.

Jolicoeur would go onto receive six Grammy Awards. One of them was Best Pop Vocal Collaboration, for his collaboration with the Gorillaz for their 2005 song "Feel Good Inc."

"Our brother <3, we love you," the Gorillaz wrote in a post on Twitter.

The group's publicist confirmed his death, and did not specify a cause, the New York Times said.

Many others took to social media, reacting to Jolicoeur's death.

"Trugoy Dave from De La Soul has gone up to be with the day of the stars with the Master," wrote artist Pharell Williams. "Sending love, light and positive vibrations to his family, The Soul and everyone whose lives have been touched by his existence. Oodles and Oodles and Oodles of O’s."

Rapper Busta Rhymes also wrote on social media, posting a picture of Jolicoeur.

"Complete Disbelief that I’m typing this right now," he wrote. "This one hurts Bad. Dave aka Trugoy the Dove Fly Beloved Fly.. Rest Easy King."