Dr Dre and others join Game In The Studio

Behind the Scenes of Game R.E.D Album from Taydoe Kidd on Vimeo.

Tomorrow West Coast rapper The Game is expected to put up some big numbers when his R.E.D. Album hits the Soundscan charts. Keeping the momentum of his successful record, Game unleashes footage documenting the album with the majority of the guest features including legendary producer Dr. Dre, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Drake, Snoop Dogg, producers Cool N Dre and even Queen Latifah stops by to show love. Talk about name dropping. Hit the clip for the action. R.E.D. Album in stores now.

Source - http://rapfix.mtv.com/2011/08/30/dr-dre-lil-wayne-drake-rick-ross-and-join-game-in-the-studio/

Soopafly Talks Work On The New "Detox,” Hits With Dre & Tha Dogg Pound

Exclusive: The west coast's best kept secret discusses being fired by Dr. Dre, recently rehired for Detox, and using social media to talk to onetime collaborator Nate Dogg.

Even the most ardent fan of Hip Hop from the land of palm trees and gang signs is likely to incorrectly reply “Warren G,” “Daz” or “Battlecat” when asked who produced certified left coast classics like Warren G’s “Somethin’ To Bounce To,” Tha Dogg Pound’s “Thrown Up Da C,” Daz Dillinger’s “In California” or Snoop Dogg’s “Loosen’ Control.” Unknown to too many for too long is that the musical mind behind some of the finest G-Funk selections ever created was actually Priest “Soopafly” Brooks.  

Now with his aptly-titled third solo album, Best Kept Secret, the onetime protégé of Dr. Dre (whose first gig was playing keys for Dre and Ice Cube’s “Natural Born Killaz” as an unknown 19-year-old) is looking to finally let the world know who got some gangsta, gangsta shit by strategically keeping the best of his most recent G-certified creations all for himself.  

Last Monday (August 22nd) the producer/rapper spoke to HipHopDX about the just-released follow-up to his slept-on sophomore album, 2007’s Bangin West Coast, and its past-meets-present sonic direction. The unofficial third member of Tha Dogg Pound also discussed his past and present working alongside Dr. Dre, being compared to legendary music makers like Dre and DJ Quik, and communicating with a recently passed legend via Twitter. 

DX: Let’s switch gears to another one of your classic creations, the song that is the definitive L.A. anthem, Kurupt’s “Welcome Home.” Do you realize how often grown men turn into giddy little schoolgirls when discussing their fondness for that song? [Laughs]

Soopafly: [Laughs] Are you serious? I didn’t even know they liked that song. Is that right? Well, yeah, we did that at Sound Castle [Studios] years ago when Kurupt was working on his album, [Tha Streetz Iz A Mutha]. … We was working on his record, and I just told him I had a beat for him. He liked it, and he pretty much – anything I got he pretty much wit’ it anyway, so he got on it, jumped on it. I finished it up at the studio, had Toiya [Williams] come in and sing on it, [and] mixed it right there.          

DX: I don’t know if the general Hip Hop community is aware of all the classics you’ve created. Do you personally feel like you should be considered in the same company of Westside music makers like DJ Quik and Dr. Dre? Do you see yourself in that upper echelon? 

Soopafly: Do I see myself in that upper echelon? Uh … I’ve done a lot of work. I don’t see myself in that upper echelon as far as credits, because [a lot of them haven’t] been seen. But as far as getting the work done, yeah, I’m a worker; I just ain’t got as much credit as the Quik and Dr. Dre’s. Which is fine by me, but the real ones who read the credits and know how much I did, they know what it is.

Soopafly Talks Working On Dr. Dre's Detox

DX: Well, Dr. Dre obviously thinks highly of you. You recently revealed that you were “in studio working with Dr. Dre again. Making sure this Detox sound got my imprint on it too.” Is this a new version of Detox y’all are working on? Is Dre starting completely from scratch? 

Soopafly: Uh … nah, not from scratch. We just coming in, as far as Snoop Dogg and Tha Dogg Pound, and making sure it got that finishing touch on it.      

DX: Was that an invite directly from Dre to you?

Soopafly: Yeah, it was. When the man call we tally up. It’s like the Super Friends.               

DX: [Laughs] Can you give your peoples at HipHopDX any insight into what the stuff you worked on for Detox sounds like?

Soopafly: No. [Laughs] How ‘bout that? It sounds good. I haven’t even personally worked on anything yet. Dre’s a perfectionist, so he takes his time. But, I listened to a lot of stuff [and] it sounds good. That’s all I’ma say.

DX: I was hoping you had given Dre something on par with “Crazy” from Bangin West Coast. That would’ve raised the anticipation level for Detox I think.

Soopafly: Oh yeah, I was thinking about Dre when I made the beat – just that sound, that type of sound.

DX: You mentioned on “That Way” from your last album that you previously “made beats with Dre.” Can you reveal what songs those beats became?

Soopafly: Uh … “Natural Born Killaz.” Uh … “[Keep Their Heads] Ringin’.” [Laughs] A lot of [the] Above The Rim [soundtrack]: “Big Pimpin’.” During that time, the Murder Was The Case Soundtrack, things like that. “Who Got Some Gangsta Shit?” I would have to admit that when we did the song it had my drums to it. Dre changed the drums, made ‘em his drums that he liked. At the time I was like, “Ah, I want my drums.” But then I listened back and I’m glad he changed it, because his ears is and was much, much more polished than mine.

DX: So during that era – like, ’94, ’95 – were you just playing keyboards, sort of as a session player? Or were you coming up with riffs and then taking ‘em to Dr. Dre, taking ‘em to Daz and saying, “Listen to this?”

Soopafly: It was before I met Daz. I was with Dre. With Dre, I was a keyboard player. He’d bring me to the studio, he’d play a beat, if he had a idea about how he wanted it [added on to I’d play that], or maybe [he’d have me] listen to a sample [and tell me to] “Do this over,” or [we’d] just come up with something hard and just see what we can do. We just created. So it was an even collaboration. I might do a bassline [and] he might [be like], “Well, change that note.” And he might [play] on there and I might change a note. It was just creativity.

Soopafly Recalls Getting Down With Tha Dogg Pound

DX: And then Daz came in and stole you away? [Laughs]

Soopafly: Dr. Dre fired me, matter of fact. Really, he didn’t fire me, he was not doing music. So it was really nothing for me to do. So, I met Kurupt first. And then we did a song together. And then he introduced me to Daz. And when I met [back up with] Daz the next morning, we went in the studio and we did [Tha Dogg Pound's] “What Would You Do.” So, we kinda knew we was a match. And we became best friends – me, him and Kurupt.

DX: One last Dre-related question: Has he heard “Sumthin Better” from Best Kept Secret yet? ‘Cause if not, he’s gonna be mad as hell when he finds out you kept that heatrock for yourself.

Soopafly: What I did for this album – A lot through my little career, I feel like I gave my best ones away. I don’t regret that at all, but I just wanted this album to save everything for me this time. And [I just wanted] to come with an album that I think is pretty much complete – not to think that, Man, I shoulda put this on here ….

DX: I don’t know how to describe the sound … but I wrote down [it was] sorta futuristic Soopafly. Like, [with the song] “All This Game.” You agree with that assessment?

Soopafly: Uh … yeah, future and the past, kind of keeping ‘em together at the same time, but still [a] G-Funk feel to it. As sounds evolve, you gotta evolve too. Anything that catches a ear that I can make catch somebody’s ear, I’ma use it.

DX: I know producers especially don’t like comparisons, but I felt the same vibe listening to your album that I did listening to DJ Quik’s Book of David album that he put out earlier this year.

Soopafly: That’s a good comparison, ‘cause Quik is a great guy to be compared to. I know he puts nothing out but perfection.

DX: You got a nice string of perfection on Discogs.com.

Soopafly: I’m trying to hang up there with the big boys. It’s hard sometimes, but then again it’s easy.

Source - http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.16662/title.soopafly-talks-work-on-the-new-detox-hits-with-dr-dre-tha-dogg-pound

Dre Presents Snoop Dogg with BMI Icon Award

Dr. Dre presents Snoop Dogg with the BMI Urban Icon Award at the 2011 BMI Urban Awards. After he accepts, Snoop joins Bootsy Collins, Game, Kurupt, Warren G, Daz Dillinger, The Lady of Rage, and Charlie Wilson to perform his classic "Who Am I (What's My Name)."

Busta Rhymes & The D.O.C. plus others in the studio

Looks like there was a Aftermath reunion last night and no one invited Game. While Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent & Dr. Dre were running around, Busta Rhymes & long time Dre collaborator & friend The D.O.C. took the flick above. We thought Game said Dre & 50 weren’t working together anymore? You ready for Detox now?

Source - http://57thave.com/?p=43597

New Dr Dre Detox Facebook group now open - instructions

Finally the new Dr Dre Detox group has been created, which contains some little enhancements.  I had no choice but to create this new group, as FB will eventually close down any groups using the old system.

All you have to do is join the new group by clicking the link below.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/211077528949606/

Once you have joined the new group, i recommend you leave the old group by navigating to it and clicking on the ‘leave group’ link located on the side of the page. 

Eventually I myself will shut down the old group, once all/most members have moved to the new group. 

Any queries just ask.

Uzee

Game Dre and Snoop pass the torch onto Kendrick Lamar

In the biggest showing of West Coast unity in recent memory, 24-year-old Dr. Dre protégé Kendrick Lamar headlined a sold-out show at Los Angeles venue the Music Box on Friday night (Aug. 19), performing with his Black Hippy crew, and receiving onstage co-signs from virtually every relevant L.A. MC.

A Tupac Shakur video clip set the tone for the evening, as the Compton native, who looked like a mini Bernie Mac, in a black suit and T-shirt with a single gold chain, deftly controlled the crowd with a similar amount of authority, despite his age.

With Dre looking on from the the balcony, Kendrick brought out a veritable who's who of West Coast rap royalty, alternately receiving praise from his heroes and delivering crowd favorites from his 2010 mixtape 'O(verly) D(edicated)' and noteworthy street album 'Section 80,' which he released in July.

"Ayo, throw up dubs for Kendrick Lamar," fellow Compton rapper Game announced, as he surprised the significantly smaller rapper by coming out early in his set to rock 'The City,' their collaboration from Game's forthcoming 'The R.E.D. Album.' "The illest n---- in the west right now is this n---- right here. This n---- right here can flat out rap. It ain't no n---- in this city, including me, that can f--- with Kendrick Lamar."

The night continued with a special dedication to Kendrick's parents, an impromptu Nate Dogg memorium, and song after song from the up-and-coming MC's internet-only releases, as he was joined on stage by his Black Hippy partners Jay Rock, Ab-Soul and Schoolboy Q, who opened the show with an energetic set, and surprise guest Talib Kweli.

Though the sound cut out during 'A.D.H.D.,' which should have been one of the hypest songs of the night, Mos Def made a brief cameo, followed by Big Sean, who likened Kendrick and himself to Tupac and Biggie Smalls, a bold, albeit somewhat dubious comparison.

"I'll tell the world man, you one of the only rappers that inspire me," Big Sean exclaimed. "Let's be like what Biggie and 'Pac was to our generation."

After Game returned to contribute a verse to 'Blow My High (Members Only),' and Schoolboy Q rocked crowd-pleaser 'Michael Jordan,' the show took on a ceremonial quality, as Kendrick was joined on stage by West Coast legends Snoop Dogg, Kurupt, Warren G and several others, who figuratively passed him the torch, once again.

"I'm sittin' there with Dr. Dre, we watchin' you rock, and we watchin' Game pass the torch," Snoop barked. "You great at what you do. You ain't good at what you do, you great. You got the torch n----, you better run with that mothaf---er."

Things got emotional then, as the group of Cali O.G.'s surrounded the visibly moved young rapper in a group hug, and he appeared to tear up, while the entire crowd chanted his name. Closing with 'HiiiPower,' it felt like Kendrick might actually have a real shot at success, with the whole city behind him -- even the bartenders were shouting out their streets at this point.

"Tonight was for everybody to understand me," he concluded. "I'm Kendrick motherf---in' Lamar. Los Angeles, I love y'all." 

Source - http://www.theboombox.com/2011/08/22/kendrick-lamar-brings-out-snoop-game-kurupt-in-l-a/

Kendrick Lamar - Detox Is Basically Done, Will Drop Soon

Compton's own, K Dot, speaks about his introduction with Dre, another Compton artist, and says "Detox" will drop "soon."

Compton emcee, Kendrick Lamar's rise within Los Angeles Rap has been one to watch in recent times. Running from obscurity to running with the elite veterans of left coast Hip Hop, Kendrick Lamar has been getting co-signs left and right. One of those co-signs came from Dr. Dre. The Good Doc didn't just see the potential in him; he also made him a part of the Detox project, according to several sources. In a recent interview with The Masked Gorilla, Kendrick spoke about his relationship with Dre and said that Detox is basically done.

"Paul Rosenberg, Eminem's manager, reached out to Dr. Dre and said, 'This kid on the net, right now, is killing it. He has a crazy sound, a nice sound. You should mess with him.'

From there, Dre's attention was grabbed. The Compton vet quickly reached out to the Compton up-and-comer and their relationship has grown from that day forward.

"Dre heard me that minute and got in contact with my peoples the next day. It's been on since. We've been trying to finish up this project, Detox. Well, it is basically [done]."

When pressed for more details, Kendrick was quick to say he couldn't divulge too much information on the project.

"I'm not going to give no time, no dates. Everybody looking for dates. I'll say soon." 

Source - http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.16496/title.kendrick-lamar-says-dr-dres-detox-is-basically-done-will-drop-soon 

Nas Speaks on Collaboration with Dre for Detox

Nasir Jones recalls the fallen songstress and promises an ill collaboration with the West Coast veteran.

He also spoke on Dr. Dre’s oft-delayed Detox, stating that the record that he has on the LP with the West Coast veteran is worth the wait.

“Dre is the king of the gangsta music. I just did something for his new album Detox, so I’m waiting for it,” he said. “We got a nice record.”

Source - http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.16396/title.nas-speaks-on-amy-winehouse-collaboration-with-dr-dre-for-detox

Dre’s Beats Electronics Partners with HTC

Dr. Dre is coming for Jay-Z’s spot on Forbes’ Cash Kings list. In a newly announced deal, the hip-hop mogul has sold a majority stake in Beats Electronics to HTC for $309 million.

The Taiwan-based smartphone maker will acquire 51 percent of the company, which Dre co-founded with Interscope Geffen A&M Records CEO Jimmy Iovine in 2006. Beats, known for its popular Beats by Dr. Dre headphones, sells celebrity-endorsed lines by Lady Gaga, Diddy, and Justin Bieber.

“The HTC and Beats by Dr. Dre partnership is an opportunity for two world-class companies to redefine the smartphone industry and define the future,” stated Iovine. “For Beats by Dr. Dre, this represents a critical step in our continued mission to clean up the destruction of audio caused by the digital revolution and reengineer how sound is delivered, so the consumer feels the music the way that the artist intended.”

As part of the strategic partnership and investment, HTC plans to incorporate Beats technology into their phones by the end of the year. Dr. Dre and Iovine will continue to operate Beats autonomously.

http://www.rap-up.com/2011/08/11/dr-dres-beats-electronics-partners-with-htc-in-300-million-deal/

Source -

Bridget Kelly worked with Dre for Detox

In addition to prepping her debut, Bridget Kelly has been in the studio with two of hip-hop’s greatest. Not only is she signed to Jay-Z’s label, but the Roc Nation singer had the privilege of collaborating with Dr. Dre and Nas.

She described the out-of-body experience recording with the West Coast rap icon for Detox. “He’s funny, he’s so down to earth,” she told Rap-Up TV. “It’s weird ’cause one would think that after being around Jay so much that you would go into a room with Dr. Dre and not be fazed, but I definitely walked in and I was just like, ‘Oh my God. This is Dr. Dre.’”



Source - http://www.rap-up.com/2011/08/10/rap-up-tv-bridget-kelly-talks-dr-dre-nas-collaborations/

Dr Dre makes Forbes rich list

​Zack O'Malley Greenburg is the Forbes writer who puts together the magazine's annual "Cash Kings" list, which estimates the earnings of the wealthiest rappers of the past year and ranks the top 20.

Their newest version came out yesterday; Jay-Z topped the list with $37 million, and L.A. is represented by Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, who tied Eminem at number six with an estimated $14 million. We spoke with O'Malley Greenburg, author of an excellent recent book on Jay-Z's balance sheet, about how Dre and Snoop made their money, and why former inhabitants like Ice Cube, Game, and will.i.am are no longer on the list.

How did Dre make his cash this year? Is it mostly Eminem money?

Some, but he gets a lot of money with from his Beats by Dr. Dre venture with Jimmy Iovine. In fact, I'm not sure if it's an official mandate at or an informal one, but there's a mandate at Interscope that every artist -- in every genre -- has to have a Beats product in their video, unless the video is set in the past.

Also, in addition to Beats by Dr. Dre, there are other artists who have their own lines, like Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, and Diddy, and Dre makes money off of all of them. As I understand, Dre and Iovine are equal partners in the venture, and I believe that counts for half of Dre's annual income. 

D.O.C. says he got mostly stiffed for his work on albums like Straight Outta Compton and The Chronic. How much does Dre get from his classic works?

 

That's all lumped in there. About half of his money comes from Beats by Dr. Dre, and the other half comes from music. He's not touring, so I'm projecting he gets half of that other $7 million from royalties, and half from new productions.

How did Snoop make his money this year?

Snoop actually tours quite a lot. He did 89 shows during our scoring period, from May 2010 to May 2011. He's not as big a draw as a Kanye, Jay-Z, Lil Wayne or Eminem, but he certainly does well for himself, and when you do that many dates you get a lot of money. Touring and merch is roughly half [of his $14 million], and he had a new album, but he also has a lot of endorsements. He has MetroPCS and Pepsi Max, and a bunch more. He's done one for Chrysler, a couple years ago he did something for a German telecom company where he busts out of the TV and starts singing in German. He makes roughly half of his total take from touring, and of the remaining money he makes as much on endorsements as on recorded music.

In previous years L.A. rappers Ice Cube, will.i.am and Game were on the list. What happened to them?

Game didn't earn as much this year. Concerning will.i.am, at one point we counted him separately from the Black Eyed Peas, but we don't do that anymore. Black Eyed Peas actually made more than anyone on the Cash Kings list -- $61 in the past year -- but we don't consider them hip hop. As for Ice Cube, after 2007 we determined that he was more of an actor; putting him on the list at this point would be like putting Will Smith on it.

Source - http://blogs.laweekly.com/westcoastsound/2011/08/dr_dre_and_snoop_tie_for_sixth.php

Soopafly to work on Detox, too

The onetime Dogg Pound member and keyboardist for "Natural Born Killaz" adds on the growing list of new and familiar contributors.

Dr. Dre's forthcoming third solo studio album Detox has been in the making for a decade. The Aftermath/Interscope Records release has reportedly included numerous personnel from earlier parts of Dr. Dre's career, including Sir Jinx, DJ Quik, The D.O.C. and others. Another name can be added to this growing list. Today, a press statement from emcee/producer Soopafly confirmed that the Long Beach, California veteran is also contributing to Detox sessions.

"I'm in studio working with Dr. Dre again. Making sure this Detox sound got my imprint on it too. You won't be disappointed,” said Soopafly in a press statement.

A onetime member of Tha Dogg Pound, Soopafly began his career playing keyboards for Death Row Records hits such as "Natural Born Killaz" by Dre and Ice Cube. Burgeoning into emcee and producer, Soopafly stayed at the label that Dre co-founded to the early '00s, after his solo debut, Like It Or Not was shelved indefinitely. On August 30, Soopafly will release his third solo album, Best Kept Secret, on his own Fly2K Records imprint.

Source - http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.16341/title.soopafly-confirms-working-on-dr-dres-detox?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

'I Need A Doctor' cover by Clement Marfo & The Frontline

Clement Marfo and The Frontline have decided to cover Dr. Dre's comeback track 'I Need A Doctor'.
The group, which consists of seven people including a live band, have put their spin on the track.

In a recent interview with MTV's The Wrap Up, Marfo said: "There are seven of us, so it’s a full-on musical experience of hip-hop-meets-rock and we wanted to present that visually to those who haven’t seen us live before. Eminem and Dr. Dre’s latest single blew us away and we felt that it was only right to give it a CMTF spin, so we did a cover of it in our live session. Hope you all enjoy it!"




Source - http://www.taletela.com/news/8595/clement-marfo-&-the-frontline-cover-dr-dre-and-eminems-i-need-a-doctor

The D.O.C. back with Dre to Detox

In the late '80s D.O.C. was recruited to Southern California by Dr. Dre from his childhood home of Dallas. Shortly thereafter, the Texas-bred wunderkind helped bring gangsta rap to the mainstream, ghostwriting large portions of the biggest West Coast classics, starting with Straight Outta Compton. He gave voice to the volatile-yet-comedic character of Eazy-E, and helped define the personas of Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. What the MCs who used his words admired about him was not just his rhymes, but his ability to mold ideas and fragments into memorable songs.

"He showed me how to take the greatness out of the words, and combine that into a verse, a hook, a bridge," Snoop told English radio personality Tim Westwood recently.

D.O.C.'s 1989 solo debut, No One Can Do It Better, was expected to make him a star like his collaborators. Featuring his nimble, aggressive-yet-warm chops, it's considered one of the best rap debuts of all time, and Jay-Z cites it as a profound influence. But while driving home drunk and high from a video shoot for a song from the album, he fell asleep and slammed into a tree, hitting it with his face.

"I had so much in my system that they couldn't sedate me," he remembers now, over a late dinner in Los Angeles.

He fought the medics when they tried to insert a breathing tube into his trachea, causing it to scar his larynx. As a result, he speaks in what sounds like a stage whisper, almost like he's talking through a smoker's voice box. He became utterly demoralized — so much so that, when his music came on at the club, he would leave.

"I didn't want to hear that voice," he says.

Though his subsequent rap albums wouldn't prove successful — after all, he'd lost his trademark booming baritone — he nonetheless remained tight with his famous friends. He helped Dre and Snoop write The Chronic and Doggystyle, as well as Dre's best-selling 1999 work 2001, which has moved more than six million albums.

D.O.C., who is 43 and was born Tracy Curry, became relatively content in his position as ghostwriter to the stars, a post he held for two decades. But though he was one of the original owners of Death Row Records and estimates that he wrote more than half of each of the first Ruthless Records albums — including Straight Outta Compton and Eazy-Duz-It, which have sold about five million albums combined — he never got his business affairs straight, and thus never received his proper publishing. Content to stay in Dre's posh houses, eat fancy meals with the crew and get blitzed, he didn't grow rich like those around him.

"I was totally in the grips of the drug lifestyle," he says. "The only thing I was really concerned with was having enough money in my pocket so that I knew I could get high when I wanted to."

Making matters worse, in late 2009 he split with Dre, who'd put him up in a rented house and paid him a $20,000 annual retainer while they worked on Dre's long-awaited album, Detox. The situation came to a head in October 2009, when, while eating dinner together at a steakhouse, the pair had a huge blowup and proceeded to part ways.

This wasn't the first time they'd taken a break from working together, but the nasty argument — which D.O.C. still refuses to discuss — convinced him that their partnership was over.

He's since sought to get his life back together, preparing for highly experimental stem-cell surgery to restore his voice, mentoring young rappers, going to Alcoholics Anonymous and settling down in his home life.

Still, the split from Dre, combined with the fact that he might never be able to rap like he once did, threatened to embitter him permanently.

"I'm probably one of the best motherfuckers to ever pick up a microphone and spit in it," he says. "But you'd never really know that because I never really got a chance to show you."

Things haven't been all that bad for D.O.C. After falling out with Dre, he moved back to Dallas and began living part-time with the stunning and iconic R&B singer Erykah Badu and their 7-year-old daughter, Puma. Also in the house are Puma's well-pedigreed half-siblings: 13-year-old brother Seven, whose father is OutKast's Andre 3000, and 2-year-old sister Mars, whose pops is venerated New Orleans rapper Jay Electronica.

With all of these musical legends coming in and out, it's quite a scene. Badu's Dallas home is a "beautiful house right off of a really nice body of water," D.O.C. says of the singer's home overlooking White Rock Lake, while adding that he remains very much enchanted with her. In fact, he hopes to film a reality show before long about the goings-on in her house, ending with a wedding between him and Badu.

D.O.C. is well-built, light-skinned and has a radiant physical presence; upon meeting him, it's immediately clear why he was groomed for stardom. He's tremendously charismatic, striding into a Mexican eatery and chatting up the staff members — many of whom he knows from his days living just across the street. For much of the latter half of the aughts, he was ensconced there, just down the street from the Record One studio that Dre liked to use. (That is, when he wasn't randomly flying his collaborators out to places like Hawaii and Reno, where 2001 was largely created.)

Flanked by his new business manager, D.O.C. sits down in a secluded booth and orders an iced tea, rather than a beer. He's "detoxing," he notes. There's truth to this, as he's been sober for more than six months. But it's also a pun referencing Dr. Dre's supposedly forthcoming album, which has become the Chinese Democracy of hip-hop, so long delayed that many doubt it will be any good — if it ever even emerges.

D.O.C. began working on Detox in 2005, after Dre had already been struggling on it in vain for years. Their efforts spawned a series of uninspiring singles, and D.O.C. began to clash with Dre over matters both creative and financial, with D.O.C. accusing Dre of not paying him what he was worth. Meanwhile, in his stunning May conversation with Tim Westwood, Snoop asserted that Dre had now surrounded himself with the wrong people, a cast of lesser-known producers, engineers and MCs. It was he and D.O.C. who represented the historical "backbone" of Dre's operation, Snoop continued, through his own gangsta bravado and D.O.C.'s song structures.

"It has to be ... holy matrimony," Snoop said. "And right now it's holy macaroni."

(Dre could not be reached for comment for this story.)

The fallout with Dre hurt D.O.C. deeply, and he returned to Dallas at the beginning of 2010, unsure what lay ahead. Then, in an interview with the website Hip Hop DX earlier this year, D.O.C. announced the crystallization of plans for a medical procedure that could restore his vocal capabilities. The science-fiction-sounding surgery would use stem cell tissues and be spearheaded by a revered Barcelona-based physician named Paolo Macchiarini — famous for performing a windpipe transplant using a woman's own stem cells.

In June, D.O.C. traveled to a Sacramento hospital for a series of tests to see if his body could handle the surgery. He's still awaiting the results, but says he feels optimistic. He even brought a camera crew to the hospital for another reality television show he's planning, to be bundled with footage from a musical talent search. He's in the process of training a handful of potential rap stars, including a genteel white 19-year-old Texas rapper named Mike Bond. These unknowns will perform lyrics he has written, and their verses will be paired on tracks with urban superstars in D.O.C.'s rolodex — a group that includes Snoop, Andre 3000 and Badu. D.O.C. says he's in talks with production companies for the program, which he plans to title I Got My Voice Back.

D.O.C. says he receives about $20,000 per year in writer's royalties. This is, of course, only a fraction of what he's owed, considering that the works he contributed to continue to sell well. Until recently the majority of even this modest sum went to the IRS, owing to unpaid back taxes. He says that a combination of loyalty, ignorance and substance abuse issues kept him from legally pursuing his publishing credits over the years.

But now he's ready for a new day. He has paired up with a crackerjack PR rep named Chad Kiser, as well as a new full-time business manager, John Huffman, who has worked hard to get him the royalties he deserves.

"We're happy now about the situation with 2001," Huffman notes, adding that D.O.C. still hasn't received his just due from his Ruthless contributions.

More recently, something else fortuitous happened to the ghostwriter — he received a call from Dr. Dre, who invited him to come back to California. Snoop was brought back into the fold as well, and the trio resumed work on Detox at Dre's Burbank studios in late July.

D.O.C. says he feels reinvigorated creatively, and that he brought Dre ideas to help "get that core audience back, with those types of songs, and that California vibe from the Chronic album." Don't scoff: D.O.C. insists that the album really is coming soon.

"He's pretty fucking close," D.O.C. says, adding that he plans to move back to L.A. for six months — time enough, he contends, to complete the work.

This go around, however, he plans a different type of working relationship with the famed producer. Instead of having Dre put him up and pay him a measly salary, he's going to rent a house for himself — "in Marina del Rey, with the artists" — and make sure he receives his proper back-end publishing. He says that Snoop has called their recent reunion "magical."

D.O.C. isn't entirely certain what caused Dre's change of heart, as Dre told him he didn't want to focus on the past. He speculates that one factor may have been Snoop's impassioned plea to Westwood, while another is simply that their loyalty runs deep.

"We all got love for each other," he says. "I love Dre like my fucking family."

Dre appears to feel the same way. One night in the studio a couple of weeks ago, he took a break from playing his new beats to put on a Beethoven symphony. As it played, Dre noted that the composer had created the work after he had gone deaf.

"And he drilled the point into my head — that most of Beethoven's greatest compositions were created after he lost his hearing," D.O.C. says. "I got the message."

Source - http://www.dallasobserver.com/2011-08-04/music/legendary-dallas-rapper-d-o-c-starts-his-return-to-the-top/

Dre Narrates R.E.D. Album

Game has spent nearly three years working on his oft-delayed project The R.E.D. Album, which he finally finished just last week. Before the LP drops on August 23rd, the Compton, California native spoke with MTV News’ Sway Calloway on RapFix Live to discuss details surrounding the album most notably revealing that Dr. Dre narrates the entire offering.“It’s narrated by Dr. Dre, the entire album. So it’s real movie-ish man. It’s going to be crazy,” he said.

Source http://www.hiphopdx.com/m/index.php?s=news&id=16289

Kendrick Lamar Complex Interview-Dre/Detox

Complex Mag rcently conducted an interview with Kendrick Lamar, in the full interview he talked about Section.80, major labels amongst other things.

Below is the excerpt of the interview, where he discuses working with Dre and work on Detox.

What about Aftermath? You were seen with Dre, he stood closer to you than any artist he has actually signed in ten years.

That is because Dre and I have a personal relationship. In the first studio session, we clicked so crazy. It was more like a uncle-nephew kind of vibe. Because everybody sees Dre as just a gangsta rapper, but he shares the same story that I have, a good kid in a mad city.

When we sit in the studio, we talk about these different streets that we both lived on and experiences he had that I can relate to being two generations younger. I think that’s why people attach it so strongly because of the chemistry that we have outside the studio.

 

Dre has signed other guys, like Joell Ortiz and Slim Da Mobster, but he never appeared with them anywhere. He went to the Lakers game with you, he went on stage with you. He never did that for anyone else.

 
It’s the relationship, truthfully. And the music making is that much better though. When you are able to create and click in the studio and outside the studio. I respect Dre 100%. He gave me so much game just in this past year that I’ve known him, it won’t only make me a better artist, but it makes me a better person.

What did he tell you?

 
Just about life in general. About having passion, setting goals, and having a vision. I never understood vision to that pedigree until I sat in that studio and he wrote down everything that manifested in his life—he’s seen it before. You can’t really grasp that concept that people have because they can’t really justify it because they can’t touch it.

Everything that has manifested in his life in the past year, he’s seen it at the start of N.W.A. People can never justify that because they can’t grab it. They can’t think that heavy on that type of level. That was the coldest shit he told me because he was telling me the steps on how he’s seen this album and this record doing this and seeing his label doing this and they actually did that.

It’s basically about believing in yourself and having the dedication he has. Being under him and watching the passion, the same type of feel he has since the first early days of N.W.A., it’s crazy. It makes me go harder.

 

You talk about learning to believe in yourself from Dre. On “I Need A Doctor” Eminem talks about Dre second-guessing himself all the time. Have you ever gotten that same sort of impression? That Dre is second-guessing himself?

 
Nah, what I got was that he knows he has the world on his back, as far as the music. I’ve gotten more of the passion than anything, just making sure everything is right. He’s like a scientist in there. I think that’s something that all artists have to develop within themselves. His is just at a point where it’s unmatched.

I mean, ten years...

 
[Laughs.] Right, when I say that it’s really unmatched, everything has to be right. He is real critical and he has a passion for the music so heavy where he can’t go out unless he feels it’s right, so I feel him.

Did you put in any work on Detox?

 
I did a lot of verses. To be in there and see the quality of music it is, the shit that he just has in the cut, waiting. It’s unmatched.

You seem to know, is Detox coming out this year or what?

 
I can’t give no date. I’m not even about to throw a date in the air. When it comes, he’ll have the whole industry shut down.

I was so convinced it was coming when the video came out...

 
The video definitely tells you it’s about to come out. He ain’t put out no video [before]. The leaks and that shit don’t count. When you put out an actual video and spend money, it’s coming.

You’ve said before that Section.80 wasn’t the right time for people to first hear you over a Dre beat. When do you think you will start releasing music that you have worked on with him?

 
I wanted to save that. I wanted to give a beat by Dre its own light. I didn’t want to put it on Section.80. I want Section.80 to have its own light, its own entity. I didn’t want people to want to purchase the project because I had two or three crazy ass Dre beats. I think I made the right choice because once they hear the shit that I’ve done with him, they’re going to appreciate it a lot more.

Did Dre have any contribution toward how you put together Section.80?

 
Nah. Y’all heard the album just the way I played it [for Dre]. I wanted to get his perspective on it and see what he thought about it. He loved it. He said it was different. Different as in different-good. Everything that’s different is not good. [Laughs.] He loved it. That studio footage of me and him in there, that’s when I was playing the joints.

You have beats from Dre, beats from Pharrell. These are pricey guys to get. How do you afford beats from them?
That’s off the relationship.

Are you getting a discount?

 
[Laughs.] Hopefully. I make that record and we try to release that motherfucker, then they try to charge me five hundred racks for it. Fuck! Nah, I’m just fuckin’ around. But yeah, hopefully. If they love the record that much and they believe in me, hopefully, because I definitely don’t have that type of money.

So you guys have never had that type of discussion?

 
Nah, that’s what you don’t want to do. That’ll ruin the artist and the producer. I wouldn’t want no producer telling me, “Let me talk to ya folks first about this record.” I don’t even want this shit anymore because I can’t even put my all into it and be creative without thinking about numbers that I don’t have.

Source - http://www.complex.com/music/2011/08/interview-kendrick-lamar?page=1