Life and Debt in Hip-Hop America
by Alexander Billet
February 02, 2009
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When one of the most well-known producers and beat-makers in recent hip-hop history can't leave something behind for his next of kin, isn't there something wrong? The most recent issue of Vibe includes a story looking at the legacy--both musical and financial--of James Yancey, better known to the world as J Dilla.

There isn't a single head today who doesn't owe a great debt to Dilla. His creativity and innovation represented one of those points in time where music was evolving by leaps and bounds rather than gradual steps, and for that reason he had everyone from Q-Tip to Busta Rhymes clamoring to work with him. When he passed away three years ago he was at the top of his game.

By now, J Dilla's musical legacy has been written in stone. That much is safe. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for his financial legacy:

"Meanwhile the 60-year-old woman everybody calls Ma Dukes [Dilla's mother] faces health problems of her own, and financial challenges as well. Although numerous memorials and 'benefits' were held in his name, the proceeds didn’t change his family’s life. Dilla left two daughters—Ja’Mya, 7, and Paige, 9—(by two different mothers) to provide for, a sizeable IRS bill, and unresolved legal issues surrounding the use of his beats. Ma Dukes says she has never received money from her son’s estate and that her plans to establish a foundation in his name were quashed by the executor of his estate. Somehow, she was not reduced to tears even after Dilla’s attorney informed her that she had no legal right to use her own son’s name or likeness for commercial purposes. Not even to support his family."

It seems that past the hype of artists living large there is, once again, a harsh reality that these very same artists have to face. In a society where people's basic human needs are thrown aside for sake of profit, where daring to exercise our right to an education or decent medical care can put you in debt for decades, where a lifetime of hard work can be wiped out with the stroke of a pen, it's unsurprising that Dilla's family have little to show for his phenemonal contribution to music. Dilla deserved a lot better than this. We deserve better than this too.

Alexander Billet is a music journalist, writer and socialist living in Chicago. He is a columnist for SleptOn.com, and a regular contributor to ZNet and Socialist Worker. His article on censorship in hip-hop appears in the recently published "At Issue: Should Music Lyrics Be Censored For Violence And Exploitation?" from Greenhaven Press.

His blog, Rebel Frequencies, can be viewed at http://rebelfrequencies.blogspot.com, and he can be reached at rebelfrequencies@gmail.com.