The Shining | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | August 22, 2006 | |||
Recorded | 2004–2006 | |||
Genre | Hip hop | |||
Length | 36:25 | |||
Label | BBE | |||
Producer | J Dilla, Madlib, Karriem Riggins, J. Rocc | |||
J Dilla chronology | ||||
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The Shining: Instrumentals | ||||
Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 80/100 [1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
The A.V. Club | B+ [3] |
HipHopDX | [4] |
Now | [5] |
Pitchfork | 7.4/10 [6] |
PopMatters | [7] |
Rolling Stone | [8] |
Stylus Magazine | B− [9] |
XXL | XL [10] |
The Shining is the third studio album by American hip hop producer and rapper J Dilla, who died on February 10, 2006. The Shining was incomplete at the time of J Dilla's passing and was posthumously completed by producer Karriem Riggins. Discounting the instrumental album Donuts , The Shining was the first full-length solo release by J Dilla (featuring newly recorded vocals) since Welcome 2 Detroit five years earlier, and as such was highly anticipated. It was released on August 22, 2006, through BBE Records. An instrumental version of the album followed its release shortly afterward.
In the works for many years under working titles such as the rumored Welcome 2 LA, Dilla's manager, Tim Maynor, said in November 2005 that The Shining would come out in February 2006 on BBE and that the Dilla self-titled album would follow in the same year. [11] While J Dilla underwent treatment at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for complications brought on by TTP and a form of lupus, he worked on two albums: Donuts and The Shining using a Boss SP-303 sampler and a small 45 record player his friends brought him. [12] Records his mother and friends would bring were used as sample sources. She recalled it in the Crate Diggers documentary: [13]
"As the album was ultimately only 75% complete at the time of J Dilla's passing, his friend and fellow Detroit hip hop artist Karriem Riggins was entrusted by Dilla's mother and J Dilla himself for the completion and handling of the record. [14] Riggins has indicated that there will be further future releases of Dilla's music in the coming years, stating that "all of his music needs to be heard". [15]
A few of the tracks on The Shining are vocal versions of previously heard material such as "So Far to Go" (Donuts track "Bye" revamped and extended to serve as an intended remix to Common's "Go!"). This song was originally to be released by Common during the last quarter of 2005, as part of a Be special edition package. In 2007, an alternate version of "So Far to Go" containing new verses and a new mix was released on Common's Finding Forever album.
Dilla features some of his past collaborators, such as the aforementioned Common on two songs, Busta Rhymes, D'Angelo, Madlib, and Black Thought on the LP. The closing track, "Won't Do", is the only song to feature Dilla rhyming solo. He also performs on "Baby" together with Madlib and Guilty Simpson and provide the chorus for "E=Mc2". "Won't Do" was also issued as a single (as The Shining EP2), accompanied by a video that premiered on December 12, 2006. The video included appearances by Common, Slum Village, will.i.am, Frank-N-Dank, Karriem Riggins, Black Thought, Talib Kweli, and J Dilla's younger brother, Illa J.
A promo single called "Love", featuring Pharoahe Monch, was leaked onto the internet in February 2006, days after J Dilla's death. Plans for the album's retail release was accelerated and scheduled for April 2006. Video producer and director Brian "B.Kyle" Atkins of Okayplayer Films [16] was in the process of putting together a production consisting of footage he had shot with J Dilla. The label heard about the project and wanted as a bonus DVD to accompany each retail copy of the album. Eventually, however, it was decided to release the two separately. In honor of J Dilla, Atkins created the production entitled J Dilla: Still Shining, which was made available online for free. The album received generally positive reviews and debuted at #103 in its first week of release according to Billboard . An instrumental version of the album soon followed.
The advance copy of the album contains samples from The Shining over the tracks to prevent sharing. These samples are not in the retail version but the advance copy is available on the internet, leading many to believe that the samples are part of the album.[ citation needed ]
According to J Rocc of the Beat Junkies, Dilla's original idea for the cover of The Shining was to use a photograph of him wearing the CPAP mask used to treat his thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura at the time; the cover used instead was chosen after his death before the album's completion. [17]
J Dilla was known for being experimental, which influenced contemporary musicians[ who? ] who grew up listening to his music. Because he usually chose to enter beats manually on a drum machine rather than quantizing, he developed a "behind-the-beat" style - wherein a track's percussion will play very slightly prior to the 4/4 beat that would be heard on a click-track, in a manner which is perceptible but more minute than would normally ever be written in music notation, giving the impression of the music "dragging behind" the beat - has caught on with young jazz musicians, who are now incorporating it into their music as well, developing techniques to reproduce Dilla's studio style in live performance. [18] J Dilla was also among the first mainstream artists to experiment with tonality in such a liberal way, which is now becoming more apparent in modern electronic music and pop music.
At the time of its release, The Shining was widely considered J Dilla's last opus as it showcased his broad set of talents, showcasing his ability to create distinct beats that would complement each performer that he worked with. The album showed off the growth that he made before his passing by showcasing his experimental nature in different ways throughout this album. [19]
At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, The Shining received an average score of 80% based on 21 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [1]
It ranked at number 35 on Spin 's "40 Best Albums of 2006" list. [20]
Unless otherwise indicated, Information is based on Liner notes [21]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Geek Down" (featuring Busta Rhymes) | James "J Dilla" Yancey, Busta Rhymes | J Dilla | 1:53 |
2. | "E=MC²" (featuring Common) | James Yancey, Lonnie R. Lynn | J Dilla | 3:17 |
3. | "Love Jones" | James Yancey | J Dilla | 1:01 |
4. | "Love" (featuring Pharoahe Monch) | James Yancey, Pharoahe Monch | J Dilla | 3:14 |
5. | "Baby" (featuring Madlib and Guilty Simpson) | James Yancey, Guilty Simpson | J Dilla, Madlib | 3:28 |
6. | "So Far to Go" (featuring Common and D'Angelo) | James Yancey, Lonnie R. Lynn, Michael "D'Angelo" Archer, Ronald Isley, Rudolph Isley, O'Kelly Isley Jr., Marvin Isley, Ernie Isley, Chris Jasper | J Dilla | 5:36 |
7. | "Jungle Love" (featuring MED and Guilty Simpson) | James Yancey, Guilty Simpson, MED | J Dilla | 2:44 |
8. | "Over the Breaks" | James Yancey | J Dilla, Karriem Riggins | 2:14 |
9. | "Body Movin'" (featuring J. Rocc and Karriem Riggins) | James Yancey, Karriem Riggins, J. Rocc | J Dilla, Karriem Riggins, J. Rocc | 2:17 |
10. | "Dime Piece (Remix)" (featuring Dwele) | James Yancey, Andwele “Dwele” Gardner | J Dilla | 3:15 |
11. | "Love Movin'" (featuring Black Thought) | James Yancey, Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter | J Dilla | 3:34 |
12. | "Won't Do" | James Yancey | J Dilla | 3:52 |
Chart | Peak position |
---|---|
Billboard 200 [ citation needed ] | 103 |
Top Independent Albums [ citation needed ] | 9 |
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums [31] | 35 |
Madvillainy is the only studio album by American hip hop duo Madvillain, consisting of rapper MF Doom and producer Madlib. It was released on March 23, 2004, on Stones Throw Records.
Otis Jackson Jr., known professionally as Madlib, is an American DJ, music producer, multi-instrumentalist, and rapper. He is widely known for his collaborations with MF Doom, J Dilla, and Freddie Gibbs. Madlib has described himself as a "DJ first, producer second, and MC last." His stage name is an acronym for "Mind Altering Demented Lessons In Beats".
Stones Throw Records is an American independent record label based in Los Angeles, California. Under the direction of founder Peanut Butter Wolf, Stones Throw has released music ranging from hip hop to experimental psychedelic rock. LA Weekly deemed the label an "eternally evolving experiment" in celebration of its 20th anniversary.
Slum Village is an American hip hop group from Detroit, Michigan. The group formerly comprised the rappers Baatin (1974–2009) and T3 and the rapper and producer J Dilla (1974–2006). J Dilla left in 2001 to pursue a solo career with MCA Records. Elzhi joined in his absence, after which Baatin also left due to health complications.
Karriem Riggins is a multi-talented American musician who has made a name for himself as a Jazz drummer, Hip Hop producer, DJ and songwriter. With a career spanning over two decades, Riggins has collaborated with some of the biggest names in the music industry, including Kanye West, Common, and Diana Krall. His unique style and versatility have earned him critical acclaim and a loyal fan base.
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.
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.
Beat Konducta is an 8-album series released by hip hop musician Madlib. "Beat Konducta" is also an alias which Madlib uses. The series began officially in 2006 with the release of Beat Konducta Vol 1-2: Movie Scenes. The album was stylistically a companion to J Dilla's Donuts, which was released the month before, 3 days prior to Yancey's death. He has since followed with Beat Konducta Vol 3-4: Beat Konducta in India in 2007 and Beat Konducta Vol. 5-6: A Tribute to...(Dil Cosby and Dil Withers Suite) in 2008, which is a tribute to Yancey. Although the 2010 release Beat Konducta in Africa is an installment of the Madlib Medicine Show series, it is also considered a part of the Beat Konducta series.
Chrome Children is a co-production between Stones Throw Records and Adult Swim. The CD & DVD set, released on October 3, 2006, includes songs from Oh No, J Dilla, Madlib, and other Stones Throw artists. It also includes footage from a hip-hop concert headlined by MF DOOM and Madlib on DVD. The concert was filmed by Adult Swim at the 2006 SXSW festival in Austin, TX.
Hella International is a yearly music event presented by Stones Throw Records at Miami's Winter Music Conference.
Byron Dwayne “Guilty” Simpson is an American rapper and songwriter from Detroit, Michigan whose recording career spans more than 20 years. He is signed to Stones Throw Records, and is known for being one of the late producer J Dilla’s favorite rappers.
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Born Like This is the sixth and final solo studio album by British-American rapper/producer MF DOOM. It was released under the pseudonym "DOOM" on March 24, 2009 through Lex Records. It debuted at number 52 on the Billboard 200 chart, having sold 10,895 copies as of March 29, 2009. In addition to tracks produced by MF Doom, the album includes production by frequent collaborator Madlib, as well as J Dilla. The album title is borrowed from Charles Bukowski's poem "Dinosauria, We", which employs it as a cadence. The track "Cellz" opens with a sampled recording of Bukowski reading the poem.
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James Dewitt Yancey, better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer, drummer, rapper and songwriter. He emerged in 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.
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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.
Nick Rodriguez, better known by his stage name M.E.D., is an American rapper from Oxnard, California. He was formerly known as Medaphoar. He has been signed to Stones Throw Records.
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.