I’m hesitant to post anything in remembrance of Dilla because the Internet is already inundated with hip hop heads trying desperately to prove their intimate connection to this man and his music. In the end, who am I to arbitrate anonymous peoples’ sincerity in honoring a legend? I think my anxiety speaks from a weary place of how performative the Internet can be (specifically in relation to hip hop). Do we celebrate producers like Dilla out of a space of love and gratitude or as a means of displaying our authenticity? Either way, you probably think I’m thinking “too hard” about something simple. To be honest, Dilla was a significant entry point into the wonderful and complex world of music for me. I still gravitate towards production that is reminiscent of his creativity and taste — he embodies the thoughtful curation (and pollination) of soulful sounds that teleport listeners to a fantastical place; a place of imagination. Many of us have lived inside his records for years — finding belonging in his arrangements and artful compositions. In memory, Dilla continues to represent the possibility and raw/rigorous talent that emerges from Detroit. It remains a site for innovative production and experimentation; a city that never seems to take it’s history for granted. My hope is that we can continue to draw inspiration from Dilla by resisting the temptation to turn him into a flattened symbol that we trade for ‘points’ and that we keep him alive in our memory but do not treat him as an authenticity badge. For those closest to him, the pervasive nostalgia for a Dilla who is constructed as “conscious” is a strange byproduct of memory. An oftentimes flamboyant personality who was as ignorant as the rest of us was hardly a purely ‘conscious’ (I still have no idea what this means) contained figure. I digress…let us spend the day honoring his undeniable talent, timeless contribution to music (not limited to hip hop) and continue to share him with those who have yet to discover the universe his music unlocks within us. Lastly, a head nod to today’s producers who continue his legacy by creating new music for us to live in. 

(Source: crudamoral, via oddballsdontbounce)