On Thursday night (July 17) at the Howard Theater, it was revealed that the production equipment of J Dilla will be housed in the Smithsonian’s new museum of African American History & Culture.
The announcement was made at the ninth DC Loves Dilla tribute concert by Dilla’s mother, Maureen Yancey. She will donate her son’s custom Minamoog Voyager — one of the last synthesizers Bob Moog built for someone before he died in 2005 — and his MPC. Maureen told the audience, “I feel it’s necessary to raise the level of art appreciation in the hip-hop sector and honor my son James Dewitt Yancey, one of the most influential individuals in the history of hip-hop.”
J Dilla was only 32 years old when he died in 2006 of an incurable blood disease, but in his too-short life, the prolific producer worked with hip-hop icons including Busta Rhymes, Erykah Badu, The Roots, De la Soul, Common, and A Tribe Called Quest, even earning a Grammy nomination for his work with Tribe.
Watch the announcement below.
Leave a Reply