J. Dilla (taken from Wikipedia) James Dewitt Yancey (February 7, 1974–February 10, 2006), better known as J Dilla or Jay Dee, was an American hip hop producer and MC, who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip-hop scene in Detroit, Michigan. He began his career as "Jay Dee" but used the name "J Dilla" from 2001 on. Many critics believe J Dilla's work to have had a major influence on his peers, and that he embodied the neo soul sound, playing a defining yet understated role during the sub-genre's rise (roughly from the mid-90s to the early 2000s). J Dilla was known as a "producer's producer", and was highly regarded by better known producers such as Kanye West, Just Blaze, and Pharrell Williams (who named him as his favorite producer). Many considered him as a musical genius. A large catalogue of his work, mostly unused beats, remains unreleased, and in some cases have been freely passed around through the Internet, impressing enthusiasts and adding to his status as a cult figure. Early life Jay Dee was the oldest of three children (including a younger brother and sister), and grew up in a house situated near McDougall and East Nevada, in Detroit.[6] He developed a vast musical knowledge from his parents (his mother, Maureen, is a former opera singer). At a young age, he began acquiring a large collection of records which inspired him to learn multiple instruments. By high school, he had developed a passion for MCing, and formed a rap group called Slum Village with schoolmates T3 (R.L. Altman), and Baatin (Titus Glover). He had also taken up beatmaking, using a simple tapedeck as the center of his studio. Early productions In 1992, he met experienced Detroit musician Amp Fiddler, who was impressed by what Jay Dee was able to accomplish with such limited tools. Amp Fiddler let Jay Dee use his MPC, which he learned quite quickly. In 1995, Jay Dee and MC Phat Kat formed 1st Down, and would be the first Detroit hip hop group to sign with a major label (Pay Day) - a deal that was ended after one single when the label folded. That same year he recorded The Album That Time Forgot with 5 Elementz (a group consisting of the late Proof and Mudd). By the late 1990s Jay Dee was known as a major hip-hop prospect, with a string of singles and remix projects, for Janet Jackson, Pharcyde, De La Soul, Busta Rhymes, A Tribe Called Quest, Q-Tip's solo album and others. Some other Jay Dee productions were released without his name recognition, being credited to The Ummah, A Tribe Called Quest's production team, of which he was a member. Performing career 2000 marked the major label debut of Slum Village with Fantastic, Vol. 2, creating a new following for Jay Dee as a producer and an MC. He was also a founding member of the production collective known as The Soulquarians (along with Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson, D'Angelo and James Poyser amongst others) which earned him more recognition and buzz. He subsequently worked with Erykah Badu, Talib Kweli, and Common - contributing heavily to the latter's critically acclaimed breakthrough album, Like Water for Chocolate. His debut as a solo artist came in 2001 with the single "Fuck the Police", followed by the album Welcome 2 Detroit, which kicked off U.K. Independent record label BBE's "Beat Generation" series. In 2002, Jay Dee, began using the name "J Dilla" (an attempt to differentiate himself from Jermaine Dupri who also goes by "J.D."), and left Slum Village to pursue a major label solo career with MCA. MCA Period 2002 saw Dilla producing the entirety of Frank-N-Dank's 48 Hours, as well as a solo album, but neither record was ever released, although the former did eventually surface through bootlegging. When Dilla finished working with Frank-N-Dank on the 48 Hours album, MCA Records requested a record with a larger commercial appeal, and the artists re-recorded the majority of the tracks, this time using little to no samples. Despite this, neither versions of the album saw the light of day, and the latter has only been heard as a bootleg. Dilla expressed he was disappointed that the music never got out to the fans. A solo album was completed by Dilla for MCA/Geffen Records in 2003.[9] He handled MC duties while the beats were supplied by some of his favorite producers, with Dilla providing additional production. The album contained contributions from Madlib, Pete Rock, Hi-Tek, DJ House Shoes, Karriem Riggins, Supa Dave West, Kanye West, Nottz and more. The album also featured guest appearances from Bilal, Frank-N-Dank, and others. To date, only two of these songs have been heard in any form: a song called "Diamonds", produced by Nottz, which was played live at a J Dilla tribute concert in 2006 - the recording of which was ripped into an audio file and passed around on the Internet; and "Fight Club," which featured guest verses from Nottz and Boogie Man, and was produced by Waajeed and released on Jeed's label, Bling47's compilation, Best Kept Secret in 2003. Other tracks that have been mentioned in interviews, were remakes of Gary Numan's classic, "Cars," entitled "Trucks," and a remake of Vanity 6's "Drive Me Wild", completed with Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson of The Roots. In a recent video interview on Stones Throw's website, Dilla's close friend DJ House Shoes alluded to the possibility of the MCA album finally seeing an official release through Stones Throw Records in the future. Post-MCA Following the collapse of Dilla and Frank-N-Dank's MCA albums, Dilla recorded the uncompromising Ruff Draft, released exclusively to vinyl by German label Groove Attack. Although the album was little known, it signaled a change in sound and attitude, and his work from this point on was increasingly released through independent record labels. In a 2003 interview with Groove Attack, Dilla talked about this change of direction: “You know, if I had a choice, skip the major labels and just put it out yourself man... Trust me. I tell everybody it's better to do it yourself and let the Indies come after you instead of going in their [direction] and getting a deal and you have to wait, it ain't fun, take it from me. Right now, I'm on MCA but it feels like I'm an unsigned artist still. It's cool, it's a blessing, but damn I'm like, 'When's my shit gonna come out? I'm ready now, what's up?' They're just like they gotta wait on this person and this person and they're firing this person. It's getting crazy. I woulda did a lot better just not even fucking with them, [and] keep doing what I was doing before. ” Later years and illness LA-based Producer and MC, Madlib, began collaborating with J Dilla, and the pair formed the group Jaylib in 2002, releasing an album called Champion Sound in 2003. J Dilla relocated from Detroit to LA in 2004 and appeared on tour with Jaylib in Spring 2004. Despite a slower output of major releases and production credits in 2004 and 2005, his cult status remained strong within his core audience, fueled in part by the unauthorized circulation of his underground "beat tapes" (instrumental, and raw working materials), mostly through internet file sharing. Articles in publications Urb (March 2004) and XXL (June 2005) confirmed rumors of ill health and hospitalization during this period, but these were downplayed by Jay himself. The seriousness of his condition became public in November 2005 when J Dilla toured Europe performing from a wheelchair. It was later revealed that he suffered from TTP, a rare blood disease, and Lupus. J Dilla died on February 10, 2006, at his home in Los Angeles, California. His obituary in The New York Times on February 14, 2006, states: "The cause was cardiac arrest, according to his mother, Maureen Yancey." His last album, Donuts was released 3 days earlier, on February 7, 2006. J Dilla performed his last show in Belgium. Posthumous work Aside from Donuts, Dilla completed or nearly completed two more full length releases, during his illness. The first, The Shining, was released on August 8, 2006 by BBE Records. Final production of the album was handled posthumously by Karriem Riggins, whom Dilla had asked to help with the album. According to Riggins, The Shining was "75% completed when Dilla died." The second, Jay Love Japan, was announced during Dilla's lifetime as an instrumental EP, and now has a June 2007 release date. In June 2007, J Dilla's and Madlib's collaboration album Champion Sound will be re-released by Stones Throw Records as a 2CD Deluxe with instrumentals and b-sides.