Yancey Boys

Illa J | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 4, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Delicious Vinyl
• ASIN: B001GJ2ZPC
• In-Print Editions: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #93,116 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Timeless

2. We Here

3. R U Listenin'? feat. Guilty Simpson

4. Alien Family by Frank Nitty

5. Strugglin

6. Showtime

7. Swagger

8. Mr. Shakes (Skit) aka Affion Crockett

9. DFTF feat. Affion Crockett

10. All Good

11. Sounds Like Love feat. Debi Nova

12. Everytime

13. Illasoul

14. Air Signs

Editorial Reviews

John "Illa J" Yancey, younger brother of late, great genius producer James Yancey (aka Jay Dee, J Dilla), is currently completing his debut album for Delicious Vinyl. With the multi-talented Illa J rhyming and singing over a treasure trove of previously untouched Jay Dee gems, the project represents both a full-circle collaboration and a whole new beginning in the story of the musically exceptional Yancey brothers. When Jay Dee passed away from complications relating to lupus in February 2006, he left behind an extraordinary legacy of production work, including hits for Common, Janet Jackson, and Busta Rhymes. One mother lode of previously untouched beats dates from his time working on the Pharcyde s sophomore album "Labcabincalifornia" (1995). As DV owner and founder Michael Ross explains, "From '95 through '98 Jay Dee was my go-to guy for hot beats and remixes. He was always making beats, always. So there was a select amount of tracks that he composed for me during that time, tracks as good as anything he'd done, only they never got used. When I finally met Illa J last year, I gave him a CD containing those unreleased beats." It was a case of pure serendipity, since 21-year-old Illa J had just relocated to Los Angeles and constructed a studio built around Jay Dee's own recording equipment, dubbing it Yancey Boy Studios in tribute to their fraternal bond. "Dilla was twelve years older than me", Illa J says, "so back in the day in Detroit I was just a little kid, sitting on the stairs in our house, watching him make those first beats for Slum Village. So I always felt my brother's tracks and had an instinct for what I wanted to do over them." When Illa J set to work in early 2008 on recording the album, the project flowed quickly as he entered the proverbial can't-miss zone. As Illa J says, "One of the things I learned from my brother is that you don't get that much time, so make the most of it. That's why I've decided to dedicate my life to doing what I love: music. To work with Delicious, the label that released those hits my brother made with The Pharcyde ("Runnin'" and "Drop") is really special." Michael Ross says, "Illa J can write, sing, play instruments and rap. Not just a little bit of each, he's really the complete package! And anyone who loves Jay Dee's music is going to flip out when they hear what Illa J's been laying down. For over a decade these beats have been waiting in the vault for this moment. It's like Jay Dee made these tracks with an extrasensory purpose, so that Illa J could make this album. There is no question that this is exactly what they were meant for. These beats belong to Illa J, they re his birthright, and I really believe Jay Dee would be proud of what his brother is doing."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 3.75 Stars! Illa J Has Potential!, February 26, 2009

By 

Southern Rap Pro "Sipping on that SyRuP!" (Boogie Down, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Yancey Boys (Audio CD)

So I've had this joint for a while now and just got around to putting down my thoughts. This was a project conceived by the people at Delicious Vinyl and I think it was great idea. Basically, DV had some beats from J Dilla which they had never put out and decided to give them to his little brother Illa J for him to make his debut album. Definitely something dope to do!

The beats are from Jay Dee's time at DV so we're looking at mid to late 1990s here and they are nice! Vintage Jay Dee here! Nothing really super catchy like some of his hits, but everything here is very solid and has a nice cohesive vibe. The beats alone would hit around 4 to 4.25 to me.

Illa J is an average rapper/singer right now. The one review is a little too harsh. His singing isn't bad, but it certainly isn't enough to hold up the album. Lyrically, Illa J isn't too bad at times. Some tracks, like "Swagger," do venture into the extremely average, but other tracks he does a good job. His flow is nothing spectacular, but it is solid and gets the job done. Overall, I think he has potential to grow into a better emcee.

The main draw here is the vintage Jay Dee beats, but I think Illa J does a good job here of flowing over his brother's beats so I will be checking out his music in the future. Jay Dee fans definitely need to cop this or if you just don't like Illa J get the instrumental version that just dropped.

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Amazing, January 20, 2009

By 

J. D. Trevathan (Knoxville, TN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Yancey Boys (Audio CD)

The most laid-back, jazzy funk beats to grace my iPod combined with a up and comer who has decent rhymes and like his bro can actually sing pretty good. More than anything, it's just nice to know that talent runs wild in this Yancey family and it's possible a torch has been passed as long as this young man works hard at it. Recommended for anyone who ever heard a Dilla beat.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Illa Jay iller than you, July 22, 2011

By 

Mike Durden - See all my reviews

This review is from: Yancey Boys (Audio CD)

Ok for all you dissing illa jay's rhymes are pure haters. If you know anything about Dilla/slum music ITS REALLY NOT ABOUT THE FLOW, its about the vibe of the music, the rhyming is more or less sprinkles across dilla's materpieces. The fantastic albums are all about style raps and vibes not crazy ill punchlines or story book rhyming. Back in the fantastic days they didnt even write over half that stuff, its all based on the vibe of the beats. Now, Illa Jay is the only thing close to having Dilla back or to recreate that style of rhyming Dilla put out. If your looking for in depth lyrics cop Elzhi's work or even Guilty Simpson. No one could have done this type of album better than him. We are actually lucky to even hear these beats that have been locked away for so long. If this album only had 3 tracks it would still be a classic. If you diss agree with what im saying YOU ARE NOT A TRUE slumvillgae/elzhi/fatcat/Black milk/Guilty/t3/proof/wajeed fan. There are peeps out there that can fell me on this. So to all who gave this album less that 5 stars do this.. shut up listen to Everytime or the whole Pharcyde album or even J88 for the next 48 hours and you might understand something about real detroit hip hop. One luv to the whole Yancey fam.