Breaking Down J Dilla’s Most Underrated Album

[@diggingthegreats]

Get 15 tracks to sample on Tracklib for free: www.tracklib.com/diggingthegreats Songs Played are included on my Tracklib playlist, check it out here: www.tracklib.com/music/collections/783538

[@disrails]

Claaaaire. Genius

[@ericfields2809]

Me too

[@artisans8521]

From your channel, I went to Spotty, searched for SlumVillage, found them, including a remark that they were performing in my hometown soon. Got a ticket to see them live in 4 weeks.

[@Chris-o7w6w]

This album was so smooth. " Get this money" "PLAYERS" "Climax" & " Hold Tight"

[@MegaVern1]

Facts!!!

[@assistant606]

Jealousy was fire too

[@npetinaud1]

Go Ladies is my favourite instrumental. Just reminds me of fine Women in the summer.

[@unworthyServant08]

Add “Fall N Love” and “2U4U” to that list! All these were on repeat in my late teens to early 20’s! Along with Little Brother’s The Listening. These two albums certainly make my classics list.

[@dasdabeatjunkieprod]

Untitled will always be my favorite

[@SkylarGarriott]

i see slum village, i click

[@tempeff8670]

I saw Slum Village in Chicago, upstair at Subterranean circa 2001. I probably saw Dilla but I didn't know it at the time.

[@kennethbosejr.4933]

Same

[@sorensmith8403]

Monkey see, monkey do

[@petykash]

Facts

[@artisans8521]

I'm going to see them in a few day's time in my hometown.

[@Ginger2882.]

Slum Village was actually my introduction to Dilla. Still some of my favorites of his albums.

[@Bandaroj]

Same here. Which is kind of a lie, because I bought a copy of Labcabincalifornia when it was released. But I was not aware of who this JD guy was till I heard SV.

[@drealinskiabel]

Same. Went from there to Welcome 2 Detroit and only learned about all the Soulquarian/Native Tongues and Pharcyde stuff way later. Suffice to say, it was a pleasant experience of catching up.

[@86Sentra]

Same my momma raised me on this

[@lairdhercules4553]

Finally! Slum Village. Those who know...know. RIP Baatin, RIP Dilla.

[@diggingthegreats]

RIP Amp Fiddler as well 🙏

[@startrakambassador3632]

@@diggingthegreats word, it broke my heart when I heard he passed as well. At least they in a better places ❤️🙏🏾

[@tonejames2080]

R.I.P. Dilla Dawg. Shout out to the Roots on Game Theory for showing him the love he always deserved but many times never received. A genius of the hip-hop game. A legend of music in general.

[@GmegaManly]

Man, I grew up in Conant Gardens and was privileged to know some of the old Motown/Funkadelic musicians who kept their equipment in the basement near their pool table. Never ran into Slum but man those were good times! And you have to understand that at that time it was nearly impossible for Detroit hip hop artists to get played outside of Detroit, so leaving the group was the only choice he could make if he wanted to be heard. Shout-out to Nunn's BBQ!

[@gnarwhal7562]

This album was actually my introduction to J Dilla and I didn't even know it at the time. It just felt like a hidden gem of a record. Years later I found out he was a part of the trio, and it made sense why I vibed with the production so much. Rest In Power, Dilla my man

[@log1kanobi]

brooooooo it’s exactly the same for me😂

[@EobardTron]

My introduction to dilla was actually Pharcyde LabcabinCalifornia. I was pretty smug when I picked this up, Dillas was an established genius for "Running" to me. Come to think of it I bought beats rhymes and life the same day at Tower records in silver spring, MD

[@bigchewp9694]

It's mad I had this, loved it, I had stakes is high, labcab, beats rhymes and life and countless other stuff I loved, but never realised it was all one dude. Lightbulb moment when it clicked.😂😂 I think it was that a lot of the track said produced by the ummah that threw me off the scent😂😂

[@BritoWorx]

RIP DILLA AND AMP Thank you for y’all contributions to the world.

[@PopkillerTV]

Part starting from 2:16 comes from our exclusive interview with Amp Fiddler, which you can find on our channel (it's a 20-min. video called "Amp Fiddler - interview: on teaching J Dilla how to use MPC; touring with George Clinton; Prince") :) Great short doc guys, much love from Poland & Long Live Dilla!

[@diggingthegreats]

Can you send a link? For one I want to include it in the description since I didn’t realize the larger video the clip was pulled from. For two, I want to watch it myself! Thank you for doing this interview, much love from the US 🙏

[@diggingthegreats]

Found it and updated! kzbin.info/www/bejne/fYGXYpWhadyFjbMsi=N0u8El6-428Rk6iV

[@PopkillerTV]

​@@diggingthegreats yes, that's it!! Perfect, thank you so much! All the best, keep up the great work! 😊🙏🙌 We also have done more Dilla-related interviews (with Common, Illa J, Pharcyde, Black Milk etc.) if you'd be interested! / Marcin

[@BasperMarshall]

Polska Gurom

[@tr606]

Untitled/Fantastic from Vol. 2 is just so pretty. Just incredible. Great vid as usual by the way ♥

[@DocDoMuch]

My favorite track on this classic album

[@avgriffin]

The climax drums changed how I view drums forever, convincing me to learn them inside out and learn drums

[@drezred8478]

One of my favorite albums of all time. Remember hearing "Get dis Money" and "Players" at UNLV on an underground radio show back in 98. No skips on the album. Untitled/fantastic is my favorite joint. All the beats are crazy.

[@mauriceallen9286]

KUNV in Vegas with my friend DJ 5'8 was appointment radio back then!!

[@nickolas8013]

"Rock to the rhythm, forth & back, forth & back, forth and back back back back..."

[@actrite3139]

Kurupt and SV

[@saint_yves]

This album was my introduction to J Dilla. Once I heard “Fall In Love”, I was hooked.

[@BigO7duce]

I’m so glad you covered this masterpiece. I saw Slum Village in 2000 at the Okayplayer tour in Minneapolis at First Avenue. I was originally there for the Roots but left blown away by Slum.

[@TristanKnightMusic]

This episode was so amazing to watch. As soon as I saw Slum as the thumbnail, I couldn’t have clicked on it faster. Lol. As a native Detroiter and artist/producer myself, this album has such a huge influence on my life till this day. I sampled “Climax” from Fantastic Vol. 2 for my song “Date Knight” on my new album LAUDER…when Vol. 2 was released, I was 13, so I remember hearing “Climax”, “Players”, & “Get This Money” frequently on Detroit radio stations like WJLB, and it holds a special time & place in my heart. It’s such an incredible album that I continue to play till this day. Even my kids love it. Another dope story about this album is Young Guru of Roc-A-Fella explaining the time that he first heard Vol. 2. He said he had a rare break in the day from recording at Baseline, so he went to go shower and change at his friend’s apartment. While he was getting ready, his friend was blasting the album the whole time and he said that he was mind blown. He had to find out who it was and made the beats. That was in 2001. Thank you for these amazing videos and history lessons Brandon.✊🏾🔥

[@VibesAndNotes]

This is one of those moments where I realize that myself, my circle of friends, and people I vibe on music with hold this project in such high regard that I never noticed that it's underrated. This is one of those albums that had people call me after they listened to find out if I heard it yet. Classic

[@wm1573]

I’ve listened through the instrumental version of this album like 9000000 times and it continues to be amazing

[@grantbacon4471]

Slum Village was so mad underrated! Great video! I can’t believe someone finally covered this album. “Fall in love” is in my rotation forever.

[@rdicetv77]

4EVER.

[@amsf1]

Slum village Fantastic 1&2 classics. Fantastic v.2 is mind blowing still to this day....

[@dwightgriffin1314]

The outro was nuts too.

[@dn30001]

Maan that outro was like sex in the form of sonics

[@hhhsp951]

IT'S *DILLA TIME*

[@dylanrowleyprod]

It’s great to see you break down Players! I did a project for a communications class where I had to convince the class that sampling is an art form in and of itself and used Players as an example. I chopped it, pitched it, and added drums in front of the class. Such a fun time. Great video boss!

[@EsoteriK1993]

One of the greatest albums of my lifetime. Fall in love is so amazing. Love classic slum vill.

[@damianhbk1]

That intro is 🔥🔥🔥 I first heard of Slum Village on Power 106 back in the day. I went out the very next day and bought their CD VOL2 at Tower Records. Thank you for digging deep into this album 🙏🙏🙏

[@filipkroupa9455]

so dirty yet so clean at the same time! in love with those drums since the day I discovered this album

[@djdospe1]

there are only a few albums where I can listen to it without skipping a single song.. this is one of them

[@MegaVern1]

The drums for Fall In Love are so good 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@mategeri5728]

Dude, I've been a huge SV fan for more than a decade and I've been spending countless hours reading and learning about music. It never even crossed my mind to dig into the story of SV and I love how you break down the beats, too. Love your videos! Cheers!

[@cheef825]

Man you gotta read dilla time if you haven't already. That book has so much cool shi in it

[@mategeri5728]

@@cheef825 got that on my readlist for a while, just need to finish my other books first

[@kaycuz9402]

Had the honor of seeing Dilla twice. Once in 2000 with Slum Village and Bahamadia then again as JayLib in 2004 on the same bill with MF DOOM. Didn't know how lucky I was back then.

[@wesiam8285]

Bro your channel is DOPE AS FCK!!! All these brkdwns are dope n this SV/Dilla brkdwn is unreal.. u must be a producer yourself bcuz this is amazing wrk, keep it going👌🏾💪🏾🔥

[@JustinMCase]

TOP 5 ALL TIME FAV ALBUM

[@P8on2phresh]

“I don’t know” will always be my favorite Dilla beat love how simple and blissful the sample is 😌

[@JamesSmith-Jtz]

Yo bro, your timing on this video drop is mad crazy… 🤙🏾 I literally just got done listening to Fantastic vol.2 on this 12 hour drive back out the oil patch and was thinking this album doesn’t get the shine it deserves…jumps on KZbin and sees this video. Thanks for all your hard work breaking down these favorites and keeping these joints relevant. It’s appreciated. 🍻 Also peeped that Stockholm instrumental playing in the video too.😎

[@andymejia5456]

Omg this is my personal fave hip hop album of all time. so glad you made a video on it!!!!!!!!

[@steve.santiago]

I was today years old when I learned that rapping into a pair of headphones plugged into the mic jack was even possible.

[@mdihero]

a transducer is a transducer

[@gezblair]

Think I’ve got an old DAT machine I can post you

[@mellodope8904]

I'm just glad you're here.😂

[@intalecrekthecoinmedic3416]

It was done often back in the early days of hip hop.

[@swandaley]

I'm so happy you're doing this. This to me is Dilla's Magnum Opus.

[@BrandonSunn]

Fantastic Vol. 2 is literally my favorite album of all time. Hands Down. The phrase “Dilla changed my life”, I finally understood what that meant listening to that album.

[@dubswirl3082]

Fantastic vol 1 & 2 albums were such fire ass masterpieces

[@toma8283]

2u 4u is one of my favorite dilla beats and I only recently learned the intro is the demo version of the track slowed down

[@BackToTheBoomBap]

Thanks for making a video on one of my favorite hip-hop albums!

[@stephenstrussvideo]

My favorite Slum / JD record. Knew this was coming eventually, great video as always man!

[@lewisechlin1707]

Slum village was my introduction to Detroit based rappers when I moved back to Michigan in my teens after years overseas. Their music felt like it had a deep duality with the city and the state of Michigan to some degree and I've found that similar feeling from every rapper I've heard come out of the state. It made me feel more connected to where I'm from and I feel proud of my city with this kind of representation, I wish more people knew of slum village. Thank you for this video.

[@101iswhatsup]

Vol 1 and vol 2... man. That beat for "Ela5", such a dope flip. Vol.2, one of my favorite Sam Goody purchases next to Del Both sides of the Brain and Redman Doc's Da Name. Great art to note. R.I.P. Baatin and Jay Dilla. Peace T3 and Elzhi.

[@S_Kane]

0:02 dope, thanks for blending that in

[@ri067953]

Slum Village is who I first think of when I think of Dilla

[@Uchawibeatz]

God bless you for breaking this down. Fantastic 1 and 2 are still my favorite Dilla pieces to this day. I started listening to Players because my pops recognized the sample from the Singers Unlimited and that was the moment my obsession with Dilla's work started. Great video again

[@ThisIsJBird]

Congrats bro I think you're the only one on KZbin that found the tiny sample segments right before "Claiiirre" on 'Players'

[@dave_vsm]

this is the best yt channel for music lovers. just thank u mate! and dis is my favorite dilla era . I hear I don't know in a beatunkies tape, was a blow!

[@thecoreelementsmoto]

Another great video. I used to play this album so much. Git this money is still on my hype list when I need to get work done.

[@hemlockhostel9006]

These Dilla related videos feel like chapters of dillatime but in video format, love it

[@jasonwallington2121]

Fantastic felt like Detroit’s love letter to hip-hop. Grateful for this masterpiece. RIP to Dilla, Baatin and Amp Fiddler.

[@grantblaaw2286]

I heard Fall in Love on our local hip hop show called the Head Warmez and immediately headed to Compact Disc Warehouse which was place that was able to import that album to SA at the time. I freaked out the day they called me to say it was received and I could collect it. Still one of my favorite hip hop albums of all time. Thank you for the review absolutely love your content.

[@regib1992]

Yo! When I say I’m SO glad you covered those classic albums THANK YOU! I was a freshmen in college when I first heard these albums and it changed the way I listen to music. Climax is the smoothest and my top favorite track on the vol2 album

[@lepetitmort1150]

dude this album is a classic!!! and Baatin is an UNDERRATED emcee!!! his style was otherworldly AF!

[@lewisewan3432]

Another J-Dilla video, I'm not complaining. Great Video

[@shawncharles6077]

I bought this album in high school and it made me look at sampling and beat making differently. Still one of my favorites. Rest In Beats J-Dilla.

[@MegaVern1]

RIP Amp and Dilla!🙏🏽❤️🕊️

[@erok268]

This album has been in the top 5 personal albums since highschool

[@idonid4417]

fantastic vol 1 is probably my absolute favorite collection of tracks. all the early slum village stuff was phenomenal as well as early 5 elements stuff. crazy

[@MisterTonyPizza]

I’ve been listening to this album a lot after hearing Tell Me on a playlist. Thank you for covering such a great album!

[@impulse_raps]

One of my favorite albums 🔥

[@aaronquadsquad]

Yo Brandon you are reading my mind with this video because this week i started reading Dilla Time and i've been listening to Dilla too. So you read my mind.

[@jamelehampton4255]

I had this album in 8th Grade Get Dis Money, Climax, CB4 and Players are my favs

[@AirAdam13]

It's about time - this album never gets enough props! Thanks for doing this video 🙂

[@benjaminsanon6760]

Ive been preaching about IDK for YEARS! thank you for breaking this down!

[@Myztik_Official]

Love this album so much, changed my life

[@ShogunxCAL]

Channel could solely be a course study on Dilla. Would be dope, love the backstories to these timeless hits.

[@DIRTYFINGERPROJECT]

This video and so many of your videos are bomb because you actually take the time and care to do the research. Happy to watch everything you drop. Glad to see it be said that the Neo Soul sound is the Dilla sound, which I’ve always believed it to be. Beats, Rhymes & Life is actually my favorite ATCQ album after The Low End Theory. The Pharcyde Labcabincalifornia is my favorite from them (5Ela had a few beats before though), all Jay Dee. Also glad to see Amp get the recognition he deserved too, cats always talking about Q-Tip but forget to mention cats from The D that played a role. Thank You!

[@vznquest]

I'm glad that you included Volume One here as that was my personal introduction to Dilla. Somehow I lucked out scoring a cassette on the internet of that album in 1997. Personally that's my favorite work of his along with Donuts.

[@DJ279V]

Quite simply: find stuff, make it fit, new flow. Thx for sharing the genuis of Dilla with your analysis!!

[@GilKag2]

Man i have been waiting for this video for months, thank you for another masterpiece! I listened to your advice and read Dilla time, and the part where the book explained about the 'clair' to 'players' transformation is really one of the most creative production i have seen.

[@DuOnerism]

This is a fire video. Love your work.

[@diggingthegreats]

🙏

[@tay.rayjean]

I listen to this album at least twice a week… Players, I Don’t Know, & Go Ladies are my top favorites. I find this to be one of those albums that completely changed my life! R.I.P Dilla

[@VendettaPtown]

That album is an AMAZING classic!😎🔥❤️

[@davebeanorael]

what up amp RIG... I remember when he came to my crib as well.... missed the both of you...

[@MegaVern1]

@diggingthegreats this was a great breakdown!!! Can’t get enough of Dilla breakdowns. Dude was an alien for sure

[@cheef825]

Man slum village was just killing it back then. Great video

[@pdrbeats8286]

that was epic! I believe it is hard because equipment from the 90s has a organic sound and functions like the MPC 2500, but you did a very good job. I just thought I would mention the track "fantastic" save direct from Brazil 🇧🇷

[@evantheartisan]

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS IVE BEEN WAITING FOR ANY CONTENT ON FALL IN LOVE AHHHHHHHHHHHH THANK YOU

[@coolworths]

Slum Village is one of the most slept on rap groups of all time, IMO. Raise It Up was the first joint I remember from them. I saw the music video on Blue Torch TV and it's a moment I'll never forget. Dilla changed my entire life and the Fan Tas Tic joints have been in rotation several times a year since 2007, for me. You know what love is.

[@dmoody4628]

Love this album, so smooth!

[@johnbrown4936]

What's the background music at: 0:22

[@fiscaldisco5234]

Would love to see you do a deep dive into Tony Toni Tone or Lucy Pearl!

[@rpsibley73]

It really is sad that J and Baatin has passed I liked this crew and the music they put out

[@ingmarvanderhoek6314]

Great album, happy to own it and happy you put it in the spotlight!

[@ingmarvanderhoek6314]

Volume 2 I mean...

[@natemathewson5200]

One of the best of all time.

[@whoandgo]

Fantastic Vol 2 is one of the recipes to my soul. Been cherishinf that album for a very long time now ❤

[@ScampiSuede]

Never clicked on a video so fast. Favourite album (vol.2) of all time!

[@fignewtonbar8587]

Once upon a time is one of my favorite songs of all time. Dilla just really understood groove and how to correctly implement bass melodically and functionally. He just got “it.”

[@_boof]

Fantastic vol 2 is what helped me fall into the dilla rabbit hole.

[@lil-j-waters]

thanks for sharing your source too. dilla time is so good

[@MrColdwilliam]

8 seconds in and that beat woke me up. Imma go listen to that album ans come right back for this.

[@log1kanobi]

i didn’t even know this was considered underrated. this is an all timer for me. you see the roots of so many modern styles of beats and bars all tucked into this crazy, cohesive packaging.

[@Kevinschart]

It's not considered underrated. Anyone who really knows Dilla, or was around when he was making music knows this is literally his best body of work. Im not sure where he's getting underrated from

[@rdicetv77]

fall in love can NEVER get old

[@jonathanpena7309]

Love it when we get Dilla love.

[@joeford454]

Love slum village,feel lucky to have this on vinyl,use to play it on constant rotation.peace

[@jloiben12]

If you are a Dilla fan and don’t know Slum then you aren’t a Dilla fan

[@petykash]

That part!

[@brynellsidney3983]

Facts

[@lexxko]

Agreed!

[@impliedwisdom]

HELLO!!! 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@robinmowbray5663]

Absolutely factory!!!!

[@emreozsoy973]

this video is pure gold in the landscape of dystopian youtube.