J Dilla's 'Donuts'

[NumyMufn]

I had a query today that reminded me of a fascinating review I ran across at Amazon by asdf

I haven't had a chance to check most of it out but it sounds legit and theorized motives plausible. You might find it interesting, if you wish to give the man props you can do so at the above link.

By  asdf (S.F.) - See all my reviews

This isn't Dilla's best work, far from it really. Had he made this album when healthy, knowing his work ethic, raw talent, and what he was capable of, I'm guessing this would've probably taken him about a week or two to complete. He'd made 5 unreleased beat tapes in 2005 averaging at about 30 tracks each, a large part of each being Donuts-esque instrumentals. Many of them being in my opinion just as good if not better than Donuts itself which I just think proves that he could churn these things out like they were nothing to him. What makes this album so interesting is the backstory on it.

Jay made a good majority of Donuts in the hospital while getting treatment for a slew of fatal diseases he'd been fighting for over four years. Death knocking at his door and was still more concerned with making music. He had a true love for his art and let nothing get in his way from creating it. Even when he should've been at home in bed trying to get better, he was out in a wheelchair touring all across the world. Just pure dedication in every sense of the word. He lived and died for his music.

I feel that certain samples and song titles used and just Jay's whole overall approach with Donuts proves that he knew he wasn't long for this world and that this was the album he wanted to release as his last goodbye. Titles like "Don't Cry", "Last Donut Of The Night", "Bye", "Time: The Donut Of The Heart", and so on. It seems almost every lyric sample used on this album he used as a voice to his final thoughts on his life and death. A few examples -

"Save me" - Workinonit

"You're gonna need me one day, you're gonna want me back in your arms" - Stop

"Wake up world / Time is running out" - Glazed

"There comes a time" - Time: The Donut Of The Heart

"People the time has come" - People

"My family tree, is my history / That's right I'll die here, with the world's most popular visionaries / There's a lot of sincere confusion about just what the doctor said / Too much too soon" - Anti-American Graffiti

"It's alright, oh I'll get over it baby" - Dilla Says Go

"Just because I really love you" - U-Love

"Don't ever say" - Bye (the lyric and the song title put together turns into "Don't ever say bye")

"I give to you" - Last Donut Of The Night (again, combine the lyric with the song title and you get "Last donut I give to you" which leads into the final song of the album)

The list goes on, but I think the most eerie discovery I've made is the fact that the last track on the album, "Donuts (Intro)", was made with a sample of a song called "When I Die" by Motherlode. Using the lyrics "(When I die, I hope to be) the kind of man that you thought I'd be." I think you need to hear some of the actual songs he sampled in order to get a full appreciation for what this album is and what he was trying to say with it in so few words.

Donuts' intro and outro have switched places which I could see as some sort of metaphor for current life ending -> afterlife beginning or something along those lines. Not to mention the end of the outro loops right into the intro when played back to back, coming "full circle" not unlike a Donut, hence the title of the album.

This might sound like a stretch, but I think "Donut" represents a clock, and that once it circles around and reaches its ending point, it starts anew, such as life. It's tough to put into words, but the song title "Time: The Donut Of The Heart" and the whole thing with the intro and outro is what brought me to this conclusion.

I also believe him putting 31 tracks on this album and releasing it on his 32nd birthday was no coincidence either. Meaning, maybe he didn't believe he was going to live to see 32, so he ended the album on 31, the age he thought he'd be concluding his life on.

This is all personal theory. Still, speculation or not, I think it's obvious and believe 100% that this isn't just a series of weird coincidences. Whatever it is, it's pretty mindblowing knowing what we know now and as a result, I can't help but get chills listening throughout the whole album. It's haunting and profound.

Now, onto the actual review -

First, while I like the fact that every song on here is short enough that they end before becoming dull and repetitive, several could stand to be just a bit longer. Great songs like "The New" and "Light My Fire" are the shortest tracks of the whole album, both coming in at just a little over a half a minute.

There's also this rather annoying siren noise that comes in and out every now and then randomly all throughout the album. While it's not a total mood killer, it definitely wasn't necessary.

And last and most importantly, the way it was put together seems a little sloppy. Obviously intentional, it'd just be nice if the songs blended better making a smooth transition from one to the next rather than end so abruptly. It leaves the album without much of a steady flow and at times can take you out of the moment.

Then by the same token, you can look at it from a totally opposite point of view and say that the unpredictable direction Donuts takes you is what makes it so interesting and fresh. It keeps you on your toes from beginning to end never knowing what to expect. I honestly can't decide if I'd rather have it smoothed out or not change a thing. It's unusual, but I like it.

Regarding my theory on the album's hidden meaning, perhaps Dilla ended these songs so unexpectedly as a metaphor to life and how it can suddenly be cut short at any given moment, maybe? I'm probably overthinking it too much now, but stranger things have happened.

Taking everything mentioned above into consideration, I can still look past it's minor imperfections and give Donuts a much deserved 5 stars. Again, not Dilla's best, but certainly his most meaningful. May he rest in peace.

[Ryan D.]

I agree with this person... It hit me when I started to hear the lyrics on the last cut of the album... "When I die, I hope to be a better man..."  It's very touching and powerful stuff.  I knew that Dilla was using these lyrics to tell his story.  The above review brings light to some things that I never even thought about though.

[mongo]

Honestly, that's the reason I adore the album. It's twisted, and weird, but to me it's... this is gonna sound very strange and I'm sure I don't understand it perfectly myself (in an emotional sense), a beautiful testament left by Dilla at the moment he realized his mortality and had the inevitable fear of death and what's after. I pretty much thought the same thing when I heard the album, pretty much because I went through the process backwards (I started reading about Dilla's life, and only after that I bought it and kinda fit the pieces haphazardly on the fly) so I always thought the album was meant to be that way, like a concept album. This seemed especially fitting considering his dedication to his work and the sheer nature of art (a vehicle used to express and convey feelings and emotions), and the fact that I've listened to a lot of concept albums and like to think that way of anything that slightly resembles the concept . I don't have as vast a knowledge on the topic as asdf (who I now hold in high regard), and it's really good to read his opinions on the matter as it provides a complete outlook to my shoddy, put-together view I had before reading it. The Motherlode sample reminds me (lyrically) of the song Eulogy by Ben Kenney, which goes "I want my eulogy to say he was the kind of friend that no one could replace" (one of the prettiest songs I've ever heard, and a pretty rockin' one too. I recommend it to everyone!), because I think that's what most people want at the end of their life, to be remembered as a valuable, irreplaceable person who did something amazing to impact the lives of other as positively as possible (a satisfaction that some might not get, depending on the scope of what they wish to accomplish during their lifetime, how hard they push themselves and how they measure their actions throughout their lifetime, but that's another discussion). Also, as a quasi-artist I believe the ending-looping-into-beginning thing could not only be the cycle of life and afterlife (I'm a little weird in the afterlife department, but I believe that's, again, another discussion) but also the proof that a recorded product pretty much remains in the annals of history and ergo makes his music immortal (sure, there's the chance of technological and natural failures and events but again, off-topic, and overanalyzing). I think that what every artist desires, much like anyone else does as a person, is to do something important with a defining impact, something that will survive us after we pass on (and maybe even change what was before) and leaves a mark on the world, proof that we were actually here and did something valuable. Everyone wants to change the world in some small way, to a degree... I think it's human nature. We all [citation needed ] wish to achieve the greatest of our expectations, and making something that defines, trascends and is remembered throughout the ages (becoming timeless and in a sense immortal) would pretty much prove the achievement of said desire.

Damn, I love this kinda stuff, we need more smart, deep, thought-provoking (and semi-cathartic) discussions on this board! Or maybe I just need a life .

[AdultSwimBumpChannel]

Wow. Just wow.
I never really thought about the whole thing like that...
definitely gives it a powerful new meaning.