Musicians Common and Robert Glasper hope to honor the late record producer and rapper J Dilla with a statue in Michigan, his home state, Okayplayer reports.

Yesterday, February 7, would have been Dilla's 44th birthday. The late hip hop icon died from cardiac arrest complications on February 10, 2006.

At the top of February, Mic announced the launch of its Black Monuments Project, an initiative to replace Confederate monuments with monuments honoring black historic figures.

“The Black Monuments Project aims to correct this sordid legacy through a blend of history and imagination,” Mic stated. “Published at the start of Black History Month, it repurposes our nation’s Confederate-centric memory of the Civil War as a chance to celebrate black heroes, well and lesser known, instead of the white supremacists who would see them locked in chains.”

Mic recently sent out a call to help them choose who should be honored with a statue, and Common and Robert Glasper put J Dilla's name into the hat.

“We should have a monument for J Dilla in Michigan because he is one of the greatest musicians, influencers, artists to ever live,” said Common.

Glasper added, “He’s the only producer that actually changed the way that musicians play their instruments."

J Dilla, forever!

Photo: GIPHY

J Dilla

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