J Dilla was born James Dewitt Yancey on February 7, 1974 in Detroit, Michig… Read Full Bio ↴J Dilla was born James Dewitt Yancey on February 7, 1974 in Detroit, Michigan, to Maureen and Beverly Yancey. From the onset, music was intrinsic to Jay's life. His mother Maureen was an accomplished singer and lover of classical music and opera. His father Beverly was a gifted vocalist and bass player fond of vocal harmonies and jazz, who played professionally for 25 years before taking a job at Ford. A two-year-old Jay would gurgle along in perfect pitch to the sound of his father practicing on his upright bass until it lulled him to sleep.
Especially aware of the dangers that faced unoccupied youths growing up in their Detroit neighborhood of Conant Gardens, the Yancey's set out to keep their children as busy as possible between cub scouts, music lessons, youth choir, and any other church activities. Nurturing their son's early passion for music, Jay was always enrolled in some kind of music class, excelling on the piano, violin and cello, before moving on to the drums. But it was the lure of the boom-bap which ultimately moved him from the church pews to the studio.
"When I heard Run-D.M.C.'s "Sucker M.C.'s (Krush-Groove 1)" and Whodini's "Big Mouth", it made me curious to how the beats were made. Those songs were the first time I heard the beats that weren't melodic - just drums. Being someone who was taking drum lessons at the time, that made me real curious. That led me into deejaying, which slowly led to me deejaying parties and that eventually led me into production."
A fortuitous meeting with another talented Conant Gardens resident provided Jay with the direction necessary to pursue his dream. "Fortunately I ran into this cat just walking in the street, literally. This guy named Amp Fiddler. He just called us out and from that first day he actually showed all of us how a studio works and things like that. He had a little pre-production studio in his crib. He was like, 'Whenever you want to, come by the crib.' I started going over there messing with beats."Building on the experience he received at Amp's studio, Jay was determined to form a group which reflected the eclectic nature of his influences. "I heard about T3 and Baatin, and they were supposed to be the illest emcees at the time. And I thought I was, so I wanted to challenge them. To make a long story short, we just hooked up after that. The chemistry was right." Their group Slum Village gave Jay the platform to create a sound which was uniquely mid- western in its melding of jazzy, east coast influences with the glossy, bounce of west coast hip-hop.
Via another timely assist from Amp Fiddler, Slum's demo found it's way into the hands of Q-Tip, who immediately recognized a kindred musical spirit in Jay and offered the young producer a management and production contract. "It was like a dream come true, if you could ever, ever hear anybody say that. I just couldn't believe it. I love Tribe and De La and then this guy Tip called my crib! Matter of fact, the first time he called, I wasn't home. I missed the call! I was hurt. I thought that was it! But, he called me the next day. Next thing you know, I'm in New York." within months, Jay found himself producing tracks for a who's who of underground hip-hop: The Pharcyde, Busta Rhymes, De La Soul, Keith Murray, Mad Skillz, and of course A Tribe Called Quest.
"I was just riding the wave. It was still part of the dream to even be there. They even asked me creative questions about the album [Beats, Rhymes, and Life]. It's just unbelievable, man! These are the three ultimate niggas to me. They sat me down and invited me to these meetings and I felt like I was a part of that shit. Whether the album did good or not, it was to me one of the best experiences of my life."
Upon returning to Detroit, Jay found himself as the star of the city's burgeoning hip hop scene. His beats were the conduit for a diverse crop of MC's who gathered around the famed Hip Hop Shop, including Phat Kat, 5 Ela, Proof, Eminem, and a young Elzhi. His extended periods away from home had been difficult on Slum Village, but with Jay back in the fold and a renewed focus they set out to record their first album
"We decided to do that Fantastic album, and we did it in like two weeks. Everything was done. We were selling that shit out of boxes within a couple of weeks." Fan-tas-tic Vol. 1 became an underground classic, relentlessly dubbed and traded by fans in the days prior to file sharing. Innovative and playful, the album featured a string of hip hop classics including "Players", "Look of Love" and the brilliant James Brown adlib mash-up of "I Don't Know".
While his growing number of imitators were content to pick up the scraps of the fledgling neo-soul movement, Jay soon became the nucleus around which a group of like-minded, progressive artists would form, creating some of the best music to emerge from the post Golden-Age of early-nineties hip hop in the process. Dubbed the Soulquarians, Jay's beats would provide the key inspiration for this eclectic group's best work: The Roots' Things Fall Apart, D'Angelo's Voodoo, Erykah Badu's Mama's Gun, Q-Tips's Amplified, and Common's Like Water for Chocolate.
Originally intended as a breakbeat record, Jay's first solo album Welcome 2 Detroit provided the first opportunity to display his full range as a producer, MC, and vocalist. Seamlessly blending live instrumentation with programmed beats, W2D reflected his numerous influences and styles- from synth-heavy techno and grimy street anthems to breezy bossa nova. Stepping to the forefront as an MC for the first time, Jay introduced his alias J Dilla, and with it a more confident, street-edge rapper would emerge.
At a professional crossroads after a label deal with MCA collapsed in 2003, Dilla bypassed the mainstream altogether to unleash a flurry of new material: a collaborative album with Madlib entitled Champion Sound, and his own solo project the Ruff Draft EP, a muddy, lo-fi epic of uncompromising rawness. "I did it in four or five days, turned it in and had wax in ten days. If I'm not doing beats for somebody, I make stuff for me to drive around and listen to, and that was one of those projects. I was just doing me. That's why it was called the Ruff Draft EP". "There'd be days when I wouldn't eat at all because I'd be in the basement working all day. Even after being in the hospital so long, I had to fight with the doctors [to go home] because being away from music was starting to get to me."
Dilla relocated to Los Angeles in 2004 to re-energize himself and focus on his career. But by the end of the year, he would again be hospitalized. Undergoing debilitating dialysis treatments 3-4 times a week, Dilla was bedridden for long periods of time causing his hands and legs to swell dramatically, making walking difficult without assistance. He lost 50% of his body weight. During this time he was diagnosed with Lupus, a debilitating blood disease which causes the immune system to attack healthy tissue and for which there is no cure. He was released from the hospital in March 2005, only to be readmitted later that summer. Using equipment set up in his hospital room, Dilla began work on what would become his masterpiece, Donuts, a sprawling, back-to-basics instrumental album filled with emotional, heartfelt testaments to life and mortality that brought him full-circle to his beginnings as young producer chopping up breakbeats.
That Fall, Dilla embarked on a European tour alongside his mother and friends, rapping to sold-out audiences from a wheelchair. It would be his final farewell to the fans who had shown their love and support for so long. Upon completion of the tour and another stay in the hospital, Dilla returned home. He handed off the masters for his still-unfinished solo LP The Shining in time for his upcoming birthday.
On Tuesday, February 7, 2006, his 32nd birthday, Donuts was released. He spent the day at home with friends and family. Three days later on February 10, James Dewitt Yancey passed away in the arms of his loving mother Maureen. He was put to rest the following week, on Valentine's Day. As mourners gathered around his final resting place high in the hills of Los Angeles to say their goodbyes, a lone heart appeared in the cloudless sky above, fitting tribute for the man who above all else lived life to do what he loved. And what he loved, he did better than anybody else. For that, we will be forever thankful. Thank you Jay Dee.
Discography:
Artist/Group Releases (As Producer and/or MC):
1st Down - No Place to Go, 12" single 1993
1st Down - A Day With the Homiez 12", 12" Single 1995 (Pay Day Records)
Slum Village - Fan-Tas-Tic 12" single 1996
Slum Village - Fan-Tas-Tic Vol. 1 Album, 1996 (Donut Boy Recordings) 1997 (Sudden Impact) 2006 (Barak)
Slum Village - We Be Down, 12" single 1997 (Sudden Impact)
Jay Dee - Jay Dee Unreleased EP 1997 (House Shoes Records)
Slum Village - Somethin' For The People, All I Do (Remix) from "All I Do 12" single 1997 (WB)
J-88 - Look Of Love (Remix) 12" single 1999 (Groove Attack)
Slum Village - Get This Money, 12" single 1999 (Interscope)
Slum Village - Fantastic, Vol. 2, Album 2000 (Goodvibe) 2002 (Capitol) 2010 (Barak)
Slum Village - Fall In Love (Remix), 12" single (2000) (Goodvibe)
Slum Village - Climax/CB4, 12" single 2000 (Goodvibe)
J-88 - Best Kept Secret, EP 2000 (Groove Attack)
Jay Dee - Fuck the Police, 12" single 2001 (Up Above)
Jay Dee - Pause, 12" single 2001 (BBE)
Jay Dee - Welcome 2 Detroit, Album 2001 (BBE)
1st Down - A Day With the Homiez, Album 2002 (RonnieCash.com)
Jay Dee - Instrumental Series Vol. 1: Unreleased, EP 2002 (Bling47.com)
Jay Dee feat. Frank N Dank - Take Dem Clothes Off/Off Ya Chest 12" single 2002 (ABB)
Jay Dee feat. Frank N Dank - Push 12" EP 2002 (Mummy / Groove Attack)
Jaylib - The Message, from "Stones Throw Summer 2002 EP" 2002 (Stones Throw)
Jay Dee - Instrumental Series Vol. 2: Vintage, Album 2003 (Bling 47.com)
Jay Dee - Ruff Draft EP, 2003 (Mummy/Groove Attack)
Jaylib - The Red / The Official,12" single 2003 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Champion Sound, 12" single 2003 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Champion Sound, Album 2003 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Champion Sound Instrumentals 2004 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Blaze Up, Raw Shit (Remix), The Mission (Remix) from Stones Throw 101 12" EP 2004 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Raw Addict / Ice, 12" single 2003 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - McNasty Filth, 12"/CD 2004 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Popshit, from "Stones Throw 10" EP 2004 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Welcome 2 Detroit (Instrumentals) 2005 (BBE)
J Dilla - Donuts EP: J. Rocc's Picks, EP 2005 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Signs, 7" single 2006 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Donuts, Album 2006 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - The Shining, Album 2006 (BBE)
J Dilla - The Shining EP, 12" single 2006 (BBE)
J Dilla - The Shining (Instrumentals) 2006 (BBE)
Jaylib - No $ No Toke from "Chrome Children" Album 2006 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - No $ No Toke, 12" single 2006 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Won't Do, EP 2007 (BBE)
J Dilla - Wild, 12" single 2007 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Ruff Draft, Album 2007 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Dirty Crushin', 7" single 2007 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Jay Love Japan, Album 2007 (Operation Unknown)
Jay Dee - Jay Deelicious: The Delicious Vinyl Years CD/LP 2007 (Delicious Vinyl)
J Dilla - Donut Shop EP 2010 (Serato/Stones Throw)
MC (Not Producer):
Tami Hert - If You Were Mine (Detroit Demolition Mix) from "If You Were Mine" 12" single 1997 (550 Music)
v/a - Fight Club, feat. Dilla, Nottz & Boogie from "Best Kept Secret Mix" CD 2003 (Bling47.com)
Dabrye - Game Over 12" single 2004 (Ghostly International)
Wale Oyejide - There's A War Going On 12" single 2004 (Shaman Work)
Wale Oyejide - There's A War Going On from "One Day, Everything Changed" CD/LP 2004 (Shaman Work)
Slum Village - Reunion from "Detroit Deli" CD/LP 2004 (Barak/Capitol)
Pete Rock - Niggaz Know from "Soul Survivor II" CD/LP 2004 (Rapster /BBE)
v/a - Do Your Thang, Stupid from "BR Gunna Presents Dirty District Vol. 2" CD 2004 (Barak)
Phat Kat - Door from "The Undeniable LP" (New Version) CD/LP 2004 (Barak)
Lawless Element - Love, 12" single 2005 (Babygrande)
Lawless Element - Love, from "Soundvision: In Stereo" Album 2005 (Babygrande)
Platinum Pied Pipers - Act Like You Know, 12" single 2005 (Ubiquity)
Platinum Pied Pipers - Shotgun, Act Like You Know, from "Triple P" Album 2005 (Ubiquity)
Sa-Ra - Thrilla, 12" single 2005 (Sound In Color)
Sa-Ra - Thrilla, from "The Hollywood Recordings" 2007 (Babygrande)
Diamond - We Gangstas, from "Diamond Mine" Album 2005
Platinum Pied Pipers - Shotgun (Remix) from 12"single 2005 (Ubiquity)
J Dilla - The $ (Madlib Remix), Make 'Em NV (Madlib Remix) from Hella International 12" single 2007 (Stones Throw)
Production Credits (By Year):
1994-1995
Da Enna C - NOW from "Throw Ya Hands In Da Air" 12" single 1994 (Up Top)
Little Indian - One Little Indian 12" single 1995 (Premeditated)
Poe - Fingertips from "Hello" CD/LP 1995 (WEA/Atlantic)
1996
5-Elementz - Whutchawant, Feed Back, Rockshows, Party Groove, Janet Jacme, E.G.O., Don't Stop, Searchin from "The Album Time Forgot" cassette 1996 (That Was Entertainment)
A Tribe Called Quest - 1nce Again, Get A Hold, Keeping It Moving, Stressed Out, Word Play from "Beat, Rhymes, & Life" CD/LP 1996 (Jive Records)
Busta Rhymes - Keep It Movin', Still Shinin' from "The Coming" CD/LP 1996 (Elektra)
Busta Rhymes - Woo-Hah!! (Jay-Dee Bounce Remix), Woo-Hah!! (Jay-Dee Other Shit Remix) 12" single 1996 (Elektra)
Busta Rhymes - It's a Party (Ummah Remix), Ill Vibe (Ummah Remix) 12" single 1996 (Elektra)
De La Soul - Stakes Is High from "Stakes Is High" CD/LP 1996 (Tommy Boy)
De La Soul - Stakes Is High (Remix) from Itzsoweezee 12" single 1996 (Tommy Boy)
Mad Skillz - It's Going Down, The Jam from "From Where???" 1996 (Big Beat)
Kieth Murray - The Rhyme (Remix), Dangerous Ground from "Enigma" 1996 (Jive)
Natives Of Da Underground - Pack Da Hous/Brotha's Juss Don't Know/Whatcha Gonna Do? 12" single 1996 (ALR)
Phife Dawg - Game Day from "NFL Jams" 1996 (Castle)
Proof - Da Science from "Detroit Hip Hop Volume 1" 1996 Modern Tribe
Proof - Vibe Session from "Anywhere" 12" single 1996 (Hip Hop Shop)
Tha Pharcyde - Runnin', Bullshit, Splatittorium, Somethin' That Means Somethin', Drop, Y? from "Labcabincalifornia" CD/LP 1996 (Delicious Vinyl)
1997
5-Elementz - Sun Flower from "Yester Years" 12" EP 1997 (That Was Entertainment)
A Tribe Called Quest - Get A Hold, Mardi Gras At Midnight from "Jam" EP 1997 (Jive Records)
Brand New Heavies - Sometimes (Ummah Remix) from "Sometimes" 12" single 1997 (Delicious Vinyl)
Busta Rhymes - So Hardcore from "When Disaster Strikes" CD/LP 1997 (Elektra)
Mint Condition - Let Me Be The One (Ummah Remix), 12" single (1997) Perspective
Crustation - Purple (ATCQ Edit) 12" single 1997 (Zomba)
Janet Jackson - Got Til It's Gone (Ummah Jay Dee Revenge Mix) 12" single 1997 (Virgin)
Somethin' For The People - All I Do (Remix) from "All I Do" 12" single 1997 (WB)
T Da Pimp - Why You Lookin Hard?/We Knowwe Rockit 12" single 1997 (Penmp)
Tha Pharcyde - She Said (Remix) 12" single 1997 (Delicious Vinyl)
Tha Pharcyde - Runnin (Remix), Y? (Remix) from "Drop" 12" single 1997 (Delicious Vinyl)
Truz - True Dawgs/Routes To Hell 12" single 1997 (Ad Fam)
1998
A Tribe Called Quest - 4 Moms, Against The World, Busta's Lament, Da Booty, Find A Way, His Name Is Mutty Ranks, Start It Up, Steppin' It Up from "The Love Movement" CD/LP 1998 (Jive Records)
A Tribe Called Quest - That Shit from "Funkmaster Flex Vol. 3" 1998 (Loud Records)
Bizarre - Butterfly from Attack of the Wierdos 12" EP 1998 (Federation)
Mood - Secrets Of The Sand (Remix) from "Snake Backs" 12" single 1998 (Blunt)
N'Dea Davenport - Bullshittin (Remix) from "N'Dea Davenport" CD/LP 1998 (V2) (mixed by Jay Dee)
1999
5 Ela - You Ain't Fresh, Ain't No Love from 5-E Pt. 3 1999 (That Was Entertainment)
Brand New Heavies - Saturday Night (Jay Dee Remix) from "Saturday Night" 12" single 1999 (Delicious Vinyl)
Heavy D - Listen from "Heavy" CD/LP 1999 (Universal)
Macy Gray - I Try (Remix) 12" single 1999 (Epic)
Nine Yards - Always Find A Way (Remix) 12" single 1999 (Virgin)
Phat Kat - Dedication To The Suckers 12" single 1999 (House Shoes Recordings)
Phife Dawg - Bend Ova/Thought U Wuz Nic 12" single 1999 (Groove Attack)
Que D - Underestimated, Supa Shit, Kilo, Cash Flow, Michelle, Rock Box, Don't Stop from "Quite Delicious" cassette 1999 and "Que D Limited Edition" CD 2003 (Royal Flyness)
Q-Tip - 11 tracks from "Amplified" CD/LP 1999 (Arista)
Q-Tip - 11 tracks from "Amplified" (Instrumental Version) (1999) (Arista - Promo)
The Roots - Dynamite from Things Fall Apart CD/LP 1999 (MCA)
The Roots - New Year's @ Jay Dee's from "You Got Me" CD single 1999 (MCA)
Zooco - Butterfly from "Glow-Mellow-Flow" CD/LP 1999? (Columbia Japan)
2000
Black Star - Little Brother from "The Hurricane (Soundtrack)" CD/LP 2000 (MCA)
Brand New Heavies - Sometimes (Remix), Saturday Night (Remix) from "Trunk Funk Classics" CD/LP 2000 (Delicious Vinyl)
Busta Rhymes - Enjoy Da Ride, Live It Up, Show Me What You Got from "Anarchy" CD/LP 2000 (Elektra)
Common - 10 tracks from "Like Water For Chocolate" CD/LP 2000 (MCA)
Common - 10 tracks from "Like Water For Chocolate Instrumentals" 2000 (MCA)
Common - The Light, 12" single 2000 (MCA—UK)
Common - The Light (Remix) from "Bamboozled (Soundtrack)" 2000 (Motown)
De La Soul - Thru Ya City from "Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump" CD/LP 2000 (Tommy Boy)
Erykah Badu - Cleva, My Life, Didn't Cha Know, Kiss Me On My Neck from "Mama's Gun CD/LP 2000 (Motown)
Erykah Badu - Didn't Cha Know, single 2001 (Motown)
Erykah Badu - Cleva, 12" single 2001 (Motown—Promo)
Frank N Dank - Me & My Man/Love (A Thing Of The Past) 12" single 2000 (McNasty)
Frank N Dank - Everybody Get Up/Give It Up Pt. 2 12" single 2000 (McNasty)
Guru - Certified from "Guru's Jazzmatazz Street Soul" CD/LP 2000 (Virgin)
Innerzone Orchestra - People Make The World Go Round (J-88 Mix) - 12" single 2000 (Planet E)
Phife Dawg - Bend Ova, 4 Horseman from "Ventilation: Da LP" CD/LP 2000 (Groove Attack)
Phife Dawg - Ya Heard Me from "Definition of Ill Compilation" 2000 bootleg
Royce Da 5'9" - Let's Grow from "Lyricist Lounge Volume 2" CD/LP 2000 (Rawkus)
Spacek - Eve (Remix) 12" single 2000 (Blue)
2001
Bahamadia- One-4-Teen (Remix) from "Summer Sampler" CD 2001 (Goodvibe)
Bilal - Reminisce from "1st Born Second LP" CD/LP 2001 (Interscope)
Busta Rhymes - Genesis, Make It Hurt from "Genesis" CD/LP 2001 (Elektra)
Chino XL - Don't Say A Word from "I Told You So" CD/LP 2001 (Metro Records)
De La Soul - Peer Pressure (Intro & Outro Monologues by Jay Dee) from AOI: Bionix CD/LP 2001 (Tommy Boy)
Lucy Pearl - Without You (Remix) 12" single 2001 (Pookie/Virgin)
Mos Def - Can U C The Pride In The Panther? (Remix) 12" Single 2001 (Interscope)
Que D - In Yo Face from "Still Bangin" 12" single 2001 (Up Above) and "Que D Limited Edition" CD 2003 (Royal Flyness)
Toshi Kubota - Nothin But Your Love (Remix) 12" single 2001 (Epic)
2002
Big Tone - Party Crasher (mixed by Jay Dee) from Party Crasher 12" Antidote 2002 (Antidote)
Busta Rhymes - It Ain't Safe No More, What Up, and Turn Me Up Some from "It Ain't Safe No More..." CD/LP 2002 (Elektra)
Common - various production & instrumental credits from "Electric Circus" CD/LP 2002 (MCA)
DJ Jazzy Jeff - Are You Ready (with Slum Village) from "The Magnificent" 12" EP 2002 (BBE)
Frank N Dank - Push, EP 2002 (Mummy/Groove Attack)
Phat Kat - Dedication To The Suckers, Don't Nobody Care About Us, Microphone Master, Big Booties, World Premier from "Dedication To The Suckers" LP/CD 2002 (RonnieCash.com)
Slum Village - Hoes, Let's, One from "Trinity" CD/LP 2002 (Capitol)
Talib Kweli - Where Do We Go, Stand To The Side from "Quality" CD/LP 2002 (Rawkus)
2003
ASD (Afrob & Samy Deluxe) - Komm Schon from "Wer Hatte Das Gedacht?" CD/LP 2003 (Eimsbush)
ASD (Afrob & Samy Deluxe) - Wenn Ihr Fuhlt... from "Hey Du" 12" EP 2003 (Eimsbush)
Common - Come Close "Remix" (Closer) 12" single 2003 (MCA)
De La Soul - Much More/Shoomp 12" single 2003 (AOI)
Fourtet - As Serious As Your Life (Remix) 12" single 2003 Domino
Frank N Dank - 48 Hours CD 2003 (Bootleg)
Frank N Dank - Ma Dukes, 12" single 2003 (ABB)
Vivian Green - Fanatic (Remix) 12" Single 2003 (Sony)
Phat Kat - Dedication 2004, Destiny and Big Booties from "The Undeniable LP: Detroit Edition" CD/LP 2003 (Barak Records)
Phat Kat - Dedication/Destiny, 12" single 2003 (Barak Records)
Que D - Supa Shit 12" single 2003 (Royal Flyness)
Royce Da 5'9" - Life Goes On from "Build & Destroy: Lost Sessions Part 1" 2003 (Trouble Records)
Subtitle - Mark Luv Mixtape Song from "Greatest Hi$$" CD 2003 (Marks03 Recordings)
T-Love - When You're Older, Who Smoked Sunshine, Chiquita, Long Way Back from "The Long Way Back" 2003 (Pickininny)
2004
5 Ela - Scenario 2004 from "The EP" 2004 (5 Elements)
Amp Fiddler - You Play Me, Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly from "Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly" CD/LP 2004 (Genuine/PIAS)
Amp Fiddler - I Believe In You (Jaylib Mix) CD/12" single 2004 (Genuine/PIAS)
Brother Jack McDuff - Oblighetto (J Dilla Remix) from "Blue Note Revisted" CD/LP 2004 (Blue Note)
De La Soul - Verbal Clap, Much More from "Grind Date" Album 2004 (Sanctuary)
DJ Cam - Love Junkee (Remix) 12" single 2003 (Inflamable) and "Liquid Hip Hop CD/LP 2004 (Inflamable)
Elzhi - Love It Here, Days & Nights, Concrete Eyes, Friends from Libido Speedo Presents..."Elzhi: Witness My Growth The Mixtape '97-'04" 2CD (Libido Sounds)
Frank-N-Dank - Let's Go, Okay, MCA from "Xtended Play" CD/LP 2004 (Needillworks)
Jaylib - Popshit from "Stones Throw 100" 12" (Stones Throw)
Lawless Element - The Shining 12" single 2004 (RMR/Fat Beats)
Lawless Element - The Shining, from "Soundvision: In Stereo" 2005 (Babygrande)
Oh No - Move from "The Disrupt" CD/LP 2004 (Stones Throw)
Proof of D12 - Bring It 2 Me from "I Miss The Hip Hop Shop" CD/LP 2004 (Iron Fist)
Prozack - Leisure Rules, from "Death, Taxes, and Prozack" Album 2004 (Outofwork Records)
Slum Village - Do You from "Detroit Deli" CD/LP 2004 (Barak/Capitol)
2005
Common - Love Is, It's Your World (Pt 1 & 2) from "Be" Album and "Be Instrumentals" 2005 (Good Music/Geffen)
Common - The Movement from "NBA 2K6 - The Tracks" Album 2005 (Decon)
Copywrite - Clap, That's A Wrap, Alright from "Cruise Control Vol. 1" CD
Dwele - Keep On from "Some Kinda" Album 2005 (Virgin)
Dwight Trible & The Life Force Trio - Antiquity from "Love Is The Answer" Album 2005 (Ninja Tune)
MED - Push and So Real from "Push Comes to Shove" Album and "Push Comes to Shove (Instrumentals)" Album 2005 (Stones Throw)
Moka Only - One Time from "The Desired Effect" Album 2005 (Nettwerk)
Oh No - Move Part 2 feat. J Dilla & Roc C 12" single 2005 (Stones Throw)
Slum Village - Who Are We from "Prequel to a Classic" Album 2005 (Barak Records)
Spacek - Dollar, 12" single 2005 (Sound In Color)
Spacek - Dollar from "Space Shift" Album 2005 (Sound In Color)
Talib Kweli - Roll Off Me from "Right About Now" Album 2005 (Koch)
2006-2009
Note: Credits in this section were created during the artist's lifetime.
Ghostface Killah - Beauty Jackson and Whip You with a Strap from "Fishscale" Album 2006 (Def Jam)
Busta Rhymes - You Can't Hold a Torch from "The Big Bang" Album 2006 (Aftermath)
Visionaries - All Right from "We are the Ones (We've Been Waiting For)" Album 2006 (Up Above)
Guilty Simpson - Clap Your Hands from "Chrome Children" Album 2006 (Stones Throw)
A.G. - Hip Hop Quotable, 12" single 2006 (Look)
A.G. - Hip Hop Quoteable from "Get Dirty Radio" Album 2006 (Look)
Guilty Simpson - Man's World, 12" single 2007 (No Label)
Phat Kat - Cold Steel, 12" single 2007 (Look)
Phat Kat - 5 songs from "Carte Blanche" Album 2007 (Look)
Guilty Simpson - I Must Love You from "Ode to the Ghetto" Album 2008 (Stones Throw)
Guilty Simpson - Stress, 12" single (2009) (No Label)
Posthumous Production Credits
The Roots - Can't Stop This from "Game Theory" Album 2006 (Island/Def Jam)
Madlib - Take It Back from "Chrome Children" Album 2006 (Stones Throw)
Q-Tip - Move and Feva from "The Renaissance" Album 2008 (Universal/Motown)
Illa J - We Here, 12" single 2008 (Delicious Vinyl)
Illa J - Yancey Boys, Album and Yancey Boys (Instrumentals) 2008 (Delicious Vinyl)
Akrobatik - Put Ya Stamp On It from "Absolute Value" Album 2008 (Fat Beats)
MF DOOM - Gazillion Ear and Lightworks from "Born Like This" Album 2009 (Lex)
Mos Def - History from "The Ecstatic" Album 2009 (Downtown)
Raekwon - House of Flying Daggers, Arson Jones and 10 Bricks from "Only Built for Cuban Linx 2" Album(2009 (EMI)
Erykah Badu - Love, from "New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh" Album 2010 (Motown)
Slum Village - Lock It Down, We'll Show You from "Villa Manifesto" Album 2010 (E1)
Especially aware of the dangers that faced unoccupied youths growing up in their Detroit neighborhood of Conant Gardens, the Yancey's set out to keep their children as busy as possible between cub scouts, music lessons, youth choir, and any other church activities. Nurturing their son's early passion for music, Jay was always enrolled in some kind of music class, excelling on the piano, violin and cello, before moving on to the drums. But it was the lure of the boom-bap which ultimately moved him from the church pews to the studio.
"When I heard Run-D.M.C.'s "Sucker M.C.'s (Krush-Groove 1)" and Whodini's "Big Mouth", it made me curious to how the beats were made. Those songs were the first time I heard the beats that weren't melodic - just drums. Being someone who was taking drum lessons at the time, that made me real curious. That led me into deejaying, which slowly led to me deejaying parties and that eventually led me into production."
A fortuitous meeting with another talented Conant Gardens resident provided Jay with the direction necessary to pursue his dream. "Fortunately I ran into this cat just walking in the street, literally. This guy named Amp Fiddler. He just called us out and from that first day he actually showed all of us how a studio works and things like that. He had a little pre-production studio in his crib. He was like, 'Whenever you want to, come by the crib.' I started going over there messing with beats."Building on the experience he received at Amp's studio, Jay was determined to form a group which reflected the eclectic nature of his influences. "I heard about T3 and Baatin, and they were supposed to be the illest emcees at the time. And I thought I was, so I wanted to challenge them. To make a long story short, we just hooked up after that. The chemistry was right." Their group Slum Village gave Jay the platform to create a sound which was uniquely mid- western in its melding of jazzy, east coast influences with the glossy, bounce of west coast hip-hop.
Via another timely assist from Amp Fiddler, Slum's demo found it's way into the hands of Q-Tip, who immediately recognized a kindred musical spirit in Jay and offered the young producer a management and production contract. "It was like a dream come true, if you could ever, ever hear anybody say that. I just couldn't believe it. I love Tribe and De La and then this guy Tip called my crib! Matter of fact, the first time he called, I wasn't home. I missed the call! I was hurt. I thought that was it! But, he called me the next day. Next thing you know, I'm in New York." within months, Jay found himself producing tracks for a who's who of underground hip-hop: The Pharcyde, Busta Rhymes, De La Soul, Keith Murray, Mad Skillz, and of course A Tribe Called Quest.
"I was just riding the wave. It was still part of the dream to even be there. They even asked me creative questions about the album [Beats, Rhymes, and Life]. It's just unbelievable, man! These are the three ultimate niggas to me. They sat me down and invited me to these meetings and I felt like I was a part of that shit. Whether the album did good or not, it was to me one of the best experiences of my life."
Upon returning to Detroit, Jay found himself as the star of the city's burgeoning hip hop scene. His beats were the conduit for a diverse crop of MC's who gathered around the famed Hip Hop Shop, including Phat Kat, 5 Ela, Proof, Eminem, and a young Elzhi. His extended periods away from home had been difficult on Slum Village, but with Jay back in the fold and a renewed focus they set out to record their first album
"We decided to do that Fantastic album, and we did it in like two weeks. Everything was done. We were selling that shit out of boxes within a couple of weeks." Fan-tas-tic Vol. 1 became an underground classic, relentlessly dubbed and traded by fans in the days prior to file sharing. Innovative and playful, the album featured a string of hip hop classics including "Players", "Look of Love" and the brilliant James Brown adlib mash-up of "I Don't Know".
While his growing number of imitators were content to pick up the scraps of the fledgling neo-soul movement, Jay soon became the nucleus around which a group of like-minded, progressive artists would form, creating some of the best music to emerge from the post Golden-Age of early-nineties hip hop in the process. Dubbed the Soulquarians, Jay's beats would provide the key inspiration for this eclectic group's best work: The Roots' Things Fall Apart, D'Angelo's Voodoo, Erykah Badu's Mama's Gun, Q-Tips's Amplified, and Common's Like Water for Chocolate.
Originally intended as a breakbeat record, Jay's first solo album Welcome 2 Detroit provided the first opportunity to display his full range as a producer, MC, and vocalist. Seamlessly blending live instrumentation with programmed beats, W2D reflected his numerous influences and styles- from synth-heavy techno and grimy street anthems to breezy bossa nova. Stepping to the forefront as an MC for the first time, Jay introduced his alias J Dilla, and with it a more confident, street-edge rapper would emerge.
At a professional crossroads after a label deal with MCA collapsed in 2003, Dilla bypassed the mainstream altogether to unleash a flurry of new material: a collaborative album with Madlib entitled Champion Sound, and his own solo project the Ruff Draft EP, a muddy, lo-fi epic of uncompromising rawness. "I did it in four or five days, turned it in and had wax in ten days. If I'm not doing beats for somebody, I make stuff for me to drive around and listen to, and that was one of those projects. I was just doing me. That's why it was called the Ruff Draft EP". "There'd be days when I wouldn't eat at all because I'd be in the basement working all day. Even after being in the hospital so long, I had to fight with the doctors [to go home] because being away from music was starting to get to me."
Dilla relocated to Los Angeles in 2004 to re-energize himself and focus on his career. But by the end of the year, he would again be hospitalized. Undergoing debilitating dialysis treatments 3-4 times a week, Dilla was bedridden for long periods of time causing his hands and legs to swell dramatically, making walking difficult without assistance. He lost 50% of his body weight. During this time he was diagnosed with Lupus, a debilitating blood disease which causes the immune system to attack healthy tissue and for which there is no cure. He was released from the hospital in March 2005, only to be readmitted later that summer. Using equipment set up in his hospital room, Dilla began work on what would become his masterpiece, Donuts, a sprawling, back-to-basics instrumental album filled with emotional, heartfelt testaments to life and mortality that brought him full-circle to his beginnings as young producer chopping up breakbeats.
That Fall, Dilla embarked on a European tour alongside his mother and friends, rapping to sold-out audiences from a wheelchair. It would be his final farewell to the fans who had shown their love and support for so long. Upon completion of the tour and another stay in the hospital, Dilla returned home. He handed off the masters for his still-unfinished solo LP The Shining in time for his upcoming birthday.
On Tuesday, February 7, 2006, his 32nd birthday, Donuts was released. He spent the day at home with friends and family. Three days later on February 10, James Dewitt Yancey passed away in the arms of his loving mother Maureen. He was put to rest the following week, on Valentine's Day. As mourners gathered around his final resting place high in the hills of Los Angeles to say their goodbyes, a lone heart appeared in the cloudless sky above, fitting tribute for the man who above all else lived life to do what he loved. And what he loved, he did better than anybody else. For that, we will be forever thankful. Thank you Jay Dee.
Discography:
Artist/Group Releases (As Producer and/or MC):
1st Down - No Place to Go, 12" single 1993
1st Down - A Day With the Homiez 12", 12" Single 1995 (Pay Day Records)
Slum Village - Fan-Tas-Tic 12" single 1996
Slum Village - Fan-Tas-Tic Vol. 1 Album, 1996 (Donut Boy Recordings) 1997 (Sudden Impact) 2006 (Barak)
Slum Village - We Be Down, 12" single 1997 (Sudden Impact)
Jay Dee - Jay Dee Unreleased EP 1997 (House Shoes Records)
Slum Village - Somethin' For The People, All I Do (Remix) from "All I Do 12" single 1997 (WB)
J-88 - Look Of Love (Remix) 12" single 1999 (Groove Attack)
Slum Village - Get This Money, 12" single 1999 (Interscope)
Slum Village - Fantastic, Vol. 2, Album 2000 (Goodvibe) 2002 (Capitol) 2010 (Barak)
Slum Village - Fall In Love (Remix), 12" single (2000) (Goodvibe)
Slum Village - Climax/CB4, 12" single 2000 (Goodvibe)
J-88 - Best Kept Secret, EP 2000 (Groove Attack)
Jay Dee - Fuck the Police, 12" single 2001 (Up Above)
Jay Dee - Pause, 12" single 2001 (BBE)
Jay Dee - Welcome 2 Detroit, Album 2001 (BBE)
1st Down - A Day With the Homiez, Album 2002 (RonnieCash.com)
Jay Dee - Instrumental Series Vol. 1: Unreleased, EP 2002 (Bling47.com)
Jay Dee feat. Frank N Dank - Take Dem Clothes Off/Off Ya Chest 12" single 2002 (ABB)
Jay Dee feat. Frank N Dank - Push 12" EP 2002 (Mummy / Groove Attack)
Jaylib - The Message, from "Stones Throw Summer 2002 EP" 2002 (Stones Throw)
Jay Dee - Instrumental Series Vol. 2: Vintage, Album 2003 (Bling 47.com)
Jay Dee - Ruff Draft EP, 2003 (Mummy/Groove Attack)
Jaylib - The Red / The Official,12" single 2003 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Champion Sound, 12" single 2003 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Champion Sound, Album 2003 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Champion Sound Instrumentals 2004 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Blaze Up, Raw Shit (Remix), The Mission (Remix) from Stones Throw 101 12" EP 2004 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Raw Addict / Ice, 12" single 2003 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - McNasty Filth, 12"/CD 2004 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - Popshit, from "Stones Throw 10" EP 2004 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Welcome 2 Detroit (Instrumentals) 2005 (BBE)
J Dilla - Donuts EP: J. Rocc's Picks, EP 2005 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Signs, 7" single 2006 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Donuts, Album 2006 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - The Shining, Album 2006 (BBE)
J Dilla - The Shining EP, 12" single 2006 (BBE)
J Dilla - The Shining (Instrumentals) 2006 (BBE)
Jaylib - No $ No Toke from "Chrome Children" Album 2006 (Stones Throw)
Jaylib - No $ No Toke, 12" single 2006 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Won't Do, EP 2007 (BBE)
J Dilla - Wild, 12" single 2007 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Ruff Draft, Album 2007 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Dirty Crushin', 7" single 2007 (Stones Throw)
J Dilla - Jay Love Japan, Album 2007 (Operation Unknown)
Jay Dee - Jay Deelicious: The Delicious Vinyl Years CD/LP 2007 (Delicious Vinyl)
J Dilla - Donut Shop EP 2010 (Serato/Stones Throw)
MC (Not Producer):
Tami Hert - If You Were Mine (Detroit Demolition Mix) from "If You Were Mine" 12" single 1997 (550 Music)
v/a - Fight Club, feat. Dilla, Nottz & Boogie from "Best Kept Secret Mix" CD 2003 (Bling47.com)
Dabrye - Game Over 12" single 2004 (Ghostly International)
Wale Oyejide - There's A War Going On 12" single 2004 (Shaman Work)
Wale Oyejide - There's A War Going On from "One Day, Everything Changed" CD/LP 2004 (Shaman Work)
Slum Village - Reunion from "Detroit Deli" CD/LP 2004 (Barak/Capitol)
Pete Rock - Niggaz Know from "Soul Survivor II" CD/LP 2004 (Rapster /BBE)
v/a - Do Your Thang, Stupid from "BR Gunna Presents Dirty District Vol. 2" CD 2004 (Barak)
Phat Kat - Door from "The Undeniable LP" (New Version) CD/LP 2004 (Barak)
Lawless Element - Love, 12" single 2005 (Babygrande)
Lawless Element - Love, from "Soundvision: In Stereo" Album 2005 (Babygrande)
Platinum Pied Pipers - Act Like You Know, 12" single 2005 (Ubiquity)
Platinum Pied Pipers - Shotgun, Act Like You Know, from "Triple P" Album 2005 (Ubiquity)
Sa-Ra - Thrilla, 12" single 2005 (Sound In Color)
Sa-Ra - Thrilla, from "The Hollywood Recordings" 2007 (Babygrande)
Diamond - We Gangstas, from "Diamond Mine" Album 2005
Platinum Pied Pipers - Shotgun (Remix) from 12"single 2005 (Ubiquity)
J Dilla - The $ (Madlib Remix), Make 'Em NV (Madlib Remix) from Hella International 12" single 2007 (Stones Throw)
Production Credits (By Year):
1994-1995
Da Enna C - NOW from "Throw Ya Hands In Da Air" 12" single 1994 (Up Top)
Little Indian - One Little Indian 12" single 1995 (Premeditated)
Poe - Fingertips from "Hello" CD/LP 1995 (WEA/Atlantic)
1996
5-Elementz - Whutchawant, Feed Back, Rockshows, Party Groove, Janet Jacme, E.G.O., Don't Stop, Searchin from "The Album Time Forgot" cassette 1996 (That Was Entertainment)
A Tribe Called Quest - 1nce Again, Get A Hold, Keeping It Moving, Stressed Out, Word Play from "Beat, Rhymes, & Life" CD/LP 1996 (Jive Records)
Busta Rhymes - Keep It Movin', Still Shinin' from "The Coming" CD/LP 1996 (Elektra)
Busta Rhymes - Woo-Hah!! (Jay-Dee Bounce Remix), Woo-Hah!! (Jay-Dee Other Shit Remix) 12" single 1996 (Elektra)
Busta Rhymes - It's a Party (Ummah Remix), Ill Vibe (Ummah Remix) 12" single 1996 (Elektra)
De La Soul - Stakes Is High from "Stakes Is High" CD/LP 1996 (Tommy Boy)
De La Soul - Stakes Is High (Remix) from Itzsoweezee 12" single 1996 (Tommy Boy)
Mad Skillz - It's Going Down, The Jam from "From Where???" 1996 (Big Beat)
Kieth Murray - The Rhyme (Remix), Dangerous Ground from "Enigma" 1996 (Jive)
Natives Of Da Underground - Pack Da Hous/Brotha's Juss Don't Know/Whatcha Gonna Do? 12" single 1996 (ALR)
Phife Dawg - Game Day from "NFL Jams" 1996 (Castle)
Proof - Da Science from "Detroit Hip Hop Volume 1" 1996 Modern Tribe
Proof - Vibe Session from "Anywhere" 12" single 1996 (Hip Hop Shop)
Tha Pharcyde - Runnin', Bullshit, Splatittorium, Somethin' That Means Somethin', Drop, Y? from "Labcabincalifornia" CD/LP 1996 (Delicious Vinyl)
1997
5-Elementz - Sun Flower from "Yester Years" 12" EP 1997 (That Was Entertainment)
A Tribe Called Quest - Get A Hold, Mardi Gras At Midnight from "Jam" EP 1997 (Jive Records)
Brand New Heavies - Sometimes (Ummah Remix) from "Sometimes" 12" single 1997 (Delicious Vinyl)
Busta Rhymes - So Hardcore from "When Disaster Strikes" CD/LP 1997 (Elektra)
Mint Condition - Let Me Be The One (Ummah Remix), 12" single (1997) Perspective
Crustation - Purple (ATCQ Edit) 12" single 1997 (Zomba)
Janet Jackson - Got Til It's Gone (Ummah Jay Dee Revenge Mix) 12" single 1997 (Virgin)
Somethin' For The People - All I Do (Remix) from "All I Do" 12" single 1997 (WB)
T Da Pimp - Why You Lookin Hard?/We Knowwe Rockit 12" single 1997 (Penmp)
Tha Pharcyde - She Said (Remix) 12" single 1997 (Delicious Vinyl)
Tha Pharcyde - Runnin (Remix), Y? (Remix) from "Drop" 12" single 1997 (Delicious Vinyl)
Truz - True Dawgs/Routes To Hell 12" single 1997 (Ad Fam)
1998
A Tribe Called Quest - 4 Moms, Against The World, Busta's Lament, Da Booty, Find A Way, His Name Is Mutty Ranks, Start It Up, Steppin' It Up from "The Love Movement" CD/LP 1998 (Jive Records)
A Tribe Called Quest - That Shit from "Funkmaster Flex Vol. 3" 1998 (Loud Records)
Bizarre - Butterfly from Attack of the Wierdos 12" EP 1998 (Federation)
Mood - Secrets Of The Sand (Remix) from "Snake Backs" 12" single 1998 (Blunt)
N'Dea Davenport - Bullshittin (Remix) from "N'Dea Davenport" CD/LP 1998 (V2) (mixed by Jay Dee)
1999
5 Ela - You Ain't Fresh, Ain't No Love from 5-E Pt. 3 1999 (That Was Entertainment)
Brand New Heavies - Saturday Night (Jay Dee Remix) from "Saturday Night" 12" single 1999 (Delicious Vinyl)
Heavy D - Listen from "Heavy" CD/LP 1999 (Universal)
Macy Gray - I Try (Remix) 12" single 1999 (Epic)
Nine Yards - Always Find A Way (Remix) 12" single 1999 (Virgin)
Phat Kat - Dedication To The Suckers 12" single 1999 (House Shoes Recordings)
Phife Dawg - Bend Ova/Thought U Wuz Nic 12" single 1999 (Groove Attack)
Que D - Underestimated, Supa Shit, Kilo, Cash Flow, Michelle, Rock Box, Don't Stop from "Quite Delicious" cassette 1999 and "Que D Limited Edition" CD 2003 (Royal Flyness)
Q-Tip - 11 tracks from "Amplified" CD/LP 1999 (Arista)
Q-Tip - 11 tracks from "Amplified" (Instrumental Version) (1999) (Arista - Promo)
The Roots - Dynamite from Things Fall Apart CD/LP 1999 (MCA)
The Roots - New Year's @ Jay Dee's from "You Got Me" CD single 1999 (MCA)
Zooco - Butterfly from "Glow-Mellow-Flow" CD/LP 1999? (Columbia Japan)
2000
Black Star - Little Brother from "The Hurricane (Soundtrack)" CD/LP 2000 (MCA)
Brand New Heavies - Sometimes (Remix), Saturday Night (Remix) from "Trunk Funk Classics" CD/LP 2000 (Delicious Vinyl)
Busta Rhymes - Enjoy Da Ride, Live It Up, Show Me What You Got from "Anarchy" CD/LP 2000 (Elektra)
Common - 10 tracks from "Like Water For Chocolate" CD/LP 2000 (MCA)
Common - 10 tracks from "Like Water For Chocolate Instrumentals" 2000 (MCA)
Common - The Light, 12" single 2000 (MCA—UK)
Common - The Light (Remix) from "Bamboozled (Soundtrack)" 2000 (Motown)
De La Soul - Thru Ya City from "Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump" CD/LP 2000 (Tommy Boy)
Erykah Badu - Cleva, My Life, Didn't Cha Know, Kiss Me On My Neck from "Mama's Gun CD/LP 2000 (Motown)
Erykah Badu - Didn't Cha Know, single 2001 (Motown)
Erykah Badu - Cleva, 12" single 2001 (Motown—Promo)
Frank N Dank - Me & My Man/Love (A Thing Of The Past) 12" single 2000 (McNasty)
Frank N Dank - Everybody Get Up/Give It Up Pt. 2 12" single 2000 (McNasty)
Guru - Certified from "Guru's Jazzmatazz Street Soul" CD/LP 2000 (Virgin)
Innerzone Orchestra - People Make The World Go Round (J-88 Mix) - 12" single 2000 (Planet E)
Phife Dawg - Bend Ova, 4 Horseman from "Ventilation: Da LP" CD/LP 2000 (Groove Attack)
Phife Dawg - Ya Heard Me from "Definition of Ill Compilation" 2000 bootleg
Royce Da 5'9" - Let's Grow from "Lyricist Lounge Volume 2" CD/LP 2000 (Rawkus)
Spacek - Eve (Remix) 12" single 2000 (Blue)
2001
Bahamadia- One-4-Teen (Remix) from "Summer Sampler" CD 2001 (Goodvibe)
Bilal - Reminisce from "1st Born Second LP" CD/LP 2001 (Interscope)
Busta Rhymes - Genesis, Make It Hurt from "Genesis" CD/LP 2001 (Elektra)
Chino XL - Don't Say A Word from "I Told You So" CD/LP 2001 (Metro Records)
De La Soul - Peer Pressure (Intro & Outro Monologues by Jay Dee) from AOI: Bionix CD/LP 2001 (Tommy Boy)
Lucy Pearl - Without You (Remix) 12" single 2001 (Pookie/Virgin)
Mos Def - Can U C The Pride In The Panther? (Remix) 12" Single 2001 (Interscope)
Que D - In Yo Face from "Still Bangin" 12" single 2001 (Up Above) and "Que D Limited Edition" CD 2003 (Royal Flyness)
Toshi Kubota - Nothin But Your Love (Remix) 12" single 2001 (Epic)
2002
Big Tone - Party Crasher (mixed by Jay Dee) from Party Crasher 12" Antidote 2002 (Antidote)
Busta Rhymes - It Ain't Safe No More, What Up, and Turn Me Up Some from "It Ain't Safe No More..." CD/LP 2002 (Elektra)
Common - various production & instrumental credits from "Electric Circus" CD/LP 2002 (MCA)
DJ Jazzy Jeff - Are You Ready (with Slum Village) from "The Magnificent" 12" EP 2002 (BBE)
Frank N Dank - Push, EP 2002 (Mummy/Groove Attack)
Phat Kat - Dedication To The Suckers, Don't Nobody Care About Us, Microphone Master, Big Booties, World Premier from "Dedication To The Suckers" LP/CD 2002 (RonnieCash.com)
Slum Village - Hoes, Let's, One from "Trinity" CD/LP 2002 (Capitol)
Talib Kweli - Where Do We Go, Stand To The Side from "Quality" CD/LP 2002 (Rawkus)
2003
ASD (Afrob & Samy Deluxe) - Komm Schon from "Wer Hatte Das Gedacht?" CD/LP 2003 (Eimsbush)
ASD (Afrob & Samy Deluxe) - Wenn Ihr Fuhlt... from "Hey Du" 12" EP 2003 (Eimsbush)
Common - Come Close "Remix" (Closer) 12" single 2003 (MCA)
De La Soul - Much More/Shoomp 12" single 2003 (AOI)
Fourtet - As Serious As Your Life (Remix) 12" single 2003 Domino
Frank N Dank - 48 Hours CD 2003 (Bootleg)
Frank N Dank - Ma Dukes, 12" single 2003 (ABB)
Vivian Green - Fanatic (Remix) 12" Single 2003 (Sony)
Phat Kat - Dedication 2004, Destiny and Big Booties from "The Undeniable LP: Detroit Edition" CD/LP 2003 (Barak Records)
Phat Kat - Dedication/Destiny, 12" single 2003 (Barak Records)
Que D - Supa Shit 12" single 2003 (Royal Flyness)
Royce Da 5'9" - Life Goes On from "Build & Destroy: Lost Sessions Part 1" 2003 (Trouble Records)
Subtitle - Mark Luv Mixtape Song from "Greatest Hi$$" CD 2003 (Marks03 Recordings)
T-Love - When You're Older, Who Smoked Sunshine, Chiquita, Long Way Back from "The Long Way Back" 2003 (Pickininny)
2004
5 Ela - Scenario 2004 from "The EP" 2004 (5 Elements)
Amp Fiddler - You Play Me, Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly from "Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly" CD/LP 2004 (Genuine/PIAS)
Amp Fiddler - I Believe In You (Jaylib Mix) CD/12" single 2004 (Genuine/PIAS)
Brother Jack McDuff - Oblighetto (J Dilla Remix) from "Blue Note Revisted" CD/LP 2004 (Blue Note)
De La Soul - Verbal Clap, Much More from "Grind Date" Album 2004 (Sanctuary)
DJ Cam - Love Junkee (Remix) 12" single 2003 (Inflamable) and "Liquid Hip Hop CD/LP 2004 (Inflamable)
Elzhi - Love It Here, Days & Nights, Concrete Eyes, Friends from Libido Speedo Presents..."Elzhi: Witness My Growth The Mixtape '97-'04" 2CD (Libido Sounds)
Frank-N-Dank - Let's Go, Okay, MCA from "Xtended Play" CD/LP 2004 (Needillworks)
Jaylib - Popshit from "Stones Throw 100" 12" (Stones Throw)
Lawless Element - The Shining 12" single 2004 (RMR/Fat Beats)
Lawless Element - The Shining, from "Soundvision: In Stereo" 2005 (Babygrande)
Oh No - Move from "The Disrupt" CD/LP 2004 (Stones Throw)
Proof of D12 - Bring It 2 Me from "I Miss The Hip Hop Shop" CD/LP 2004 (Iron Fist)
Prozack - Leisure Rules, from "Death, Taxes, and Prozack" Album 2004 (Outofwork Records)
Slum Village - Do You from "Detroit Deli" CD/LP 2004 (Barak/Capitol)
2005
Common - Love Is, It's Your World (Pt 1 & 2) from "Be" Album and "Be Instrumentals" 2005 (Good Music/Geffen)
Common - The Movement from "NBA 2K6 - The Tracks" Album 2005 (Decon)
Copywrite - Clap, That's A Wrap, Alright from "Cruise Control Vol. 1" CD
Dwele - Keep On from "Some Kinda" Album 2005 (Virgin)
Dwight Trible & The Life Force Trio - Antiquity from "Love Is The Answer" Album 2005 (Ninja Tune)
MED - Push and So Real from "Push Comes to Shove" Album and "Push Comes to Shove (Instrumentals)" Album 2005 (Stones Throw)
Moka Only - One Time from "The Desired Effect" Album 2005 (Nettwerk)
Oh No - Move Part 2 feat. J Dilla & Roc C 12" single 2005 (Stones Throw)
Slum Village - Who Are We from "Prequel to a Classic" Album 2005 (Barak Records)
Spacek - Dollar, 12" single 2005 (Sound In Color)
Spacek - Dollar from "Space Shift" Album 2005 (Sound In Color)
Talib Kweli - Roll Off Me from "Right About Now" Album 2005 (Koch)
2006-2009
Note: Credits in this section were created during the artist's lifetime.
Ghostface Killah - Beauty Jackson and Whip You with a Strap from "Fishscale" Album 2006 (Def Jam)
Busta Rhymes - You Can't Hold a Torch from "The Big Bang" Album 2006 (Aftermath)
Visionaries - All Right from "We are the Ones (We've Been Waiting For)" Album 2006 (Up Above)
Guilty Simpson - Clap Your Hands from "Chrome Children" Album 2006 (Stones Throw)
A.G. - Hip Hop Quotable, 12" single 2006 (Look)
A.G. - Hip Hop Quoteable from "Get Dirty Radio" Album 2006 (Look)
Guilty Simpson - Man's World, 12" single 2007 (No Label)
Phat Kat - Cold Steel, 12" single 2007 (Look)
Phat Kat - 5 songs from "Carte Blanche" Album 2007 (Look)
Guilty Simpson - I Must Love You from "Ode to the Ghetto" Album 2008 (Stones Throw)
Guilty Simpson - Stress, 12" single (2009) (No Label)
Posthumous Production Credits
The Roots - Can't Stop This from "Game Theory" Album 2006 (Island/Def Jam)
Madlib - Take It Back from "Chrome Children" Album 2006 (Stones Throw)
Q-Tip - Move and Feva from "The Renaissance" Album 2008 (Universal/Motown)
Illa J - We Here, 12" single 2008 (Delicious Vinyl)
Illa J - Yancey Boys, Album and Yancey Boys (Instrumentals) 2008 (Delicious Vinyl)
Akrobatik - Put Ya Stamp On It from "Absolute Value" Album 2008 (Fat Beats)
MF DOOM - Gazillion Ear and Lightworks from "Born Like This" Album 2009 (Lex)
Mos Def - History from "The Ecstatic" Album 2009 (Downtown)
Raekwon - House of Flying Daggers, Arson Jones and 10 Bricks from "Only Built for Cuban Linx 2" Album(2009 (EMI)
Erykah Badu - Love, from "New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh" Album 2010 (Motown)
Slum Village - Lock It Down, We'll Show You from "Villa Manifesto" Album 2010 (E1)
Pay Day
J Dilla Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
[Intro]
You tuned in to Jay Stay Paid (*NO*) 5-1 FM
For the freshest hardcore J Dilla shit
You ever gon' hear in yo' life baby
[Frank Nitty]
You know it is I, the boy Frank Nitt'
Pumps blowin, jewelry glowin on some Detroit shit
And you know about the spit the jewels ain't got nuttin to do with that
Bring it back, I'll beat up the track until it's blue and black
It's Detroit nigga, Jay Stay Paid
It's hip-hop, but it's more than graffiti gettin sprayed
So turn the strings up, and the bass too
It's Frank Nitty, how you doin? Nice to meet you
You niggas see through, like the moon roof
We switched to the four door from the old coupe
Yeah we upgrade, and Jay Stay Paid
We still movin forward on the plans that we made
So this is a warning, why you niggas yawnin?
We not the killer bees but we swarmin, nigga!
So turn the strings up, and the bass too
It's Frank Nitty, how you doin? Nice to meet you
And I'm that nigga you heard of, and word up
Frank 'n Dank nigga, you can fuck what you heard bruh
But hearin this you need to pay Jay Deezy
And I'm watchin y'all rats and niggas so cheesy
So please believe me, you can picture that
I know you thought we left, but we'll be right back
So - turn the strings up, and the bass too
It's Frank Nitty, how you doin? Nice to meet you
You, and you, and you, yeah
Your boy Frank Nitty
F'n D, Frank 'n Dank, J Dilla
Forever, whatever
Yeah
You tuned in to Jay Stay Paid (*NO*) 5-1 FM
For the freshest hardcore J Dilla shit
You ever gon' hear in yo' life baby
[Frank Nitty]
You know it is I, the boy Frank Nitt'
Pumps blowin, jewelry glowin on some Detroit shit
Bring it back, I'll beat up the track until it's blue and black
It's Detroit nigga, Jay Stay Paid
It's hip-hop, but it's more than graffiti gettin sprayed
So turn the strings up, and the bass too
It's Frank Nitty, how you doin? Nice to meet you
You niggas see through, like the moon roof
We switched to the four door from the old coupe
Yeah we upgrade, and Jay Stay Paid
We still movin forward on the plans that we made
So this is a warning, why you niggas yawnin?
We not the killer bees but we swarmin, nigga!
So turn the strings up, and the bass too
It's Frank Nitty, how you doin? Nice to meet you
And I'm that nigga you heard of, and word up
Frank 'n Dank nigga, you can fuck what you heard bruh
But hearin this you need to pay Jay Deezy
And I'm watchin y'all rats and niggas so cheesy
So please believe me, you can picture that
I know you thought we left, but we'll be right back
So - turn the strings up, and the bass too
It's Frank Nitty, how you doin? Nice to meet you
You, and you, and you, yeah
Your boy Frank Nitty
F'n D, Frank 'n Dank, J Dilla
Forever, whatever
Yeah
The song "Pay Day" by J Dilla, featuring Frank Nitty, is a braggadocious and upbeat track that exudes the Detroit hip-hop culture that both artists were a part of. The opening of the song is a radio announcement introducing the track, giving it an extra level of coolness that sets the tone for the rest of the song. Frank Nitty starts off with a boastful introduction of himself and his Detroit roots, rapping about his flashy style and the fact that he doesn't need to rely on jewelry to prove himself as a rapper. He then segues into a vocal onslaught on the track, delivering bars with tremendous energy and conviction.
One of the standout lines on the song is "It's hip-hop, but it's more than graffiti getting sprayed". This line highlights the larger cultural significance of hip-hop and its impact beyond just its roots in graffiti and street art. Frank Nitty's claim of "We not the killer bees but we swarmin, nigga!" is also significant - he's referring to the underground Staten Island rap group Wu-Tang Clan, who were known as the Killer Bees. He's saying that while they may not be as well-known or successful as Wu-Tang, they still have a strong presence in Detroit hip-hop culture.
Overall, "Pay Day" is a celebration of the resilience and strength of Detroit hip-hop culture, with J Dilla and Frank Nitty representing the city with pride and ferocity.
Line by Line Meaning
You tuned in to Jay Stay Paid (*NO*) 5-1 FM
Welcome to the Jay Stay Paid radio station, broadcasting some of the freshest and most hardcore J Dilla tracks you will ever hear in your life. (*NO*) is not part of the station name.
You know it is I, the boy Frank Nitt'
Introducing himself as Frank Nitt, the person talking on the track.
Pumps blowin, jewelry glowin on some Detroit shit
Frank Nitt is representing Detroit with expensive shoes and flashy jewelry.
And you know about the spit the jewels ain't got nuttin to do with that
He is not just flaunting his wealth but ready to deliver some quality rap that transcends the material things he has.
Bring it back, I'll beat up the track until it's blue and black
Frank Nitt is confident of his ability to create quality music and promises to give his all to bring a song to life.
It's Detroit nigga, Jay Stay Paid
Acknowledgment of Detroit as his home town and representing the Jay Stay Paid brand name.
It's hip-hop, but it's more than graffiti gettin sprayed
Frank Nitt sees hip-hop as more than graffiti art and acknowledges its multi-faceted nature.
So turn the strings up, and the bass too
Producing a mix with a focus on increasing the volume of strings and bass guitar.
It's Frank Nitty, how you doin? Nice to meet you
An introduction of himself and friendly greeting to the audience tuning in to the radio station.
You niggas see through, like the moon roof
Frank Nitt thinks some people are insincere or fake, and compares them to a moonroof that is transparent.
We switched to the four door from the old coupe
Frank Nitt has upgraded his car from a two-door vehicle to a four-door one.
Yeah we upgrade, and Jay Stay Paid
Referencing the Jay Stay Paid radio station and their collective growth and improvement.
We still movin forward on the plans that we made
Staying focused on the goals they have set and continuing to make progress towards them.
So this is a warning, why you niggas yawnin?
Issuing a warning to those who are not paying attention or don't take the message seriously.
We not the killer bees but we swarmin, nigga!
Differentiating his group from Wu-Tang Clan's 'Killer Bees' and using swarming as a metaphor for their collective strength and power as a group.
And I'm that nigga you heard of, and word up
Asserting his fame and talent to those who might not be familiar with him and his music.
Frank 'n Dank nigga, you can fuck what you heard bruh
Ignoring negativity and rumors about his music and sending a message to those who doubt them.
But hearin this you need to pay Jay Deezy
Recognizing J Dilla's talent and legacy, and prompting people to appreciate and show respect for his music.
And I'm watchin y'all rats and niggas so cheesy
Calling out people who are fake or disingenuous, and telling them that he is aware of their actions.
So please believe me, you can picture that
Asking the audience to believe his words and envision the message he is trying to convey with his music.
I know you thought we left, but we'll be right back
Addressing those who might think he and his group have fallen off and reassuring them that they will come back stronger.
You, and you, and you, yeah
Frank Nitt is addressing everyone who is listening to the radio station.
Your boy Frank Nitty
Referring to himself again as Frank Nitt.
F'n D, Frank 'n Dank, J Dilla
Referring to the trio of Frank Nitt, Frank 'n Dank, and J Dilla who have collaborated on music together.
Forever, whatever
The group and their music will always be around and relevant, no matter what.
Contributed by Levi W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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