Jay Z gives insight to one of his most memorable behind the pen moments
Jay Z has been the man behind the penning of multiple hip-hop classics. One of the stand out hits is Dr. Dre’s “Still Dre” from his 1999 album, 2001. In the latest episode of LeBron James’s HBO series The Shop, which aired Friday (May 28), Hov spoke about what it took to write “Still Dre.”
Related content: Jay-Z wrote “Still D.R.E.” For Dr. Dre, the lead single off Dr. Dre’s “2001” album
As the rap mogul conversed with LeBron and Maverick Carter, the latter reminisced about Hov writing Bugs Bunny rap for the Space Jam soundtrack. Jay Z then decided to expound on his contribution to the penning of “Still Dre.”
“On that reference track, I’m doing Dre and Snoop’s vocals,” Hov recounts. “The reference track it sounds like them. The Foxy (Brown) reference I’m glad nobody can find that one. But you gotta have somewhat a reverence for them. Obviously, the music they were making with The Chronic and all that … in order for me to really nail the essence of Dre and Snoop had to be like a studied reverence of what they were doing. Even to put myself in their shoes. Cause think about that record. That record comes after Dre leaves Death Row, ‘How? My last album was The Chronic.”
The success “Still Dre” saw helped catapult the 2001 album to high commercial success. The album has been certified 6× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), making it one of the legendary producer’s best-selling records. The album also put Dre’s label Aftermath Records on the map, opening doors to the follow-ups by Eminem and 50 Cent that were highly successful as well.
