J Dilla — The Shining

As everyone from Tupac to Jesus will tell you, dying is a brilliant career move. Following J Dilla's recent passing, the Slum Village and Tribe Called Quest producer has been justly hailed as the best thing since sliced beats. The only downside, of course — aside from not being alive anymore — is the beatmaker's surrender of artistic control. Did longtime associate Karriem Riggins employ the same Dionne Warwick-via-Just Blaze reference as Dilla's last record Donuts due to a lack of original material? Or did Dilla himself aim to contrast The Shining with its predecessor? Regardless, he does just that. Whereas Donuts' unfocused instrumental hors d'oeuvres displayed the artist's versatility, The Shining shows his depth with a string of structured soulful songs, anchored by haunted film clips and competent MCs, including Common, Black Thought and Madlib.