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?uestlove’s DJ Set Tribute to J Dilla

Posted in Downloads, Media with tags Dilla Day, Hot97, J Dilla, Questlove on Friday, February 10, 2012 by Tim Althaus

As many of you know, ?uestlove is probably the biggest J Dilla fanatic there is; I guarantee he has just about every piece of music that James Yancey composed. ?uesto was on Hot97 today as a guest dj, and every song in his show was related to J Dilla; I only wish I could have listened to this live because ?uestlove is one of the most knowledgeable musicians of all-time, and I can guarantee he put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into this.

As far as a dj set is concerned, ?uestlove totally kills it; he skews every aspect of Dilla’s career, and his knowledge of Dilla’s catalog becomes clear within the first few songs. This mix is definitely worth an hour of your time. You can expect to hear songs from Ghostface, Slum Village, J Dilla himself, The Roots, Janet Jackson, Busta Rhymes, Common, De La Soul and The Pharcyde. What I love about this show is that ?uestlove actually breaks down some of the samples that Dilla used, so you can try to imagine how Jay flipped it. This dj set is something that a hardcore Dilla fan like myself can really get into, but at the same time, it’s a great introduction for someone new to the Dilla catalog.

Download: ?uestlove’s J Dilla DJ Set

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R.I.P. J Dilla (February 7, 1974 – February 10, 2006)

Posted in News with tags Detroit, Dilla Day, J Dilla, R.I.P. on Friday, February 10, 2012 by Tim Althaus

I still can’t believe that this man is gone because it always saddens me to think about Jay’s passing. Jay Dee truly was a producer’s producer, and no one will ever be able to top Dilla’s abilities. I feel as though I am a very fortunate human being; experiencing and finding out about Dilla’s music is truly one of the greatest things that has happened in my life. His music is something that I will always be able to confide in whether times are good or bad, and I thank him for that. For those of you fortunate enough to be in the D today, I salute you, and I hope you have an incredible time on Dilla Day.

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Happy Birthday to the Greatest That Ever Did It…

Posted in Downloads, Random with tags Dilla Day, Donuts, J Dilla, So Far to Go, Thanks for the Donuts, The Shining, XV on Tuesday, February 7, 2012 by Tim Althaus

As I sit here and ponder what to write for my annual Dilla Day post, I find myself thinking about the first time I heard James Dewitt Yancey’s music: A friend had told me to check out the track “So Far To Go” off of Jay’s album, The Shining. From the second “So Far To Go” started playing, I was hit with a myriad of emotions, and I had no idea how to comprehend what was bombarding my ear drums; once the piano section kicked in right around the two minute mark, I damn near burst into tears. I would soon come to realize that I had been “technically” listening to James Yancey’s music for a long time; I just didn’t know it. Continue reading →

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R.I.P. J Dilla

Posted in Music News with tags ?uestlove, Chaundon, Dilla Day, J Dilla on Tuesday, February 10, 2009 by Tim Althaus

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Today marks the third anniversary of James Yancey’s untimely passing. As all of you know this man is a great inspiration to me in every aspect of my life. I truly wish that I would have gotten in tune with this man’s music earlier in my life because there isn’t a single artist or producer that can replicate the beauty that he created. A lot of people would call me a bandwagon jumper seeing as I only found out about Dilla shortly before he passed, but the impact that he has had on me I will never forget.

I gave a 10 minute speech on Jay in one of my classes last year and I ended the speech with a quote by Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson from The Roots: “I am devastated at the world’s loss of a musical genius of Charlie Parker proportions. Too often we bestow the “greatest” title upon those who have the attention of the press, charts and radio. But if you were to secretly ask the most praised Hip-Hop producers, if given a top three, who they feared the most, Dilla’s name would chart on everyone’s list. I am fortunate to have known this man. He inspires me to perfect my craft in every way. Dilla was and always will be my hero.”

I really don’t think that I could some up any argument or statement about James Yancey any better than ?uestlove. If I can do what makes me happy for the rest of my life like Dilla did, then I will certainly be able to die happy. My guess is that God himself had an MPC 2000XL ready for Dilla when he got to heaven just so the lord could take lessons from the greatest. I find myself listening to Donuts and being physically grabbed by some of the tracks, almost as if Jay is trying to tell me something. I will be a Jay Dee fan for the rest of my life. I can honestly say that J Dilla changed my life.

Like Chaundon once said “If it ain’t Jay Dee, FUCK YA DAMN BEATS!”

R.I.P. J Dilla – February 7th, 1974 – February 10th, 2006

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If You are in New York Tonight…

Posted in Concert Dates with tags Dilla Day, J Dilla on Sunday, February 8, 2009 by Tim Althaus

I don’t really need to say how wild this show is gonna be… you can imagine.

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Be there… I would be.

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Dilla Day Mix by Alteezimo

Posted in Downloads with tags Dilla Day, J Dilla on Sunday, February 8, 2009 by Tim Althaus

blurry-2 Hey guys, I just wanted to contribute something really special for Dilla Day. I know most of you have probably heard these songs at sometime or another, but I just wanted to highlight my favorite tracks by my idol. These tracks are what I consider to be my favorites from Jay Dee’s career. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

For the record these are all tracks that were either produced by Dilla or songs featuring Dilla or both. This actually took me quite some time to put the tracks in order in the way that I think they would be most effectively listened to. I can promise you though that this is going to be an incredible mix if you are a J Dilla fan. So download the mix and TURN IT UP!

Tracklisting:

1. Welcome 2 Detroit (J Dilla)
2. Runnin’ (Pharcyde) (Prod. by J Dilla)
3. Fuck The Police (J Dilla)
4. Renaissance Man (Jay Electronica) (Prod. by J Dilla)
5. The Light (Common) (Prod. by J Dilla)
6. Jam (A Tribe Called Quest) (Prod. by J Dilla)
7. Make Em’ NV (J Dilla)
8. Move (Q-Tip) (Prod. by J Dilla)
9. Aerodynamic (Daft Punk Remix) (Slum Village)
10. As Serious As Your Life (Jay Dee Remix) (Four Tet) (Prod. by J Dilla, Featuring Guilty Simpson)
11. Fall In Love (Slum Village)
12. Won’t Do (J Dilla)
13. Cold Steel (Phat Kat) (Prod. by J Dilla)
14. Reunion (Slum Village)
15. Can’t Stop This (The Roots) (Prod. by J Dilla)
16. Niggaz Know (Pete Rock) (Featuring J Dilla)
17. Concrete Eyes (Elzhi) (Prod. by J Dilla)
18. What It’s All About (Slum Village)
19. Little Brother (Black Star) (Prod. by J Dilla)
20. Sun In My Face (J Dilla) (Featuring Blu & Jontel)
21. Clap Your Hands (Guilty Simpson) (Prod. by J Dilla)
22. Starz (Jaylib) (Prod by. J Dilla)
23. Skyzoo’s Last Donut (Skyzoo) (Prod. by J Dilla)

Download: Alteezimo’s Dilla Day Mix*

*Note to all Mac users, a few of the files are in .wma, so you may have to convert.

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Live Audio Bootleg: Jaylib, Live at the Henry Fonda Theater, 4/2/04

Posted in Downloads with tags Beat Junkies, Common, Dilla Day, Hip-Hop, J Dilla, J Rocc, Jaylib, Madlib, Stones Throw on Saturday, February 7, 2009 by Tim Althaus

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Here it is folks, the first Jaylib show with Dilla and Madlib. I decided to check out Stones Throw‘s website figuring that they may have some current news about Dilla on this gracious day. It turns out that they posted the first ever Jaylib show from 2004. This set was spun by J Rocc (of the World Famous Beat Junkies Crew) and features Melo-D (also of the Beat Junkies) on commentary and a special guest appearance from Common. This show was actually for the celebration of the Madvillain release party. Make sure you check this one out, there is no way that it can dissapoint. Two of the greatest minds of their time on one stage, shut shit down.

Download: Jaylib, Live @ The Henry Fonda Theater 4/2/04

Spotted at Stones Throw

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Raise It Up For Ma Dukes!

Posted in Culture with tags Dilla Day, J Dilla, Lupus, Ma Dukes, Parra, Stones Throw on Saturday, February 7, 2009 by Tim Althaus

ma-dukes J Dilla’s mother, Ma Dukes, has been going through some very rough times lately with her son’s estate in limbo. Stones Throw and legendary t-shirt artist Parra have teamed up for a special shirt that is dedicated to Ma Dukes. Personally I love the shirts that ST and Parra have teamed up for in the past, and to tell you the truth, this one is no different. Ma Dukes has had to put up with a lot of the bullshit that has been going on with Dilla’s estate and Ma Dukes herself has recently come down with Lupus.

Ma Dukes needs every bit of help that she can possibly get, Dilla has daughters that aren’t seeing any of the royalties that Dilla’s estate has been accumulating. Ma Dukes is a very strong woman, but she can’t fight Lupus and Dilla’s battles at the same time. She needs our help and every little bit is appreciated!

raise-it-up Get on over to Stones Throw and make sure you pick yourself up one of these t-shirts. Not only will you be the flyest individual in your crew, but you will also be doing Dilla a huge favor.

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Happy Birthday J Dilla!

Posted in Culture with tags Detroit Hip-Hop, Dilla Day, Donuts, G.O.A.T., Hip-Hop, J Dilla, The Shining on Saturday, February 7, 2009 by Tim Althaus

dilla Today would have been Dilla’s 35th birthday. Needless to say if this man was still here with us, we wouldn’t be debating about who the best producer is right now. When Dilla passed he left us with two of the most beautiful masterpieces I have ever heard. Donuts changed the face of instrumental Hip-Hop forever and The Shining (not fully completed, but ended up getting finished) showed us that amazing things come in small packages (ringing in at just over 28 minutes long).

Dilla showed me something with these two albums (I hadn’t heard anything solo before this); he taught me that he is one of the most talented individuals to have ever touched the boards. Jay put out two albums that were just beyond words as to how beautiful they were. This was all while he was near death in Cedars Sinai Hosptial in Los Angeles. Dilla was a very resilient individual who did what was important to him no matter what the cause or case. Dilla literally stared death in the face and said “fuck you” because all he wanted to do was finish Donuts. If there’s anything that I hope in my life it is that I can be as dedicated and resilient as Dilla.

Happy Birthday to the King of Beats, May You Rest in Beats Jay

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