James Dewitt Yancey (February 7 1974–February 10 2006), better known as J Dilla, or Jay Dee, was an American hip hop producer and MC, who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip-hop scene in Detroit, Michigan. He began his career as "Jay Dee" but used the name "J Dilla" from 2001 on. Many critics believe J Dilla's work to have had a major influence on his peers,http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5205096 and that he embodied the neo soul sound, playing a defining yet understated role during the sub-genre's rise (roughly from the mid-90s to the early 2000s). J Dilla was often dubbed "your favorite producer's favorite producer", and was highly regarded by mainstream artists and producers such as Common, Kanye West, A Tribe Called Quest, Just Blaze, Busta Rhymes, Pharrell Williams,and ?uestlove. http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:3fdjvwpta9ik~T1. Biography