When Ruff Draft saw its initial release in 2003, J Dilla possessed production skills on par with anyone in hip-hop – technically
and creatively. “At the top of his game,” says longtime friend and collaborator, Karriem Riggins. After years of building while
modestly deferring to others of both greater and lesser notoriety, Dilla finally completed the first solo endeavor on his own
label, entirely on his own terms. The significance of such an autonomous success often gets overlooked, and partly accounts
for why Ruff Draft is one of the lesser-referenced entries in Dilla’s oeuvre. “It’s a mysterious little project,” says his mother,
Maureen Yancey. “But out of his entire career, that was the happiest time.”
Prior to recording the EP, Dilla found himself at a crossroads. Estranged from his label, MCA, and separated from the mother
of his youngest daughter, frustration abounded both personally and professionally. Dilla spent parts of 2002 and 2003 working
on an album for MCA that featured his rapping over contributions from other producers with whom he had connected and
whose music he respected. At the time, he was known primarily for his beats, yet reviled for his MCing by most anyone not
from his hometown of Detroit. The project was to be an intentional freak of the industry.
The project would go on to spur his collaborative album with Madlib, Jaylib, and would first showcase the template that he
would take to his greatest heights with 2006’s Donuts. The Stones Throw reissue of Ruff Draft from 2008 featured remixes of
the songs from the album, done without Dilla’s involvement. This version of the album takes Dilla’s recently discovered mixes
of the album and restores his vision for the project. “Straight from the mothafuckin’ cassette,” as he phrased the sound he
was going for on the EP’s intro. It is buttressed by unreleased tracks and is presented in two versions: LP one is the EP as it
was originally released; LP 2 is the alternate version that Dilla had for the project. Author Ronnie Reese expands upon his
original liner notes to further tell Dilla’s story, in a booklet complete with never before published photographs from
the Ruff Draft photo session.

TRACKLIST :

A1. Intro

A2. Let's Take It Back

A3. Reckless Driving

A4. Nothing Like This

A5. The $
B1. Interlude (feat. Dank)

B2. Make'em NV

B3. Interlude

B4. Crushin' (YEEEAAH!)

B5. Shouts
C1. Intro (Alt.)

C2. Wild

C3. Reckless Driving (Alt.)

C4. Nothing Like This (Alt)

C5. The $ (Alt.)
D1. Take Notice (Feat. Guilty Simpson)

D2. Make’em NV (Alt.)

D3. Interlude (Alt.)

D4. Crushin’ (YEEEAAH!) (Alt.)

D5. Rock On