J Dilla

James Dewitt Yancey (February 7, 1974 – February 10, 2006), better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer and rapper who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan. According to his obituary at NPR.org, he "was one of the music industry's most influential hip-hop artists", working with big-name acts including A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Busta Rhymes, Erykah Badu, The Roots, The Pharcyde and Common. Yancey died in 2006 of the blood disease thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.

Biography

Early life

James Yancey was the eldest of four children including a sister (Martha) and two brothers (Earl and John), who later began doing music as Illa J. The family lived at a corner house near McDougall and Nevada, on the east side of Detroit. He developed a vast musical knowledge from his parents (his mother is a former opera singer and his father was a jazz bassist). According to his mother, he could "match pitch perfect harmony" by "two-months old", to the amazement of musician friends and relatives. He began collecting vinyl at the age of two and would be allowed to spin records in the park, an activity he enjoyed tremendously as a child.

Ruff Draft

Ruff Draft is an album by the late former Slum Village member Jay Dee (also known as J Dilla). It was originally released in February 2003 as an EP, by his then-newly founded label, Mummy Records, and distributed by Groove Attack, a German record label. In 2007, Ruff Draft was remastered and re-released as the third official solo album by Stones Throw Records. The re-release sold 8,049 copies in its first week, J Dilla's largest first-week sales as a solo artist.

Overview

The original vinyl release of Ruff Draft is now out-of-print. Although the album is one of Jay Dee's lesser known works, it includes some of his most abstract and experimental work, all self-produced, and recorded in under a week.

As stated in the introduction of the album, it's a noncommercial sounding lo-fi hip hop album, which sees the producer playfully toying with different styles, such as on "Nothing Like This," where his vocals are distorted and skewered over an equally eccentric production featuring a sample played backwards. The result mirrors the more off-center moments on Common's Electric Circus, which Dilla also worked on.

Dilla

Dilla is a town located in the northwestern Awdal region of Somalia.

Neighborhoods

The major neighborhoods in Dilla are:

External links

Dilla (month)

Dillā (Nepal Bhasa: दिल्ला) is the ninth month in the Nepal Era calendar, the national lunar calendar of Nepal. The month coincides with Āsāṛh (आषाढ) in the Hindu lunar calendar and July in the Gregorian calendar.

Dillā begins with the new moon and the full moon falls on the 15th of the lunar month. The month is divided into the bright and dark fortnights which are known as Dillā Thwa (दिल्ला थ्व) and Dillā Gā (दिल्ला गा) respectively.

Among the major events of the month, the 11th day of the bright fortnight is Hari Sayani Ekādashi which marks the beginning of the Hindu deity Vishnu's four-month cosmic sleep. On the 12th day, devotees plant the Tulsi plant (Holy basil) in their homes. The plant represents Vishnu.

The full moon day is Guru Purnimā when teachers are honored. The holiday is also known as Dillā Punhi and is sacred to Buddhists as the day when the Buddha gave his first sermon and set in motion the Dharmacakra, the Wheel of Dharma. The first day of the dark fortnight is the start of Vassa, the three-month rains retreat for Buddhist monks when they remain in their monasteries.