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J Dilla

Ruff Draft: The Dilla Mix

When Ruff Draft saw its initial release in 2003, J Dilla possessed production skills on par with anyone in hip-hop – technically and creatively. After years of building while
modestly deferring to others of both greater and lesser notoriety, Dilla finally completed the first solo endeavor on his own label, entirely on his own terms. The significance of such an autonomous success often gets overlooked, and partly accounts
for why Ruff Draft is one of the lesser-referenced entries in Dilla’s oeuvre. ''It’s a mysterious little project,'' says his mother, Maureen Yancey. ''But out of his entire career, that was the happiest time.''