Corprah Lanfrey

Baatin of SV Dead At 35.

1 August 2009 at 4:32 pm (Celebrity, Entertainment, Life, Music, News) (Baatin, Detroit, Elzhi, hip hop, J Dilla, Slum Village, SV, T3, Titus Glover, underground hip hop)

Detroit’s heart is bleeding. My heart is heavy and saddened. I was online this morning when EAF (Edgar Alan Floe) updated his Facebook status to tell me and the internet world, Baatin had passed. I immediately said “NO WAY”. Then, I dialed Elz’s number but no answer. For a couple hours I saw tweets and statuses about his passing from those closest to Baatin but no one could confirm it. No one knew how or why or exactly when. All we knew is that we were SHOCKED.

I was first introduced to Slum Village by an ex – boyfriend back when I was 18 years old. I was handed a copy of Fantastic Vol 1. I was interested; moreso, in the beginning, at the SOUND of them. THIS, I remember telling myself was NICE!!! A Dilla fan was born. Then, when I got my hands on Vol 2 I fell in love. I had never heard such a melodious kind of hip hop. I had never listened to underground hip hop and truly LOVED it until I heard Fantastic Vol 2. I played that CD so much I warped my first copy. Trying to find another was a bitch and a half but I found it.

Baatin’s voice and lyricism and content was a force to be reckoned with. You knew when he was on. You felt what he was saying. He was spiritual and he was fluent and he was flowing. He was an MC that didn’t need to curse every other word or talk shit. He just had that calm storm to him. I loved listening to him. I met one of my exes through my love for Slum Village. To this day (and we even spoke about earlier) I remember his shock and awe at my love for a group he himself loved. I think it was that similar taste in music that brought us together. And I think its one of the important reasons why we are still friends today. The minute I heard about Baatin’s death I wanted to share with him this news and literally not even 3 minutes later he signed into MSN. Some things are just meant to be 😉

Anyhow, when Baatin left the group in ’02 (which I later found out was due to medical reasons) I was saddened. I didn’t know what to make of it when he was replaced by a cat named Elzhi – whom I later befriended. But, it worked. Elz worked. SV was still alive. Then tragedy struck when Dilla died. A part of me died. I KNOW a part of SV died. And now, knowing that Baatin has left this earth it makes me wonder, how much more can this group take? How much more loss will the fans of Slum have to bear? I was SO happy to hear Baatin was rejoining Slum and there was a new album on the way. And now all I feel is sadness. Baatin, may you rest in peace, my dude. My thoughts and prayers are with your family and loved ones. You will sorely be missed.

Titus “Baatin” Glover
RIP
1974 – 2009

***

Titus (Baatin) Glover, the Detroit rapper who co-founded the much-acclaimed Slum Village, has died.

Many details remain unknown at this point, said Hex, the group’s road manager.

Word of Baatin’s passing circulated quickly this afternoon in music circles both locally and nationally, where Slum Village has long been an exalted name in underground hip-hop.

Fellow group founder James (J. Dilla) Yancey, Baatin’s Pershing High School classmate, passed away in 2006.

Baatin, who turned 35 in March, had left Slum Village in 2002 amid health problems, but was reported to have returned for tracks on the group’s upcoming album, “Villa Manifesto.”

Titus (Baatin) Glover, the Detroit rapper who co-founded the much-acclaimed Slum Village, has died.

Many details remain unknown at this point, said Hex, the group’s road manager.

Word of Baatin’s passing circulated quickly this afternoon in music circles both locally and nationally, where Slum Village has long been an exalted name in underground hip-hop.

Fellow group founder James (J. Dilla) Yancey, Baatin’s Pershing High School classmate, passed away in 2006.

Baatin, who turned 35 in March, had left Slum Village in 2002 amid health problems, but was reported to have returned for tracks on the group’s upcoming album, “Villa Manifesto.”

“He was a very spiritual brother,” said Detroiter Khalid el-Hakim, founder of the Black History 101 Mobile Museum. “He brought a spirituality to Detroit hip-hop that you didn’t see with other artists. That’s what he was known for.

“He was a very spiritual brother,” said Detroiter Khalid el-Hakim, founder of the Black History 101 Mobile Museum. “He brought a spirituality to Detroit hip-hop that you didn’t see with other artists. That’s what he was known for.”

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