NYS Music 2023

Tag: Trugoy the Dove

  • De La Soul pen ‘Dear Dave,’ Celebrate Release of Catalog at Webster Hall

    The catalog of legendary alternative hip hop group De La Soul is now available for streaming, ending years of legal wrangling that left the Amityville trio’s musical legacy unheard by the masses.

    To celebrate the occasion, and the life of the late Dave Jolicoeur, Trugoy the Dove, The Da.i.s.y Experience was held at Webster Hall on Thursday, March 2. This free event was RSVP only for those lucky enough to score a spot on the list, and featured Dave Chappelle, Queen Latifah, Q-Tip, Common, D-Nice, Talib Kweli, Busta Rhymes, Kid Capri and many more come through and celebrate.

    de la soul catalog dave

    DA.I.S.Y. is an acronym for “Da Inner Sound Y’all,” one that fans of De La Soul are familiar with. During the show, “immersive activation” transformed Webster Hall into a De La destination, utilizing artwork from their classic debut 3 Feet High and Rising. Additional performers included DJs Stretch Armstrong, Clark Kent, Rich Medina, and Tony Touch, as well as De La Soul members Posdnuos and Maseo.

    Also this week, De La Soul took fans behind the scenes of the official music video for “Me, Myself and I,” in the latest installment of Vevo Footnotes.

    During the episode, Posdnuos discussed the creation of their iconic song, and how it allowed the group to address negative media labels. He highlights how the ‘Twilight Zone’ influenced the video’s opening segment with producer Prince Paul and their comedic approach to the video, playing off their hip-hop style. He explains the video aimed to underscore individuality and confidence, and Posdnuos suggests that if they remade the video today, they might focus on inner growth instead of external independence. He also shares a standout memory from the video’s scene with teacher Def Beat, and reveals that Ali Shaheed Muhammad from A Tribe Called Quest wrote “De La Sucks” on the bathroom wall.

    On Sunday, the band shared “Dear Dave,” a note to the fallen member, Dave Jolicoeur, aka Trugoy the Dove. The band reflected on the untimely passing, just as the catalog was made available to fans.

    de la soul catalog dave

    Dear Dave,

    You were the heart of our group. You brought so much creativity, energy, and passion to our music, and your influence will be felt for years to come.

    Your passing is a great loss not only to us, but also to the entire hip-hop community. You were a true artist who used music to inspire and uplift others, and you will be deeply missed by all who knew you.

    This is heavy on our hearts and minds but we are smiling and even laughing at all the great times we shared with you. As we attempt to navigate this world without you, we stand grateful and proud of all you accomplished on this earth.

    We would like to say thank you Dave for being a big brother. Thank you for being a friend. Thank you for the wise words placed in your verses. Thank you for the music you produced that is loved by so many. Thank you for never wanting to compromise the quality of our brand. Thank you for helping us become a group that will remain etched in the timeline of hip hop culture as well as the fabric of music and for now on when we perform “Ring Ring Ring Ha Ha Hey” we will say “2-2-2-2-222 we got an angel in heaven who can talk to you”.

    We love you Dave and thank you Dave!

    Everyone, please celebrate the life and legacy of Dave Jolicoeur, Trugoy the Dove, Plug 2, Dave.

    Our music is now available digitally on all streaming services now! We did it Dave!

    Stream De La Soul’s catalog here.

  • De La Soul is From the Soul: Remembering Trugoy

    When TMZ first reported on February 12 that De La Soul’s Dave “Trugoy the Dove” Jolicoeur had passed away, there was an outpouring of respect and support throughout social media. And for good reason, the 54-year-old Long Island native was not only one of hip hop’s most innovative rhymers, he had the catalogue and accolades to back it up. However, Plug 2’s value to the hip hop community isn’t based on his achievements on a commercial scale. For many, De La Soul represents the happiest times of their formative years, the boom era where hip hop wasn’t this high-functioning corporate machine, but when the art was still based around thoughts, feelings and the power to dare to be different, the organic way.

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    Hailing from the same Long Island outskirts that produced the likes of Chuck D, Rakim and Biz Markie, De La Soul’s contributions to hip hop and the black experience overall was one of normalcy. In an ever-changing rap landscape that had adopted an in-your-face brashness amid Public Enemy, NWA and Rakim’s rise, De La Soul served as the buoyant middle ground between the brazen and squeaky clean rappers of the day. While the group’s success is the product of four like minded creative vanguards (Posdnous, Trugoy, Maseo and Prince Paul) there’s no doubting that Trugoy embodied their very essence. Even as their music matured in between 3 Feet High and Rising and Stakes is High, Dave’s laidback effervescence remained a constant.

    https://youtu.be/tD_crXNhzKs

    Trugoy and De La Soul’s Impact

    In an era where black extremism seemed to be the new norm in hip hop, De La Soul brought a fresh point-of-view to life as a black young adult. With their quirky melodies, lighthearted approach, and genre-bending use of samples and rapping styles, the Amityville Memorial High products helped bring the other black experience to prominence. The one where you had fun, nobody got hurt, police was not involved and everything was okay. As a result, their music offered an alternative to contemporaries as their experiences as suburban black youth afforded them a broadened, colorblind view to artistry.

    Embed from Getty Images

    Consequently, their idiosyncratic point of view saddled them with a “hippie” gimmick from their record label. After all, black plight had long been one of America’s main soundtracks. For their part, De La Soul refused to portray themselves as victims to anything but wacky outfits. With their D.A.I.S.Y. (Da Inner Sound Ya’ll) mantra, De La Soul epitomizes hip hop’s ethos of “keeping it real.” Along with other members of the Natives Tongues, De LA Soul brought about a musical and social balance to the hip hop landscape. However, they remained true to themselves, refusing to be boxed into the alternative hip hop mold that was building around them.

    De La Soul is Dead was a backlash of feeling that way about the industry. About how our art was being compromised. I think people’s point of view of what we were trying to do — it seemed as if they were pointing their hands at us like, these guys are basically here to represent something that we believe that they are, and they’re going to act the way we think they’re supposed to. It was like, no, that’s not who we are. It’s not what we’re doing, and it’s not what we feel. You feel emotional when things happen inside, and we just gotta let it out through music.

    -Trugoy the Dove in an interview with Kickstarter Magazine

    At the heart of it all was Dave, whose creatively juxtaposing role as Trugoy resonated with many around the world, with De La Soul serving as an inspiration and pushing the budding careers of several acts, including Yasiin Bey and Common. With iconic group’s back catalogue set to hit streaming services on March 3, we can be assured that De La Soul will never be dead.