Royce Da 5'9 Teams With Detroit Pistons To Celebrate J Dilla's Life & Legacy

The Detroit Pistons partnered with Royce Da 5’9 to create a capsule collection honoring Hip-Hop legend J Dilla. The NBA team announced the collaboration on J Dilla’s birthday (February 7).

J Dilla’s family gave their blessing to the Pistons. The team connected with his estate via the late producer’s longtime collaborator Frank Nitt.

“It has honestly been a long time coming,” J Dilla’s daughter Ja’Mya Yancey said. “I am just so glad that we were finally able to do something so major through the appropriate channels and highlight my dad in a way that was fun and exciting while respecting his estate at the same time.”

Royce Da 5’9 served as the art director for the J Dilla capsule. The former Slaughterhouse rapper appreciated the opportunity to contribute, noting how important honoring J Dilla was to the Detroit Hip-Hop scene.

“Dilla’s enduring legacy is a treasure that must be safeguarded at any expense,” Royce Da 5’9 said. “It is a great honor to be responsible for curating his likeness in this exclusive merchandise drop entrusted to me by his estate and the Pistons. This campaign holds major significance not just for myself, but also for the city of Detroit and the Hip-Hop community as a whole.”

J Dilla’s Pistons capsule will be released on March 13. Fans can purchase the merchandise at Pistons313Shop.com.

The Pistons will reveal images and product details for the items in the weeks leading up to the capsule’s release. The J Dilla merch drops on the same day the Pistons play the Toronto Raptors at Little Caesars Arena.

J Dilla passed away after battling thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura and lupus in 2006. He was 32.

The influential producer received critical acclaim as a solo artist and member of Slum Village. He produced tracks for A Tribe Called Quest, Common, Busta Rhymes and many more.