On February 10, 2006, the nation and the world lost one of the most influential minds and talents the world of hip-hop has ever known. James Dewitt Yancey, better known as the one and only J. Dilla, recorded with and produced records for some of the most influential names in music today, from A Tribe Called Quest and Common to Busta Rhymes and Erykah Badu.

Five years later, the hip-hop community is still mourning the death of the legendary talent from Detroit. Most importantly, we are celebrating his life by way of tribute songs, mixtapes, and albums; posthumous recordings and raps over unreleased J. Dilla tracks.

We now have yet another way to celebrate the life of our influential hero and fallen brother: a documentary. The film, entitled Still Shining was recorded back in ’06 in the weeks after Dilla’s death, which was caused by the highly lethal blood disease TTP. The film features reactions, reflections and commentary from some of Dilla’s closest friends and family members and actually begins on the day of his funeral.

Directed by Brian “B. Kyle” Atkins, Still Shining is a beautiful testament and tribute to the life of J. Dilla, a recorded multi-speaker eulogy that exists so that generations of hip-hop fans (and music fans in general) can see what the man meant to our culture.

Check out the trailer below.

Watch the video in its entirety here.

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