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brain aneurysm January 8, 2021
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Still DRE: Remembering the legend we almost lost through photos

When it comes to icons like Dr. Dre, it’s important to document their accomplishments through photos.

The Hip-Hop world stood still for a moment as reports came out that legendary Hip-Hop artist and producer, Dr. Dre, suffered a brain aneurysm.

This genre has seen its fair share of death and many of the legends of Hip-Hop die younger than anyone should. The world was able to exhale as Dr. Dre himself assured fans that he was ok.

Dre’s health scare is a reminder that we need to give people their flowers while they can still smell them, and that’s what we plan to do. Here are 10 iconic photos detailing some moments in Dr. Dre’s legendary career.

Humble beginnings

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(L-R) Rappers MC Ren, DJ Yella, Eazy-E, and Dr. Dre of the rap group NWA pose for a portrait in 1991 in New York, New York. DJ Yella is giving the middle finger. (Photo by Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives)

He got his start in the music business with N.W.A. The rap group hailing from Compton, California is etched in Hip-Hop royalty for their contributions to the culture.

In this photo, it’s seen that Dr. Dre served as the main producer of the group and much of his early hard-hitting production style found its roots with N.W.A. The beginning of a legend starts here.

Nuthin But A G Thang

dr. dre photos
Dr. Dre photographed by Dave Allocca while attending the 1993 MTV Movie Awards in Culver City, CA – June 07, 1993

Here’s one hell of an iconic Dre. Dre moment captured by photographer Dave Allocca.

Here the famed music producer pulled up to the MTV Movie Awards on June 7, 1993 fresh off of his solo debut album “The Chronic” releasing at the tail end of 1992.

One of the biggest hits from the classic album was “Nuthin But A G’Thang” featuring Snoop Dogg. The pair performed the song at the awards show and rocked the house introducing Dre to the masses.

The Dogg and the Producer

dr. dre and snoop dogg
Snoop Dogg & Dr. Dre photographed by Dave Allocca while attending the 1993 Billboard Music Awards in Universal City, CA – December 08, 1993

Allocca hits us again with another vintage photo of Dre. Dre…

It can’t be overstated how influential Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg are to each other’s careers. This snap from the Billboard Music Awards on December 8th, 1993 is a testament to their friendship.

Dre met snoop through another West Coast legend, Warren G, and eventually signed him to Death Row. Throughout his career, he has always shown a penchant for scouting talent and Snoop is no different.

Their partnership would create classic hits for Hip-Hop fans to enjoy forever.

Dr. Dre wins “Best Rap Artist”

dr. dre photos of tlc
Dr. Dre & TLC photographed by Ron Galella while attending the 21st Annual American Music Awards in Los Angeles, CA – February 07, 1994

Out of all these photos of Dr. Dre this one is a keeper. To put music history in perspective, imagine TLC and the upcoming producer, in the same place back in 1994.

Yes, that happened. On February 7, 1994, at the 21st annual American Music Awards, Dr. Dre won the award for “Best Rap Artist” presented by the girls of TLC.

This was a key moment for his career. A signal that he was now a big enough artist on his own apart from N.W.A.

Remember the Source Awards?

dr. dre source awards photos
Dr. Dre photographed by Steve Granitz while attending The 1999 Source Hip-Hop Music Awards in Los Angeles, CA – August 18, 1999

This photo from August 18, 1999, shows the producer at the infamous Hip-Hop Source Awards. The Source Awards were a beacon of the culture in the ’90s and early 2000s so of course, Dr. Dre would be in attendance.

Finding Slim Shady

Dr. Dre & Eminem photographed by Dave Allocca while attending the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards in New York City, NY – September 09, 1999

What would we have done if we lost Dr. Dre to a brain aneurysm?

The producer was able to find talent just about anywhere. One of his first signings to Interscope Records was a kid from Detroit we all know now as Eminem.

This picture from September 9, 1999 shows the pair at that year’s MTV Video Music Awards in NYC. Here Eminem, Dr. Dre, and Snoop Dogg shared the stage to perform.

Pull up to The Wash


Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg photographed by Jeff Kravitz during the premiere for the film “The Wash” in Los Angeles, CA – November 12, 2001

The music artist also worked in the film industry staring alongside his friend Snoop Dogg in the movie “The Wash.” This is the pair at the premiere of the film in LA on November 12, 2001.

Play Ball!

Dr. Dre photos by Time & Life Pictures – March 18, 1990

This picture is from March 18, 1999, during MTV’s Rock and Jock baseball game where celebrities competed with professional ballplayers.

Now the icon isn’t all business. He has time to play some games here and there too. This definitely goes down as one of the best Dr. Dre photos.

Do you have 50 Cent?

What To Know About Dr. Dre's Relationship With 50 Cent
Dr. Dre, Eminem, and 50 Cent in 2003

Even though 50 Cent was discovered and signed by Eminem to his Shady Record’s label under Aftermath/Interscope, Dr. Dre was pivotal in the making of his career.

The producer giving Eminem a platform to sign artist gave 50 Cent an opportunity to grow along with Dre executive producing his first album Get Rich or Die Tryin.

Out of all the photos, this places Dr. Dre in the position of having influenced three of Hip-Hop’s biggest artists. His fingerprints were all over the culture at this point.

Straight Outta Compton

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Producer Ice Cube (from top left) director F. Gary gray and producer Dr. Dre, stand behind the actors playing N.W.A. via Universal Pictures

In 2015, the critically acclaimed film “Straight Outta Compton” released introducing the world to the story of N.W.A. the icon served as a producer on the film.

The hype surrounding its release led to him releasing his first studio album in years, “Compton” to celebrate this mark of Hip-Hop’s history and culture and cementing his and N.W.A.’s place in it.

The real danger of Dr. Dre’s brain aneurysm

These Dr. Dre photos are great and we are glad that the legend is doing well. Still, brain aneurysms are no joke and can sometimes be detected before they take a life.

If there’s anything these hard times have shown us is that it’s important that we don’t take chances with our health. Click here for more information about brain aneurysms.

Get well soon, Dr. Dre…

jimmy iovine (left), dre (right)
10K80 July 17, 2017
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How Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine built the biggest empire in music

Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre are now best known as executives that completely changed the landscape of the music business, but that wasn’t always the case.

Music was Dr. Dre’s first love growing up in Compton and he used his massive record collection as a creative outlet to avoid falling into the violence around him.

Dre’s mother Verna would host house parties and Dr. Dre, who was still a toddler, would be in charge of the music.

Verna introduced Dre to soul and funk music, laying the groundwork for a full musical education that would expand across all genres.

As a teenager, Dre became known in his neighborhood as a DJ. He would mix the old school hits he used to play at his mother’s parties with the new school hip-hop that was just starting to become popular.

That combination of genres and styles would become a Dr. Dre trademark. He’s known as the godfather of G-Funk, a subgenre of hip-hop that uses funk-inspired guitars with hip-hop percussion.

After changing hip-hop in the studio, Dre would try his hand as an executive, spotting young talent and giving them the opportunity to take off.

Jimmy Iovine went from studio janitor to engineer to rock super-producer in ridiculously quick fashion.

After his cousin Ellie Greenwich, a singer-songwriter on the NYC rock scene in the ’60s, got him a job at a local record company, Jimmy got a call on Easter Sunday asking him to come in.

There was an artist trying to work on a record and the studio needed an extra pair of hands. But in an Italian-American family, Easter Sunday isn’t just another day and Jimmy’s mother was having none of it.

Somehow Iovine escaped his house and went to the studio. The artist waiting for him? John Lennon.

Yes, Jimmy Iovine’s first work as a music engineer was with John Lennon.

After that, Jimmy worked on Bruce Springsteen’s legendary album Born to Run. Bruce would spend hours on end in the studio working to find that perfect sound. It became an obsession.

Initially, Jimmy thought Springsteen was crazy and almost quit, but after staying on and seeing the masterpiece they had created together, Iovine adopted Bruce’s single-minded mentality.

From there, Jimmy Iovine would produce for Patti Smith, U2, Stevie Nix, and some of the biggest names in rock music before moving to the boardroom.

Dre and Iovine first connected in 1992 when Dre and Suge Knight came to show Iovine The Chronic.

Iovine was floored. He and Dre had an immediate connection.

When Dre left Death Row, Iovine gave him his own company Aftermath. When the other executives at Interscope told Iovine to drop Dre because of outrage over the ‘gangsta rap’ label, Jimmy refused.

As business partners, Dre and Iovine forged the perfect partnership.

The unlikely duo of Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre went from creatives behind the scenes to executives that changed the way business and music interacted forever.