In the early hours of February 4, 1999, an unarmed 23-year-old Guinean student named Amadou Diallo was fired upon with 41 rounds and shot a total of 19 times by four New York City Police Department plainclothes officers: Sean Carroll, Richard Murphy, Edward McMellon, and Kenneth Boss. Carroll later claimed to have mistaken Diallo for a rape suspect from one year earlier.
Kamaal Ibn John Fareed, better known by his stage name Q-Tip, is an American rapper, record producer, singer, and DJ. Nicknamed the Abstract, he is noted for his innovative jazz-influenced style of hip hop production and his philosophical, esoteric and introspective lyrical themes. He embarked on his music career in the late 1980s, as an MC and main producer of the influential alternative hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. In the mid-1990s, he co-founded the production team The Ummah, followed by the release of his gold-certified solo debut Amplified in 1999. In the following decade, he released the Grammy Award-nominated album The Renaissance (2008) and the experimental album Kamaal the Abstract (2009).
Like Water for Chocolate is the fourth studio album by American rapper Common, released on March 28, 2000, through MCA Records. It was Common's first major label album and was both a critical and commercial breakthrough, receiving widespread acclaim from major magazine publications and selling 70,000 copies in its first week. The album was certified Gold on August 11, 2000, by the Recording Industry Association of America. According to Nielsen SoundScan, the album had sold 748,000 copies by March 2005. The video for "The Light" was frequently shown on MTV, adding to Common's exposure. The album also formally marked the formation of the Soulquarians, a collective composed of Questlove, J Dilla, keyboardist James Poyser, soul artist D'Angelo and bassist Pino Palladino, among numerous other collaborators. This group of musicians would also be featured on Common's next album, Electric Circus.
Fantastic, Vol. 2 is the second album by American hip hop group Slum Village, released on June 13, 2000. During the time of its release the group was still composed of its earliest members T3, Baatin and J Dilla.
Welcome 2 Detroit is the debut studio album by American hip hop recording artist J Dilla, released on February 26, 2001. The album followed his group Slum Village's critically acclaimed Fantastic, Vol. 2, and kicked off BBE's "Beat Generation" series.
Donuts is the second studio album by the American hip hop producer J Dilla, released on February 7, 2006, by Stones Throw Records. It was released on the day of his 32nd birthday, three days before his death.
Ruff Draft is an EP reissued as a studio album by American hip hop producer and rapper J Dilla released under the moniker "Jay Dee". 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 extended, remastered, and posthumously re-released as a "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.
Champion Sound is a collaborative album by the duo Jaylib, consisting of producers J Dilla and Madlib. The album was released in 2003 and is considered a classic in the underground hip-hop scene. The title track, "Champion Sound," features a sample from the 1978 film The Deer Hunter and showcases the duo's signature blend of soulful beats and intricate rhymes. The album also features guest appearances from Talib Kweli and Percee P.
The Ummah was a music production collective, composed of members Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest, and the late Jay Dee of the Detroit-based group Slum Village. Occasional members included Raphael Saadiq, and D'Angelo. In addition to producing nearly the entirety of A Tribe Called Quest's fourth and fifth albums, the Ummah provided backing tracks and remixes for a notable array of hip hop and contemporary R&B artists, including Busta Rhymes, Whitney Houston, Keith Murray, the Brand New Heavies, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, and Jon B. The group was so named because two of its members are devout Muslims. The word "ummah" is Arabic for "community", "nation", or "brotherhood". Generally, the term refers to the global Muslim population.
Jason Powers, better known by his stage name Elzhi, is an American rapper from Detroit, Michigan. He is a former member of Slum Village and now records as a solo artist. In his youth, he made numerous visits to the Hip-Hop shop in Detroit, taking advantage of open-mic nights hosted by fellow Detroit rapper Proof.
Ronald Christopher Watts, better known by his stage name Phat Kat, is a rapper from Detroit, Michigan, best known as a favorite collaborator of the late J Dilla.
Jay Stay Paid is the fifth studio album by album by American hip hop producer and rapper J Dilla. It was released as a posthumous album on June 2, 2009, by Nature Sounds. Despite the fact that the album has contributing vocals from several artists, it is roughly classified as an instrumental hip hop album.
James Dewitt Yancey, better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer and rapper. He emerged during the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan, as a member of the group Slum Village. He was also a member of the Soulquarians, a musical collective active during the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Fuck the Police may refer to:
The Diary is the sixth and final studio album by American hip hop recording artist J Dilla. It was originally intended for release in 2002 via MCA Records under the title Pay Jay. This long-lost album is the final batch of unissued material that J Dilla had assembled for release during his lifetime. It also represents his first rap album released since Ruff Draft (2003) and Champion Sound (2003). Unlike previous full-length releases – from Jay Stay Paid (2009) to Dillatronic (2015) – all edited with unreleased instrumentals, The Diary is a collection of Dilla's vocal performances over his production and that of other producers, such as Madlib, Pete Rock, Nottz, Hi-Tek and Karriem Riggins among others. It also features vocal performances by Snoop Dogg, Bilal, Kokane, Frank n Dank, Nottz, Kenny Wray and Boogie. Recording sessions for the album took place from September 16, 2001, to April 2, 2002, at The Spaceship in Clinton Township and Studio A in Detroit, and it was mastered by Dave Cooley at Elysian Masters in Los Angeles.
Sunset Blvd. is the debut LP by Detroit-based hip hop duo Yancey Boys, released on October 29, 2013 by Yancey Media Group in conjunction with Delicious Vinyl and distributed through Traffic Entertainment Group. The record is built around a recently unearthed batch of music created by Illa J's late elder brother, James "J Dilla" Yancey. The album features the latter's past collaborators like De La Soul's Posdnuos, Slum Village's T3, Common, The Pharcyde's Slimkid3 and Talib Kweli. Additional guests on Sunset Blvd. include DJs Rhettmatic, C-Minus, and J. Rocc as well as rapper Guilty Simpson and R&B singer Eric Roberson.
John Derek Yancey, better known by his stage name Illa J, is an American rapper, singer, producer and songwriter from Detroit, Michigan who has released two albums on Delicious Vinyl Records. He is the younger brother of the late hip hop producer, and rapper J Dilla, and a former member of hip hop group Slum Village. He also released a collaborative album as Yancey Boys along with Frank Nitt. Illa J's second solo album ILLA J came out via the Brooklyn based record label, Bastard Jazz.
Yancey Boys is the debut studio album by Detroit-based rapper/singer Illa J, featuring instrumental production from his late brother Jay Dee, also known as J Dilla. The album was released on November 4, 2008 under Delicious Vinyl. The beats were created from 1995 to 1998 during Jay Dee's tenure with Delicious Vinyl. The album's release was supported by two singles – "We Here" and "Sounds Like Love" featuring Debi Nova. Recording sessions for the album took place at Yancey Boys Studio in Los Angeles in 2008. Stones Throw Records released a digital instrumental version of the album in 2009.
Talib Kweli Greene is an American rapper. He earned recognition through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper Mos Def in 1997, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's musical career continued with solo success including collaborations with producers and rappers Kanye West, Just Blaze, and Pharrell Williams. In 2011, Kweli founded his own record label, Javotti Media.
The following list is a discography of production by J Dilla, an American hip hop record producer and recording artist from Detroit, Michigan. It includes a list of songs produced, co-produced and remixed by year, artist, album and title.
