Dr. Dre Presents... The Aftermath is a compilation album by American and West Coast rapper Dr. Dre. It was released on November 26, 1996, as the first album on Aftermath Entertainment.
| Dr. Dre Presents... The Aftermath | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Compilation album by | |
| Released | November 26, 1996 |
| Recorded | 1996 |
| Genre | |
| Length | 71:12 |
| Label | |
| Producer | |
| Singles from Dr. Dre Presents: The Aftermath | |
| |
The album was mainly produced by Aftermath's production team, the Soul Kitchen, which consisted of Dr. Dre, Bud'da, Flossy P, Stu-B-Doo, and Chris "The Glove" Taylor.
Background
editDre's scarce vocals, newly critiquing gangsta rap, marked Dre's reemergence after his departure from Death Row Records in March 1996, where Dre himself had propelled gangsta rap into the mainstream. (Dre had co-founded Death Row Records in 1991 amid his embattled split from Ruthless Records and its pioneering, gangsta rap group N.W.A.)[2]
The 1996 album's first single, "East Coast/West Coast Killas", features prominent rappers from California and New York rebuking rap's recently ugly East–West "war." Dre participates himself on the chorus and the music video features a cameo appearance by Southern rapper, Scarface. The second single, a Dre solo, is the only track with Dre as main vocalist, "Been There, Done That."
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[4] |
| Los Angeles Times | [5] |
| Muzik | 6/10[6] |
| Rap Pages | (mixed)[7] |
| Rolling Stone | [8] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [9] |
| USA Today | [10] |
A platinum seller,[11] the album peaked at #6 on the Billboard 200 and at #3 on the Top R&B/Hip Hop-Albums charts. Nonetheless, quite unlike Dre's prior album—The Chronic, released in December 1992 as Dre's debut solo album and Death Row Records' first album—Dre's new offering, not a standout, received mixed reviews and lukewarm appraisals.
The Glove, among the album's coproducers, reasoned, "People were upset because they wanted a 'Dr. Dre' album. They weren't looking for a compilation album. That's what messed that up. Plus the single 'Been There, Done That' was cool, but it was taking away from the gangster style that people wanted."[12] Himself commenting on the album, Dre remarked, "It was just okay. That was a hit and miss."[13] More broadly, Dre explained, "That point of my life, musically, it was just off balance. I was off track then and trying to find it. It was a period of doubt. . . It happens with artists. Everything isn't going to be out of the park."[14]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Aftermath (The Intro)" (RC, Sharief and Sid McCoy) | Dr. Dre, Mel-Man | 2:51 |
| 2. | "East Coast/West Coast Killas" (Group Therapy (RBX, KRS-One, B-Real and Nas)) | Dr. Dre, Stu-B-Doo, Stocks McGuire | 4:54 |
| 3. | "Shittin' on the World" (D-Ruff, Hands-On and Mel-Man) | Dr. Dre, Mel-Man | 4:58 |
| 4. | "Blunt Time" (RBX, Dr. Dre and Roger Troutman) | Dr. Dre, Stu-B-Doo | 4:22 |
| 5. | "Been There, Done That" (Dr. Dre) | Bud'da, Dr. Dre | 5:10 |
| 6. | "Choices" (Kim Summerson) | Ewart A. Wilson Jr., Floyd Howard, Glen Mosley | 4:45 |
| 7. | "As the World Keeps Turning" (Cassandra McCowan, Mike Lynn, Flossy P and Stu-B-Doo) | Flossy P, Chris "The Glove" Taylor | 4:43 |
| 8. | "Got Me Open" (Hands-On, Dr. Dre) | Bud'da | 4:19 |
| 9. | "Str-8 Gone" (King T) | Bud'da | 4:33 |
| 10. | "Please" (Maurice Wilcher and Nicole Johnson) | Maurice Wilcher | 4:22 |
| 11. | "Do 4 Love" (Jheryl Lockhart) | Bud'da | 3:23 |
| 12. | "Sexy Dance" (Cassandra McCowan, Jheryl Lockhart and RC) | Bud'da, Dr. Dre | 4:55 |
| 13. | "No Second Chance" (Who'z Who) | Rodney Duke, Rose Griffin | 4:49 |
| 14. | "L.A.W. (Lyrical Assault Weapon)" (Sharief) | Stu-B-Doo | 4:24 |
| 15. | "Nationowl" (Christian Nowlin) | Bud'da | 4:06 |
| 16. | "Fame" (Jheryl Lockhart, King T and RC) | Dr. Dre, Chris "The Glove" Taylor | 4:30 |
- Sample credits
- "East Coast/West Coast Killas" | Quincy Jones - "Ironside"
- "Shittin' on the World" | The Fuzz - "I Love You for All Seasons"
- "Blunt Time" | Quincy Jones - "Summer in the City"
- "Choices" | Isaac Hayes - "Look of Love"
- "Got Me Open" | K-Def & Larry O - "Real Live Shit"
- "Do 4 Love" | Heath Brothers - "Smiling Billy Suite Pt. 2"
- "Fame" | David Bowie - "Fame"
Charts
edit
Weekly chartsedit
|
Year-end chartsedit
|
Singles
edit| Year | Song | Chart positions | |||
| Billboard Hot 100 | Rhythmic Top 40 | ||||
| 1996 | "East Coast/West Coast Killas" | – | – | ||
| 1996 | "Been There, Done That" | – | 40 | ||
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[20] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
edit- ^ "Dr. Dre reveals the struggles of launching Aftermath". YouTube. August 2, 2017. Archived from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
- ^ The exact facts of Dre's contractual status with Ruthless Records and of his cofounding Death Row Records are debated, yet in practice, at least, Dre left Ruthless in 1991 while finishing N.W.A's final album and forming Death Row amid financing and assistance now often overlooked, but with Dre himself and Suge Knight as its core founders. For major story versions, see Ben Westhoff, "We know where your mother lives", Original Gangstas: "D.O.C.+gave" The Untold Story Archived June 26, 2024, at the Wayback Machine (New York & London: Hachette, 2017).
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Dr. Dre Presents: The Aftermath at AllMusic
- ^ Bernard, James (December 13, 1996). "Dr. Feelgood". Entertainment Weekly. No. 357. New York. p. 80. Archived from the original on May 23, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
- ^ Coker, Cheo Hodari (November 24, 1996). "Pop Music: Various Artists – "Dr. Dre Presents...The Aftermath"". Los Angeles Times. p. 63. Archived from the original on June 26, 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
- ^ Ashon, Will (February 1997). "Dr Dre: Dr Dre Presents... The Aftermath" (PDF). Muzik. No. 21. p. 111. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 2, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ Gordon, Allen S. (February 1997). "RPM: Dr. Dre – Dr. Dre Presents... The Aftermath". Rap Pages. Vol. 6, no. 1. Los Angeles. p. 63.
- ^ Powell, Kevin (January 23, 1997). "Recordings: Various Artists – Dr.Dre Presents... the Aftermath". Rolling Stone. No. 752. p. 67.
- ^ Sinagra, Laura (2004). Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York: Fireside Books. p. 249. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved January 21, 2024 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Jones, Steve (November 26, 1996). "In the 'Aftermath,' Dr. Dre ushers in a new crop of talent". USA Today. p. 10.D. Archived from the original on December 28, 1996. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
- ^ RIAA Searchable Database. Recording Industry Association of America. Accessed May 29, 2008.
- ^ "Exclusive: Chris "The Glove" Taylor Talks Death Row, Aftermath and Dr. Dre (Part 2)". Archived from the original on April 28, 2019. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
- ^ "Dr. Dre & LL Cool J Have Recorded More Than 40 Songs Together (Audio)". April 24, 2019. Archived from the original on April 25, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
- ^ "Dr. Dre & Jimmy Iovine meet French journalist/Producer Mouloud Achour". Archived from the original on May 20, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
- ^ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 64, No. 17, December 9, 1996". RPM. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
- ^ "Various Artists Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
- ^ "Various Artists Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
- ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1997". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 27, 2018. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
- ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1997". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
- ^ "American album certifications – Various – Dr. Dre Presents... The Aftermath". Recording Industry Association of America.