Dr Dre is one of the most legendary producers hip-hop has ever seen and is a true pioneer of the musical medium. With the creation of G-funk attributed to him alone, the impact of his ingenuity can still be heard in hip-hop today. From Cardo to DJ Mustard, West Coast musicians draw on Dre’s work and many of his beat patterns have been emulated over the years.
It is hard to imagine a hip-hop scene without his fingerprints. Without Dr Dre (real name Andre Young), NWA wouldn’t have introduced the world to gangsta rap. There wouldn’t be any G-Funk, and the West Coast wouldn’t have become a prominent force in hip-hop.
As a musician, Dre (real name Andre Young) has crafted the sound of various artists. As the co-founder of Death Row, Young executively produced the iconic 1993 Snoop Dogg album Doggystyle and helped 2Pac with his 1996 project All Eyez On Me. At the turn of the millennium, the Aftermath founder worked extensively with Eminem and then made sure 50 Cent went to the top of the charts with ‘In Da Club’.
That said, Dre has worked with a vast array of MCs. However, even The Chronic creator has a favourite lyricist, who he is just in awe of. During an appearance on the SiriusXM show This Life of Mine with James Corden, Dr Dre reflected on his career and looked back on some of his best experiences while recording with various artists.
During the interview, Dre spoke about how he got introduced to Snoop Dogg’s work through his brother Warren G and reflected on the creation of The Chronic. Young then proceeded to address the creation of Aftermath Entertainment with Jimmy Iovine and then gave listeners a deep dive into his introduction to Eminem.
The Compton musician explained how the first song he ever recorded with Eminem (real name Marshall Mathers) was ‘My Name Is’. The track samples the 1975 song ‘I Got The…’ by Labbi Siffre and was recorded relatively quickly, according to Dr Dre.
Recalling the recording process, Young told Corden, “‘Hi My Name Is’ was the first thing that happened. I put the beat on and he just did that right away. So he goes into the studio, I hit play on it and he just went ‘Hi My Name Is’. It happened that fast and then we went from there.”
He concluded, “That was the beginning of our relationship. I think he is the best emcee ever. I mean point blank period. Of course there are going to be arguments about that because he is a white guy. I don’t think anyone that is rapping [right now] can touch Eminem on that microphone!”
You can listen to Dr Dre speaking with James Corden on SiriusXM in the video below.