De La Soul’s Posdnous has broken his silence on Instagram over the death of his groupmate and friend, Trugoy the Dove, and left him an emotional send-off.
The 53-year-old took to the group’s Instagram page on Wednesday (February 22) with a post that contained archival pictures of the late Dave “Trugoy” Jolicoeur by himself and posing with his De La Soul bandmates. Posdnous mentioned how Trugoy was the glue of the group, but although he’s gone, the group is still intact.
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“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,” Posdnous began. “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.”
Posdnous continued: “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’ Love you Dave! Sincerely, Merce (Pos).”
Posdnous’ message comes a day after fellow group member Maseo had words for Trugoy on Instagram as well. The rapper, producer and DJ took a trip down memory lane as he shared a throwback photo of De La Soul signing their first deal with Tommy Boy Records back in the late 1980s.
Trugoy died at the age of 54 on February 12. The cause of death is still unknown, but the Hip Hop community paid tribute to Trugoy with touching messages that honored the De La Soul lyricist. Prince Paul, Queen Latifah, LL COOL J, Fat Joe, Chuck D, Black Thought, Redman, Bun B and Rapsody were just some of the names who honored Trugoy.
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“Trugoy The Dove[.] You showed us it’s ok to have fun not sad or too too deep or fight the power tho it was very much fight the power what u did so genuis,” Nas wrote on Instagram. “The group made me wish I was them. Thank You.”
“Trugoy Dave from De La Soul has gone up to be with the day of the stars with the Master,” Pharrell tweeted. “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.”
