Dr Dre Still In Detox

When André “Dr. Dre” Young released his first solo album, The Chronic, in 1992, he single-handedly popularized both gangsta rap and the heavy synthesizer-based beats that would go on to define West Coast hip-hop for the rest of the decade. Beyond establishing Dre as a viable solo act after the dissolution of his former rap group N.W.A., The Chronic laid the foundations for his reputation as arguably the best producer in the hip-hop industry. As if those facts weren’t impressive enough, The Chronic also helped launch the careers of now-legendary artists like Snoop Dogg, Warren G, Nate Dogg and Kurupt.

While fans eagerly anticipated his next album, Dr. Dre – being nothing short of a perfectionist – took years to write his follow-up on the side, electing instead to focus on running his Aftermath Entertainment label (an imprint of Universal Music Group’s Interscope Records) and producing for its growing roster of artists, including up-and-coming star Eminem. When Dre’s second album, 2001, finally dropped on November 16th, 1999, it was met with praise from the hip-hop community, being named “Album of the Year” at The Source Awards in 2000. It seemed that Dre’s slow-and-steady strategy – giving himself the time to produce and master a record that would live up to the monumental expectations set by his previous effort – had worked. And in working on his upcoming third album, Detox, he has taken the same route, producing for other artists while writing and recording his own material on the side. But after years of delays and pushed-back release dates, is Detox ever going to see the light of day?

First announced to the press in the early 2000s, Detox was originally planned as a concept album that would tell the story of a hitman. Speaking to a reporter from MTV in April 2002, Dr. Dre stated “I'm not talking about lowriders and blunts and all that anymore. I mean, that's played. As a matter of fact, I'm tired of hearing other people talk about it, to tell you the truth. I had to come up with something different but still keep it hardcore, so what I decided to do was make my album one story about one person and just do the record through a character's eyes. And everybody that appears on my album is going to be a character, so it's basically going to be a hip-hop musical.” While this would certainly be a unique creative direction for Dre to take, it’s currently unknown if Detox is still going to be a hip-hop musical due to the large number rumored changes in direction that the album has endured. In a March 2005 interview, Mel-Man – co-producer on Dre’s 2001 – stated that “The truth is Dre has been kicking around ideas and concepts for Detox for a long time.

He changed his mind a few times and was never really happy enough about any of them,” later noting “for the last few years, [Dr. Dre and I] have been building hundreds of instrumentals for Detox.” As if sifting through hundreds of potential beats over the years weren’t a daunting enough task, the list of emcees who have reportedly been tapped for appearances on the album is equally long, and includes hip-hop titans like Eminem, 50 Cent, The Game, Devin the Dude, Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes, and Lil Wayne. Speaking to the official Aftermath Entertainment website in July 2007, Dr. Dre’s latest protégé Bishop Lamont – himself confirmed to be appearing on the album – noted that “[The recording process] morphs and twists so many ways sound wise and where it's going, man. Like, Dre will like the lyrics or flow but he won't like the beat anymore or someone else will want the production … Dre wouldn't be satisfied with some things and would give production to Snoop's album or Jay's album or Stat's. So things that may have been considered for Detox initially would quickly end up being [on] their records.”

While Dr. Dre may be busy producing other rappers’ albums (for instance, he is currently working on Eminem’s next album), work is steadily proceeding on Detox behind the scenes. The album is tentatively slated for a summer 2008 release, but that date could always be pushed back if Dre is still not completely satisfied with the finished product. As fellow Aftermath artist 50 Cent has commented, “[Dre]’s such a perfectionist. But sometimes that can be a bad thing. You create new pressure when you wait that long. When you put a new album against the last two classics, people will scrutinize it if they become impatient.” Seeking to reassure fans who have now waited eight years for his third album, a muscular-looking Dre made a surprise appearance to present an award at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, announcing “Detox – it's coming, baby” to the cheering crowd. Whether it will have been worth the wait, however, remains to be seen.

Website:	http://www.trendpimp.com
Title:	Dr Dre Still In Detox
Author:	Curtis Spring - Media Commentator
Description:	The real story behind legendary rapper/producer Dr. Dre’s long-awaited third studio album

When André “Dr. Dre” Young released his first solo album, The Chronic, in 1992, he single-handedly popularized both gangsta rap and the heavy synthesizer-based beats that would go on to define West Coast hip-hop for the rest of the decade. Beyond establishing Dre as a viable solo act after the dissolution of his former rap group N.W.A., The Chronic laid the foundations for his reputation as arguably the best producer in the hip-hop industry. As if those facts weren’t impressive enough, The Chronic also helped launch the careers of now-legendary artists like Snoop Dogg, Warren G, Nate Dogg and Kurupt. While fans eagerly anticipated his next album, Dr. Dre – being nothing short of a perfectionist – took years to write his follow-up on the side, electing instead to focus on running his Aftermath Entertainment label (an imprint of Universal Music Group’s Interscope Records) and producing for its growing roster of artists, including up-and-coming star Eminem. When Dre’s second album, 2001, finally dropped on November 16th, 1999, it was met with praise from the hip-hop community, being named “Album of the Year” at The Source Awards in 2000. It seemed that Dre’s slow-and-steady strategy – giving himself the time to produce and master a record that would live up to the monumental expectations set by his previous effort – had worked. And in working on his upcoming third album, Detox, he has taken the same route, producing for other artists while writing and recording his own material on the side. But after years of delays and pushed-back release dates, is Detox ever going to see the light of day? First announced to the press in the early 2000s, Detox was originally planned as a concept album that would tell the story of a hitman. Speaking to a reporter from MTV in April 2002, Dr. Dre stated “I'm not talking about lowriders and blunts and all that anymore. I mean, that's played. As a matter of fact, I'm tired of hearing other people talk about it, to tell you the truth. I had to come up with something different but still keep it hardcore, so what I decided to do was make my album one story about one person and just do the record through a character's eyes. And everybody that appears on my album is going to be a character, so it's basically going to be a hip-hop musical.” While this would certainly be a unique creative direction for Dre to take, it’s currently unknown if Detox is still going to be a hip-hop musical due to the large number rumored changes in direction that the album has endured. In a March 2005 interview, Mel-Man – co-producer on Dre’s 2001 – stated that “The truth is Dre has been kicking around ideas and concepts for Detox for a long time. He changed his mind a few times and was never really happy enough about any of them,” later noting “for the last few years, [Dr. Dre and I] have been building hundreds of instrumentals for Detox.” As if sifting through hundreds of potential beats over the years weren’t a daunting enough task, the list of emcees who have reportedly been tapped for appearances on the album is equally long, and includes hip-hop titans like Eminem, 50 Cent, The Game, Devin the Dude, Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes, and Lil Wayne. Speaking to the official Aftermath Entertainment website in July 2007, Dr. Dre’s latest protégé Bishop Lamont – himself confirmed to be appearing on the album – noted that “[The recording process] morphs and twists so many ways sound wise and where it's going, man. Like, Dre will like the lyrics or flow but he won't like the beat anymore or someone else will want the production … Dre wouldn't be satisfied with some things and would give production to Snoop's album or Jay's album or Stat's. So things that may have been considered for Detox initially would quickly end up being [on] their records.” While Dr. Dre may be busy producing other rappers’ albums (for instance, he is currently working on Eminem’s next album), work is steadily proceeding on Detox behind the scenes. The album is tentatively slated for a summer 2008 release, but that date could always be pushed back if Dre is still not completely satisfied with the finished product. As fellow Aftermath artist 50 Cent has commented, “[Dre]’s such a perfectionist. But sometimes that can be a bad thing. You create new pressure when you wait that long. When you put a new album against the last two classics, people will scrutinize it if they become impatient.” Seeking to reassure fans who have now waited eight years for his third album, a muscular-looking Dre made a surprise appearance to present an award at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, announcing “Detox – it's coming, baby” to the cheering crowd. Whether it will have been worth the wait, however, remains to be seen. About the author: Curtis is a writer specializing in politics, popular media and the entertainment industry. Based out of Vancouver, Canada, he graduated from Kwantlen University College with an Arts degree in 2006 and is now a contributing editor at TrendPimp magazine. His online portfolio can be found at CurtisSpring.com.