JAY-Z doesn’t typically give up the game behind many of the songs he’s written for other artists but on the latest episode of LeBron James‘s HBO series The Shop which aired Friday (May 28), the Brooklyn mogul gave Bron and Maverick Carter a little insight to one of his more memorable behind-the-pen moments.
During a conversation where Carter recalls Hov writing the Bugs Bunny rap for the original Space Jam soundtrack, he dives into “Still D.R.E.,” Dr. Dre’s lead single from his classic 1999 album 2001.
“On that reference track, I’m doing Dre and Snoop’s vocals,” Hov recalls. “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 single from 2001 would push the album into rarified heights for the longtime Compton superproducer and mogul. The album would become Dre’s biggest seller, going 6x platinum, according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and set the stage for Aftermath Records even further with follow-up releases by Eminem and later 50 Cent.
JAY-Z Tells LeBron James He Forgets The Lyrics To His Own Songs
Elsewhere in the episode, JAY-Z not only gives props to the late DMX and recalling memorable X stories, including X being the reason behind JAY-Z’s boycott of the Grammys in 1999, X’s stage presence being second to none and more. The full episode is available on-demand on HBO’s streaming service, HBO Max. Revisit the classic single with Dre, Snoop and Hov’s influence below.
I think the best dre verse on 2001 goes to “whats the difference” but props to “still D..R.E” for having the best and most iconic beat on the album
A prime Dr. Dre, a fresh Mel-Man, and a hungry Scott Storch. With Jay-Z writing this had all the ingredients to be an instant classic, and my God was it. I remember waiting outside class in high school and we could not stop talking about it.
Yeah 99 was the shit w chronic bangers
Sorry, here on the West Coast, Next Episode was the most iconic beat on the album.
Who wrote for these for jay tho??
?
Nobody he just copy’s all biggies shit lol
jay should talk abt young chris writing for him
Or how he stole Chris flow
move over old heads new rap will be more classic than this old garbage written by a camel
Dre and the west coast will never be touched by anyone.
Mumble rap is garbage.
Shut the fuck up!!!!!
Yeah if you guys can live past the age of 21 maybe… Or are all you lean rap and face tats younger rappers really thinking dead rappers get better promotion???
So why didnt it suck like the rest of gay-zs garbage?
Clown if you think jay zs all trash.. The mans your fav rappers fav rapper.. Eat a dick
That would be E40 not gay z
You a real dick sucker d.jay z is a devil worshiping Bitch…fuck boy
Rappers make a lot of $$$- devil worshiper….no just doing good and haters going to hate liars going lie
ALL OF YALL NEED TO STOP DICK RIDING..THESE RAPPERS DON’T EVEN KNOW YALL EXIST (ONLY WHEN YOU SPEND YOUR MONEY..ALBUM SALES..CONCERT TICKETS)..
GO GET A PRODUCTIVE LIFE INSTEAD OF ATTACKING EACH OTHER OVER SOME RAPPING LUMINATI BULLSHIT..DUMMIES!
Wrong.. Scarface is your favorite rappers, favorite rapper
What is this? Childrens playground? gay-z’s garbage? Who isn’t garbage then? Let me guess… Takashi right?
Can we give a shoutout to Eve please, she’s the reason Storch found himself in the lab with Dre after leaving the roots. She brought him out there
Rappers always kill me when they break their arms patting themselves on the back to talk about these elementary songs they write like this shit is complicated. The song was a hit because that beat was sick. That was what made that song a hit. They could have rapped about anything on it, just as long as it made sense. Also, I hate when people are like he ghostwrote Snoop’s part too. Snoop is just doing the hook on the song. Very complex to write still dipping in my low low. Still D R E, lol. It’s like when Pusha T was like I wrote that song for Birdman, lol. Okay bruh. That shit isn’t anything to tell anybody.
Lol what a hater
Could you post a link to some of your songs. If you dont write raps, then how is it that both dre snoop and every known rapper thinks that is a great song with great lyrics and you don’t.? Something must qualify you to take the lyrical highground here. Share with us what makes u say the lyrics are basic. Compared to what? Obviously if aliens played basket ball and could score 700000 in a game, they’d think wilt Chamberlain is lame, and understandably so. What is your yardstick for making this comment. Who else was average? Biggie? Nas? Last but not least. You are a loser. Jay gardener probably makes more money than your whole household.
I would agree they are basic for the time. I think people forget the insane amount of talent around at that time. de la, Heltah Skeltah, Heiroglyphics… The list goes on.
De La Soul, Heltah Skeltah, Heiroglyphics. All these were in a whole other lane when Jay was rapping Hard Knock life…
Silent dick you sound Soo jelly what the fuck have you ever written besides bitchy comments on blogs go neck a fat dick post your name keyboard warrior pfffft
It’s interesting how people criticize successful people as if to say their success is luck or because of someone else. Just for the record, money is not the only measure of success. My mother always says each family generation should strive to improve on the previous generation’s success. So, when you do that you’re successful.
this aint even news….people knew about this not long after the album dropped…..dre n snoop liked what jay wrote, the beat was bangin, the video was dope….lyrics were on point….shit did well
I heard Cube wrote verses for Del TFH in the early days. Is Ice Cube a better lyricist than Dell? Honestly, I think Jay is a good lyricist, but I’ve never gotten into his flow at all. I get he is Goat status for everything he has done for the game, but there are so many crazy good rappers from his day that were his piers that honestly he couldn’t fuck with, IMO. Any of the cats from De la for someone like Heltah Skeltah was on a whole other level. Or Pharaoh Monk, Kool Keith, Dell, how is Jay number one Goat when these dudes existed in the 90’s and 2000’s. Not being a hater, just keeping it 100.
Del wrote for cube
Jay 90- present day what are u talking about
Not sure I follow.
Because J is still around and still involved and influential in the rap scene where are those guys totally forget about them yeah in there prime they were the shit but longevity’s the key to be still around making music that’s the making of a GOAT
De La are still around. They got screwed by the label, but still making music. Kool Keith from Ultramagenic MCs has been making music non stop since the eighties, and way doper than Jay Z could ever be. Pharaoh Monk just put out a killer Project. All three of those crews could rap circles around Hov. Just keeping it 100.
Can’t be serious..??
I heard that Cube wrote for Dell early on. I figured it was the other way. But pretty sure Dell confirmed it in an interview but could be wrong.
I get Jay is Goat status for everything he has done for the game, but during his prime there were Sooo many top tier rappers. De La, Heltah Skeltah, Heiroglyphics, just to name a few, seemed on a whole other level. Even Wayne was just the best rapper in the Hot Boys at the time. Revisionist history?
I never knew JZ wrote those lyrics
Cube wrote Eazy E,Dre,and his own lyrics on the straight outta Compton album,everybody but Mc Ren,and only received around “$33,000 for an album that went multi platinum, that’s why he bounced…He was penning 75% of the lyrics, yet Jerry Heller thievin ass was making more than him!!
I always heard that myself, but Del said in an interview I believe that it was the other way around.
I just can’t believe the queen actually wore a American flag
This surprises me that Jay wrote for Snoop especially when song was put out both rappers are in their prime!
Who the hell is Dell??
Oops, my bad, lol, Del, the Funky Homosapien from Heiroglyphics, Deltron 3030…
Am I the only person who could tell the first time he heard the song that Jay wrote it? Same with the Space Jam song. Yeah he put himself in Dre shoes but he still wrote in his own flow and cadence. Props to Dre for being able to spit it convincingly but clearly he’s experienced at rapping other people’s words.
Why hate ..? Why even type the words..?
Del and cube are cousins so it’s only write he write for fan why not he’ll if he wrote for eazy and Dre why not write for family
Ice cube and del are cousins so it’s only right he write for family hell he wrote every on else and got screwed so why not write for the people who are blood that’s how you keep money all up in the family
I think it’s a big giant special super coincidence that Jay z all the sudden got some s*** like this to say over one of Dre $making songs or whatever while Dre is suffering from his stroke. I mean not trying to say he’s going to tacky mover he’s hurting the money but it’s kind of weird because I don’t think anybody would challenge Jay Z’s word out there in the world I could see it being challenged if takashi or somebody new came out with that b******* kind of funny that Jay z didn’t mention it all these years and decades things that make you go hmmmmmmmmm
Dre , Snoop ,and Jay have all spoken on this before. Jay is listed in the credits. This isnt news!!
I hear hate in your voice Mark. Jay-Z writing Still Dre is well documented. As recent as last year during the Snoop and DMX VERZUZ battle, Snoop told the story of Jay writing the classic.