10 Incredible Songs From Musicians Who Knew They Were Dying

"I give to you."

Dubbed the "godfather of lo-fi hip hop", J Dilla grew his name being a part of several underground hip hop successes, such as Slum Village, The Ummah and Soulquarians, before moving on in work as a solo artist. He seemed to have music in his blood; his mother was a former opera singer, his father, a former jazz bassist, and his brother was also a rising hip hop star under the name Illa J.

However, Dilla would become plagued with illness, most notably a rare blood disease called TTP and lupus, a combination of which resulted in a cardiac arrest that would take his life in February 2006.

During his stays in hospital, friends would bring him sampling and recording equipment so that he could create music. Dilla worked day and night on the album, refusing to let anyone go near anything he didn't deem the final product - including a spat with his mother who prematurely listened to the project.

The end result Donuts is seen as the starting block for lo-fi hip hop, a style that has grown in popularity exponentially since his passing. His use of sampling created short, but expansive pieces of work, made all the more moving by his sample of "young man [who] went out and made a name for himself".