Roots of J Dilla

Michael Eugene Archer, better known by his stage name D'Angelo, was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. Widely regarded as a pioneer of the neo-soul movement, Billboard named him one of the greatest R&B artists, while Rolling Stone ranked him as one of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time. In 2025, he was inducted into the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame.

Peter O. Phillips, better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongside DJ Premier, RZA, and Q-Tip as one of the mainstays of 1990s East Coast hip hop production. He rose to prominence in the early 1990s as one half of the critically acclaimed group Pete Rock & CL Smooth. Early on in his career, he was also famed for his remix work.

Kieran Miles David Hebden, known as Four Tet, is an English electronic musician. He came to prominence as a member of the post-rock band Fridge before establishing himself as a solo artist with charting and critically acclaimed albums such as Rounds (2003), Everything Ecstatic (2005) and There Is Love in You (2010). In addition to his twelve studio albums as Four Tet, Hebden's work includes a number of improvisational works with jazz drummer Steve Reid and collaborations with Burial and Thom Yorke.

Dorothy Jeanne Thompson, better known as Dorothy Ashby, was an American jazz harpist, singer and composer. Hailed as one of the most "unjustly under loved jazz greats of the 1950s" and the "most accomplished modern jazz harpist," Ashby established the harp as an improvising jazz instrument, beyond earlier use as a novelty or background orchestral instrument, proving the harp could play bebop as adeptly as the instruments commonly associated with jazz, such as the saxophone or piano.

Otis Lee Jackson Jr., known professionally as Madlib, is an American DJ, record producer, and rapper. Critically acclaimed for his eclectic, sample-heavy production style, he is regarded as one of the most influential producers in modern hip-hop. His frequent collaborators include MF Doom, J Dilla, Freddie Gibbs, Talib Kweli, and Erykah Badu.

Joseph Anthony "Amp" Fiddler was an American singer, songwriter, keyboardist, and record producer from Detroit, Michigan. His musical styles included funk, soul, dance and electronica. He was probably best known for his contributions to the band Enchantment, and as part of George Clinton's Parliament and Funkadelic groups from 1985 to 1996.

Kamaal Ibn John Fareed, better known by his stage name Q-Tip, is an American rapper and record producer. Nicknamed the Abstract, he is often considered one of the most acclaimed figures in hip hop. Noted for his innovative jazz-influenced style of hip hop production and his philosophical and introspective lyrical themes, AllMusic dubbed him "the best rapper/producer in hip-hop history", and stated that he led a "jazz-based hip-hop revolution during the '90s". Several publications have ranked him amongst the greatest rappers and hip hop producers of all time, with Billboard ranking him the sixth greatest hip hop producer. In 2024, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a member of A Tribe Called Quest.

The Pharcyde is an American hip-hop group, formed in South Central Los Angeles in 1991. The original four members of the group are Imani, Slimkid3, Bootie Brown, and Fatlip. DJ Mark Luv was the group's first disc jockey (DJ), followed by producer J-Swift and then J Dilla.

Tony! Toni! Toné! was an American R&B/soul band from Oakland, California. During the band's heyday from the late 1980s to mid-1990s, it was composed of D'Wayne Wiggins on lead vocals and guitar, his brother Raphael Saadiq on lead vocals and bass, and their cousin Timothy Christian Riley on drums, keyboards, and background vocals. Originally, the band went by "Tony, Toni, Toné" as a joke, until they realized it "had a nice ring to it".

Poe is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Poe's musical style is a blend of rock, jazz, electronica, folk, and hip hop elements combined with intimate lyrical compositions. Many of Poe's songs have been featured in films and on television. Poe first hit the modern rock charts in 1995.