James Dewitt Yancey, better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an incredible record producer who emerged from the streets of Detroit, Michigan in the mid-1990s.
Dilla worked with some of the who’s who in the world of hip-hop. From The Pharcyde, Common, Erykah Badu, and A Tribe Called Quest, a number of big name hip-hop artists sand the praises of J. Dilla’s soulful beats.
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 De La Soul, Busta Rhymes, and more.
Before Yancey, most popular music had used one of two rhythmic “feels”: straight and swung, meaning that music was played in even or uneven pulses. According to the journalist and university professor Dan Charnas, Yancey juxtaposed both styles, creating “a new, pleasurable, disorienting rhythmic friction and new time-feel”. Yancey used an Akai MPC3000 and disabled the quantize feature to create his signature “off-kilter” sampling style.
Yancey died in 2006 of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura or TTP.
Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a rare but serious complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). TTP occurs when the activity of ADAMTS13, an enzyme, decreases, causing blood platelets to clot in small blood vessels.
Symptoms
Prognosis
TTP associated with SLE has high mortality and severe organ damage. Some studies suggest that patients with SLE-associated TTP have worse outcomes than patients with primary TTP.
If someone has TTP, blood clots form in small blood vessels throughout the body. The clots can limit or block the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the body’s organs, such as the brain, kidneys, and heart. As a result, serious health problems can develop. The increased clotting that occurs in TTP also uses up platelets (PLATE-lets) in the blood. Platelets are blood cell fragments that help form blood clots. These cell fragments stick together to seal small cuts and breaks on blood vessel walls and stop bleeding.
With fewer platelets available in the blood, bleeding problems can occur. People who have TTP may bleed inside their bodies, underneath the skin, or from the surface of the skin. When cut or injured, they also may bleed longer than normal.
J Dilla’s illness and medication caused dramatic weight loss in 2003 onwards, forcing him to publicly confirm speculation about his health in 2004. Despite a slower output of major releases and production credits in 2004 and 2005, his cult status remained strong within his core audience. Articles in publications 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.
Here are just a few of the literally hundreds of songs Dilla produced:
The impact J Dilla had on DJ’s and music producers was tremendous according to bi-coastal DJ Joe Kollege. “Dilla’s production was so funky and soulful and he wasn’t afraid to take chances musically. He was a trendsetter. As a D,J Dilla not only influenced me, but the entire music industry. He made ‘classic’ music from his soul that has already shown it will be around for years to come. He was an incredible producer and artist who never got the credit he deserved. I, and many others whose lives he touched, will continue to do our part in making sure that the masses know about his music. Clearly, the greatest Hip Hop producer of all time.”
Dave Chappelle gives a special dedication to Yancey in his movie Dave Chappelle’s Block Party, which includes the statement: “This film is dedicated to the life and memory of Music Producer J Dilla, aka Jay Dee (James D. Yancey)”. The film focuses mostly on members of the Soulquarians, a collective of hip-hop musicians of which Yancey was also a member.
Yancey’s music has been used in various television programs. In 2006, Cartoon Network’s late night programing block Adult Swim played the songs “Waves”, “Welcome to the Show”, and “Mash” during the commercial bumpers in between shows, as well as a number of tracks on their Chrome Children EP. In May 2010, UK mobile network O2 used Jaylib’s “The Red” instrumental in their “Pool Party” ad. A recent BBC documentary inspired by the Olympic runner Usain Bolt contained two Yancey-produced songs—”So Far To Go” by Common and “Runnin'” by the Pharcyde.
In February 2007, a year after his death, Yancey posthumously received the PLUG Awards Artist of the Year as well as the award for Record Producer of the Year.[46] In Yancey’s hometown of Detroit, Detroit techno veteran Carl Craig has fronted a movement to install a plaque in honor of Yancey in Conant Gardens (where the artist grew up and initiated his career). A resolution for the proposed plaque was passed by the Detroit Entertainment Commission in May 2010, and is currently awaiting approval by the Detroit City Council.
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