The Latest Breaking News from J Dilla

“I wasn’t told I shouldn’t listen to the Beatles. At the same time I was exposed to this incredible Motown music, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and all of that”: Living Colour’s Vernon Reid on inspirations, unsung heroes and the emotional power of a sample

The visionary guitarist walks us through the memories, sounds and people who shaped him as a player – and the sounds we hear on his bravura solo album, Hoodoo Telemetry

MusicRadar · Feb 25

“Every producer bows down to Dilla, whether they like it or not”: How J Dilla and his MPC changed beatmaking forever

20 years on from his untimely passing, we decode the genius of the revered producer that redefined rhythm as we know it

MusicRadar · Feb 11

“It’s the heart of my studio”: The story of the Akai MPC, from the MPC60 to the MPC Live III

Few pieces of production gear are as influential as Akai’s MPC series. We trace the MPC's journey through its phoenix-like birth from the ashes of the LinnDrum 9000 to the latest apex-hitting incarnation

MusicRadar · Oct 30, 2025

“Midnight, I got the call: come down to the studio. Finally, he’s ready. We’re talking. And then…”: British neo-soul pioneer Omar recalls the unusual reason why his first attempt to record with Stevie Wonder came to nothing

“So that was the end of that session,” he remembers

MusicRadar · Jun 10, 2025

‘I’m closer to the end than the beginning’: British soul legend Omar on EastEnders, Stevie Wonder and his industry battles

He’s worked with the cream of US neo-soul and is seen as a national treasure by his peers – so why is Omar underrated? From hits to label struggles, he revisits the highs and lows

The Guardian - UK · Jun 10, 2025

"Ableton is great for making tracks, Pro Tools is great for mixing. For me, Logic is great when you do both": Emma-Jean Thackray on the making of new album Weirdo

Born out of grief, Thackray’s new album Weirdo is her most heartfelt concept yet. Here, she delves into the record’s creation and how the process of putting it together helped her reclaim her sense of self

MusicRadar · Mar 17, 2025

The 15 greatest posthumous albums, ranked

From sprawling hip-hop opuses to haunting rock’n’roll swansongs, a handful of posthumous albums stand out among hundreds of duds. As the final record from alt-pop pioneer Sophie is released, Roisin O’Connor, Annabel Nugent and Louis Chilton pick their favourites

The Independent UK · Sep 27, 2024

One to watch: Aziya

Blondie meets J Dilla in the music of this idiosyncratic Londoner who made her name covering the likes of Grimes and PJ Harvey

The Guardian - UK · Jun 15, 2024

"The result is a track that perfectly encapsulates the 'anything goes' atmosphere of the early '90s, and makes a great Christmas record for the discerning raver": The top 10 most unlikely sample sources

Aled Jones meets rave and Macaulay Culkin goes jungle

MusicRadar · May 4, 2024

"He transformed a piece of samba-flecked elevator music into one of the hardest hip-hop tracks of all time": 10 genius moments in hip-hop sampling history, featuring J Dilla, DJ Premier and more

We spin the record back on ten hip-hop tracks that show samplists at the peak of their powers

MusicRadar · May 2, 2024