Slum Village

Hailing from Detroit, Slum Village carries on the old-school, funk, and soul-filled hip-hop torch of genre pioneers A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, and the Pharcyde. 

MCs Baatin, Jay Dee, and T3 formed during high school days and quickly garnered praise and recognition in the local underground scene.

In the mid-’90s, Jay Dee became part of the hip-hop elite as a member of The Ummah, the production team responsible for multiple hits by Q-Tip, A Tribe Called Quest, D’Angelo, the Pharcyde, De La Soul and Common – as well as remixes for Janet Jackson and Brand New Heavies.

Slum VillageIn 2000 the collective released Fantastic Vol. 2, an album featuring appearances from D’Angelo, Q-Tip and DJ Jazzy Jeff.

The single Tainted broke their silence in the summer of 2002 and became a growing hit on MTV2, followed by the album Trinity (Past, Present and Future), which introduced new member, Elzhi.

Later that year, Slum Village released Dirty District, a compilation of Detroit MCs produced by T3 and compatriot RJ Rice.

By the time recording began for their fourth proper album, Baatin was gone from the lineup, a victim of schizophrenia that briefly incapacitated him (he later mounted a solo career).

T3 and Elzhi picked up the slack by inviting high-profile guests including Dirt McGirt and Kanye West and Capitol released the results, Detroit Deli (A Taste of Detroit), in June 2004.

T3 –  MC
Elzhi – Mc
Dez – DJ

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.