Busta Rhymes' New Album Features Posthumous D'Angelo Vocal on Unreleased Dilla Beat
Busta Rhymes' upcoming album 'Dillagence II' is built from nearly 300 unreleased beats given to him by J Dilla before the producer's death in 2006. The track 'This Woman' includes a scratch vocal from D'Angelo, recorded during a session with Dilla about two decades ago, with D'Angelo interpolating Sister Nancy's 'Bam Bam'. A music video for the song, directed by Hype Williams, is set to premiere later today.
The album’s foundation rests on a cache of nearly 300 instrumentals J Dilla entrusted to Busta Rhymes prior to his 2006 death. One beat originated from a mid-2000s studio session between Dilla and D’Angelo that never progressed beyond its initial spark. Busta described finishing the track as a way to honor both artists, bridging an unfinished chapter in their shared history.
“This Woman” layers D’Angelo’s unpolished vocal take—an interpolation of Sister Nancy’s “Bam Bam”—over Dilla’s signature blend of guitar and marimba textures. The accompanying video, directed by Hype Williams, premieres today at noon ET. Notably, Busta and D’Angelo never released a collaboration during D’Angelo’s lifetime; after his death last October, Busta issued the tribute track “Magic.”
This release could deepen appreciation for J Dilla’s vast, still-unexplored archive and reframe D’Angelo’s legacy beyond his own catalog. For longtime hip-hop and neo-soul fans, it may serve as a poignant bridge between two revered figures, potentially sparking renewed interest in unreleased session tapes. The posthumous feature also raises questions about artistic consent and estate involvement, though here it appears collaborative and celebratory, likely strengthening cultural memory rather than complicating it.