J Dilla was born February 7, 1974

James Dewitt Yancey (February 7, 1974 – February 10, 2006), better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer, drummer, rapper, and songwriter. He emerged in the mid-1990s underground hip-hop scene in Detroit, Michigan, as a member of the group Slum Village. He was also a member of the Soulquarians, a musical collective active during the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Yancey died at the age of 32 from a combination of TTP and lupus. Although his life was short, he is considered one of the most influential hip-hop and popular music producers. Dilla’s music raised the artistic level of hip-hop production in Detroit. According to The Guardian, “His affinity for crafting lengthy, melodic loops peppered with breakbeats and vocal samples took instrumental hip-hop into new, more musically complex realms.”[10] In particular, his approach to drum programming, with its loose, or “drunk” style that avoided quantization, has been highly influential on both producers and live drummers, with Questlove calling him “The world’s greatest drummer”.
…[source: Wikipedia]