Illa J – John Yancey [LP]

New music from Illa J who delivers the album John Yancey – a conceptually revealing soundpiece that finds Illa taking a soulful and ruminative look at his life, love, fame, and more. Standout cuts include the travelling-man anthem “DTW” (which is the acronym for the Detroit Metro Airport for those of us who haven’t flown to Michigan and/or just have to know what the hell all these rap acronyms stand for); an almost retro-soul number called “Enjoy The Ride”; a stutter-stepping argument against trying to juggle being an artist and being in a relationship called “On The Side”; and a glitzy mid-tempo cut called “Weather Report” that tempers the infamous Detroit sound that Illa will always be connected to with a slicker west-coast vibe. You can listen to (and buy) the album via the links listed below as well as catch up on the latest music and news from Illa J by making sure that you’re connected to him via the social links listed below.

(This album is) Definitely more personal than all of my projects, nothing specific, but I basically talk about about the ups and downs of all my relationships over the past 10 years, still grieving about my bro, etc. This one is trippy because the first single comes out a day before my 32nd birthday and the original title was 32 because this is a special year to me because my brother died at that age so it had a lot of meaning. But it makes sense that it ended up being called John Yancey because for so long in my career I felt like I was tryna be me and my brother, and I’m finally at peace, like I’m not J Dilla’s younger brother Illa J, I’m James younger brother John.

Stream & buy Illa J’s music on…
( Amazon | Bandcamp | Google Play | iTunes | Spotify | Tidal )

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/john-yancey/1439055206

https://tidal.com/album/96750239

Connect with Illa J on…
( Facebook | Instagram | Official Site | ReverbNation | Soundcloud | Twitter | YouTube )