Overview
As the title suggests Welcome 2 Detroit is a showcase of the talent from J Dilla's hometown, introducing a pre-Slum Village Elzhi on the song "Come Get It", and making room for his longtime 1st Down partner Phat Kat on the appropriately titled "Featuring Phat Kat".
Although it is a solo album, on several cuts, such as the first single "Pause", Dilla takes a backseat and lets others command the mic. He also covers Donald Byrd's "Think Twice", singing the lead vocals (which many may assume to be Dwele, who actually plays bass on the track).
The influential sound for which he's received praises from Questlove (of The Roots) to Pharrell alike, is on full display here. J Dilla provides various moods for his listeners, ranging from grimy hardcore hip hop ("Pause") to electronic psychedelia ("B.B.E."). The track "Rico Suave Bossa Nova" is inspired by Brazilian music group Azymuth. As Dilla mentions in the extensive liner notes:
| “ | I fell in love with Brazilian music the day I listened to a Sérgio Mendes album. We used to have jam sessions in the studio after work was done, (and) one day my mans Karriem Riggins came through. I asked him for "Bossa nova". He gave me exactly what I needed. | ” |
On "African Rhythms", J Dilla covers the Afro beat group Oneness Of Juju's song of the same name, replaying all the instruments as well as mimicking the spoken introduction.
On the albums outro "One", J Dilla takes a moment to thank all who have helped him in the Hip-Hop industry, including Slum Village, Q-Tip and De La Soul. The Pop band 'N Sync is also mentioned, hinting to a time around the album's release where Dilla was slated to do a few beats for the act. (This collaboration never materialized.) Both the intro and outro were recorded on a hand-held microphone the night before the turn-in date. An instrumental version of the album was released on August 23, 2005.
Erykah Badu, another member of the Soulquarians, would cover Donald Byrd's "Think Twice" on her album Worldwide Underground.
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