Slum Village Release a New SINGLE “Request”
While Slum Village’s lineup has experienced significant changes over the course of nearly three decades, OG member T3 and Grammy-nominated rapper/producer Young RJ have carried on the legacy of the seminal Rap group’s name over the course of 12 years. As the longest standing iteration of the group, their output consists of two mixtapes (2012’s Dirty Slums and 2013’s Dirty Slums 2), and two lauded albums between the years of 2013 and the second half of 2015 (Evolution and Yes!, respectively). At the tail end of their sold out European tour in April of last year, the duo announced their new album and teamed with the Bay’s Larry June and Detroit Soul OGs The Dramatics for the project’s lead single “Just Like You”. Today (1/19/2024), the album’s second single “Request” hit all major digital streaming platforms via Ne’Astra Music/Ingrooves. The new smooth and subdued Young RJ-produced track features chart-topping rapper/songwriter/producer and Big Sean collaborator Earlly Mac, and British Hip-Hop ensemble Abstract Orchestra.
FUN, Slum Village’s first new album in over eight years is due out in spring of this year. T3 and Young RJ are set to return to Europe for the FUN Since 92 Tour in April, shortly following the new album release. The duo will also be joined by Chris Rob and his live band for two nights next month at Blue Note in New York City, the week following J Dilla‘s 50th birthday.
More info and tickets are available here.
MORE ABOUT SLUM VILLAGE:
Detroit’s legendary Rap group Slum Village was founded by three childhood friends: Baatin, T3, and rapper/producer Jay Dee (aka.J Dilla). The trio debuted in the early ’90s as Ssenepod (Dopeness spelled backwards), later changing their name to Slum Village for the release of their debut, Fantastic, Vol. 1, in 1996. Originally released on cassette, demo recordings for the project began in 1991 between Dilla’s basement and RJ Rice Studios. Slum Village soon began forging a path into the Detroit underground Hip-Hop scene and quickly gained popularity, landing them with local label Barak Records by 1998. Backed by the underground imprint, Slum Village released their seminal 2000 album Fantastic Vol. 2. J Dilla left the group soon after to pursue his solo career, but still remained involved, helping his protege Young RJ with production.
While Fantastic Vol. 2 was a significant breakthrough for the group, it wasn’t until Barak and Capital Records teamed to issue Slum Village’s highest-charting album to date with Trinity (Past, Present and Future) in 2002 that the group saw mainstream success. With the absence of Dilla and the addition of rapper Elzhi as an official group member, the album’s first commercial hit was the Dwele-assisted “Tainted”. This was followed by the group’s second commercial smash “Selfish” (featuring Kanye West and John Legend), from their 2004 album Detroit Deli, which peaked on Billboard’s Hot 100 in 2004.
Young RJ continued to co-produce and engineer much of the group’s transitional work, even through the tragic passing of Dilla and Baatin. After 2010’s Villa Manifesto, Slum Village officially became a duo comprised of original member T3 and Grammy-nominated rapper/producer Young RJ. The two remaining members reinforced Slum Village’s legacy with two critically-acclaimed albums, Evolution (2013) and Yes! (2015), and have continued to carry the torch for 12 years.
Photo credit: Frankie Fultz