De La Soul Rapper Trugoy the Dove Dead at 54

One-third of the iconic hip-hop trio De La Soul, Trugoy the Dove, has died. He was 54. No cause of death has been given at this time. 

News of the artist’s – born David Jolicoeur – passing was first reported by AllHipHop. The outlet explained Jolicoeur had been “struggling with his health over the past few years. In 2018, Trugoy opened up about his battle with congestive heart failure in an Instagram video and admitted he was struggling with being sidelined.”

“I’m ready just to get back to the stage,” he told fans then. “I miss that. I love traveling. I love being around my guys and I want that back.”

De La Soul was one of the many acts that participated in the Grammys’ 50 Years of Hip-Hop celebration last Sunday (Feb. 5). However, Jolicoeur did not join his group mates for the performance.

Alongside A Tribe Called Quest and Jungle Brothers, De La Soul helped to form the hip-hop collective, the Native Tongues. Together, the collective—later joined by artists Queen Latifah, Monie Love, Black Sheep, and Chi-Ali—would pioneer a more conscious style of hip-hop, characterized by open-minded and spiritual lyricism, eclectic sounds and diverse samplings, all with Afrocentrism at the heart of their music.

2023 was expected to be a big year for the trio behind genre-shaping hits like “The Magic Number,” “Rock Co.Kane Flow,” and “Pain.” It was recently announced that the first six albums in their catalog – 3 Feet High and Rising, De La Soul Is Dead, Buhloone Mindstate, Stakes Is High, Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump, and AOI: Bionix – will be returning to streaming services on March 3.

“We can’t believe this day is finally here, and we are excited to be able to share our music with fans, old and new,” said the trio of the announcement. “Golnar, Rell, Faith, and the Reservoir team have been great partners in this entire process. We’re grateful that our relationship with them all has enabled this to happen.”

(Photo by Matthew Eisman/Getty Images)