About

This is dedicated to the Niggaz that was down from day one,” begins Dr. Dre on The Chronic. But before joining N.W.A, this “nigga 4 life” was a love-song-singing, lace-shirt-and-eyeliner-wearing member of the World Class Wreckin’ Cru. While serving time with Eazy-E, MC Ren, Ice Cube and DJ Yella, Dre created progressively more confident and slammin’ soundscapes. He also proclaimed on the track “Express Yourself,” “I never smoke weed or sess.” Now a solo star on his own label, the producer-maestro has titled his debut set after the West Coast slang for high-octane marijuana. So what if history demonstrates that Dre wasn’t “down from day one”? His album is a hip-hop masterwork full of big beats and little surprises like funky-worm keyboards and buried Perry Mason dialogue. – Rolling Stones