hip hop
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
group from
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
. The group was formerly composed of the rappers Baatin (1974–2009), T3, and rapper / producer
J Dilla
James Dewitt Yancey (February 7, 1974 – February 10, 2006), better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer, composer and rapper. He emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michiga ...
(1974–2006). J Dilla left in 2001 to pursue a solo career with
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...
. Elzhi joined in his absence, after which Baatin also left due to health complications.
Following J Dilla's death in 2006 and Baatin's death in 2009, T3 remains the sole surviving member of the original lineup. Over its history the group has been through several line-up changes, which once included J Dilla's younger brother
Illa J
John Derek Yancey (born October 13, 1986), better known by his stage name Illa J, is an American rapper, singer, record producer and songwriter from Detroit, Michigan who has released two albums on Delicious Vinyl Records. He is the younger bro ...
, but now the group exists as a duo of T3 and producer Young RJ.
Formation and early years
Rappers Baatin, T3 and producer Jay Dee grew up together in the Conant Gardens neighborhood of
Detroit
Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
and attended
Pershing High School
John J. Pershing High School is a four-year public high school in Detroit, Michigan. It is in Conant Gardens in proximity to the residential areasFantastic (Vol. 1)'', however it was not officially released until 2006, 9 years after original recording.
Slum Village signed their first record deal in 1998 with the now defunct Barak/
A&M records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...
. Due to internal politics with the label, the group was forced to release their 2000 album '' Best Kept Secret'' under the alias "J-88". ''Best Kept Secret'' featured remixes and leftover material from the heavily boot-legged ''Fantastic, Vol. 1''. That same year '' Fantastic, Vol. 2'' was released on GoodVibe Recordings, which featured appearances from
Busta Rhymes
Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after National Football League, NFL and Canadian Football Lea ...
,
Common
Common may refer to:
As an Irish surname, it is anglicised from Irish Gaelic surname Ó Comáin.
Places
* Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
* Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts
* Cambridge Com ...
,
D'Angelo
Michael Eugene Archer (born February 11, 1974), better known by his stage name D'Angelo (), is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He first garnered attention after co-producing the single "U Will Know" ...
Fresh out of high school, the group steadily became popular in Detroit's underground hip hop scene. However, by the mid-1990s
J Dilla
James Dewitt Yancey (February 7, 1974 – February 10, 2006), better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer, composer and rapper. He emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michiga ...
was already a well known hip-hop prospect, with a string of singles and remixes to his name, working on projects with
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...
Busta Rhymes
Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after National Football League, NFL and Canadian Football Lea ...
, and Q-Tip among others. In 1995 he was invited to become a member of a production team known as The Ummah, which produced the fourth and fifth
A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest was an American Hip hop music, hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985,Q-Tip< ...
studio albums, as well as hits for a number of R&B and hip hop musicians. In 1998, Slum Village opened for
A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest was an American Hip hop music, hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985,Q-Tip< ...
, on their farewell tour. In 2001, J Dilla left Slum Village to pursue a solo career.
J Dilla died on February 10, 2006, after being diagnosed with TTP and Lupus. In light of his game-changing impact in the world of music production, many high-profile artists mourned and paid tribute to him following his death.
Slum Village's 2015 album '' YES!'' features songs that were produced by Dilla before his 2006 death.
Baatin era
Titus Glover (March 8, 1974 – July 31, 2009), also known as Baatin, was an American
rapper
Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...
who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
part of the rap group Slum Village. Baatin started rapping as a student at Pershing High School in Detroit where he went by the names Scandalous-T, and Eazy-T among others.
In the early 1990s Glover adopted the name Baatin. He claimed the name (which is Arabic for 'hidden') was chosen to reflect a newfound spirituality.
Baatin remained as an active member of the group until the early 2000s. In 2002, shortly after the release of the group's third album, Baatin began to experience health problems, which interfered with the group's music and touring performances. In regard to his health problems, he said:
Suffering from mental illness and a drug problem, Baatin left the group in 2003. He was later diagnosed with
schizophrenia
Schizophrenia () is a mental disorder characterized variously by hallucinations (typically, Auditory hallucination#Schizophrenia, hearing voices), delusions, thought disorder, disorganized thinking and behavior, and Reduced affect display, f ...
,
bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder (BD), previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of Depression (mood), depression and periods of abnormally elevated Mood (psychology), mood that each last from days to weeks, and in ...
and depression.
Baatin stated that he was "kicked out while in hospital", receiving a termination letter, while in the hospital.
After leaving the group, he began recording as a solo artist. During this period, he went by the name "Baatin the Slumlord." In 2008, the dispute was resolved and Baatin reunited with T3 and Elzhi, and worked on the group's sixth album '' Villa Manifesto''.
Baatin died on July 31, 2009, at the age of 35. He was found in his home on Anglin Street in northeast
Detroit
Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
. Following a homicide investigation, reports released by the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office, state the cause of his death was cocaine abuse and the manner of death was listed as accidental.
Baatin was survived by a son, Michael Majesty Ellis, a daughter, Aura Grace Glover, and a sister, Tina, all of Detroit.
In 2010, members Baatin and Illa J were featured alongside many former collaborators of J Dilla (such as Black Milk, Phat Kat and M.E.D.) on French producer Cris Prolific's album ''Art / Money Volume 1'' (on the tracks ''Foundations'' and ''Voyage'' respectively). J Dilla himself was slated to make a vocal appearance on the track ''Innovators'' but died before recording.
In 2018, a 7-inch posthumous single of Baatin, "Don't Stop", was released. A music video for the OG version was released the same day.
Elzhi era
For the 2002 release " Trinity (Past, Present and Future)" on Barak/Capitol Records, T3 brought in Elzhi to join the group as J Dilla left to focus on his solo career. The album was a moderate success and contained the single " Tainted", produced by Karriem Riggins and featuring Dwele. Also in 2002,'Dirty District, a compilation songs by Detroit rappers largely produced by T3 and Young RJ"Rice, was released.
The group then became a duo consisting T3 and Elzhi, when Baatin became sick while touring in France shortly before the release their 2004 album, ''Detroit Deli (A Taste of Detroit)'' and departed to seek treatment. The album included the hit single, " Selfish", produced by Kanye West and featuring John Legend. The song samples a part of the intro to the hit song "Call Me" by
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...
. After parting ways with Capitol Records in 2005, they released Prequel to a Classic a mixtape mostly previously unreleased material, followed by Slum Village "Self-Titled" release in October the same year.
In a 2008 interview, T3 announced that Slum Village had reunited with Baatin and had added Illa J to bring a "Dilla effect": cquote, I'm incorporating Baatin, and I'm putting Illa J in — not to take Dilla's place, but just to have that Dilla essence on this new project. I'm pulling together all the producers that we've used before — Young RJ, Waajeed Karriem Riggins, Pete Rock and all the people who have been down with SV from day one. Villa Manifesto was released under Koch Records on July 27, 2010, featuring Baatin.
In July 2010, Elzhi decided to pursue his solo career and left the group. In recent interviews, T3 stated that he had not talked to Elzhi since he departed the group.
Slum Village released YESon June 16, 2015, an album made with unused J Dilla beats, produced mostly by "Young RJRice.
Discography
Studio albums
Mixtapes
EPs
Compilations
Singles
Appearances
* 2000: "One-4-Teen (Funky For You)" (from the Bahamadia album '' BB Queen'')
* 2000: "Thelonius" (from the
Common
Common may refer to:
As an Irish surname, it is anglicised from Irish Gaelic surname Ó Comáin.
Places
* Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
* Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts
* Cambridge Com ...
Daft Punk
Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. They achieved popularity in the late 1990s as part of the French house movement, combining house music, funk, disco, tech ...
Album '' Daft Club'')
* 2005: "Keep On" (from the Dwele album '' Some Kinda...'')
* 2006: "Time Has Come" (from the
Exile
Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...
album ''Dirty Science'')
* 2007: "Cuz I'm Jazzy" (from the
Guru
Guru ( ; International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''guru'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian religions, Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: tr ...
Evidence
Evidence for a proposition is what supports the proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the proposition is truth, true. The exact definition and role of evidence vary across different fields. In epistemology, evidence is what J ...
album '' The Layover EP'')
* 2008: "Get Live" (from the DJ Wich album ''The Golden Touch'')
* 2010: "How I Deal" (from the Dwele album '' W.ants W.orld W.omen'')
* 2010: "We Do It" (from the KVBeats album '' The Résumé'')
* 2013: "Cash Flow" (by Havoc)
* 2013: "En su propia trampa" (Canal 13 Chile)