More unreleased J Dilla! With the frog-stomping force of that old Jaylib spiritual, "The Official" comes a new Dilla production "Anthem" - the first track to fly from a nestful of unreleased joints by the late great James DeWitt Yancey. An unapologetic ode to inebriation, the track begins with a simple question: Who is it? As if it weren't painfully obvious from the moment the drums smacked you in the back of the neck that it was indeed the return of J Dilla. The track dials back into the bounce of R. Kelly's "Fiesta" in an obvious nod to the bottle poppers although Dilla's offering is a much more brash interpretation with Frank N Dank proclaiming, "We effed up!" Frequent collaborators, they’re still “living way gangster” with their plastic cups, and thankfully so. It’s the only proper way to celebrate J Dilla. The track is produced by Yancey and mixed by Dave Cooley – engineer and close collaborator during Dilla’s L.A. years, who is responsible for the completion of his unreleased works. “Anthem” is one of several joints being released under the resurrected Pay Jay label on the forthcoming album The Diary which will feature Dilla on beats and vocals, with an assist from producers Madlib, Pete Rock, Houseshoes, Nottz, and Karriem Riggins – the Detroit drumgod whose recent tribute to Dilla has been making waves around the web since Stones Throw/Yours Truly dropped his venerable rework of “Featuring Phat Kat” several days ago. Along with Frank Nitt’s recent release of The Lost Scrolls Vol. 1, Riggins’ offering is one of the many treats Dilla’s friends have been releasing for his fans to commemorate the producer’s birthday. Put this joint on repeat and just daydream what the rest of this album is going to sound like. Nasty, ain’t it? Pre-order now from Rappcats and look for vinyl early this Spring.
