Dr. Dre Presents the Aftermath
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. Dre's scarce vocals, newly critiquing gangsta rap, marked Dre's reemergence after his March 1996 departure from Death Row Records, where Dre himself had propelled gangsta rap into the mainstream. (Dre had cofounded Death Row in 1991 amid his embattled split from Ruthless Records and its pioneering, gangsta rap group N.W.A.)[2]
| Dr. Dre Presents... the Aftermath | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Compilation album by Various Artists | ||||
| Released | November 26, 1996 | |||
| Recorded | 1996 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 71:12 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | ||||
| Dr. Dre chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Dr. Dre Presents... the Aftermath | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+ link |
| Rap Pages magazine | (mixed) link |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | |
The 1996 album's first single, a Dre solo, is the only track with Dre as main vocalist, "Been There, Done That." The second single was "East Coast/West Coast Killas," prominent rappers from California, New York, and Texas rebuking rap's recently ugly East–West "war." A platinum seller,[3] 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."[4] Himself commenting on the album, Dre remarked, "It was just okay. That was a hit and miss."[5] 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."[6]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Sample(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Aftermath (The Intro)" (performed by RC, Sharief and Sid McCoy) | 2:51 | |
| 2. | "East Coast/West Coast Killas" (performed by Group Therapy (Scarface, KRS-One, Nas, B-Real, RBX)) | Quincy Jones - "Ironside" | 4:54 |
| 3. | "Shittin' on the World" (performed by D-Ruff, Hands-On and Mel-Man) | The Fuzz - "I Love You For All Seasons" | 4:58 |
| 4. | "Blunt Time" (performed by RBX featuring Roger Troutman & Dr. Dre) | Quincy Jones - "Summer In The City" | 4:22 |
| 5. | "Been There, Done That" (Dr. Dre) | 5:10 | |
| 6. | "Choices" (performed by Kim Summerson) | Isaac Hayes - "Look of Love" | 4:45 |
| 7. | "As the World Keeps Turning" (performed by Cassandra McCowan, Mike Lynn, Flossy P and Stu-B-Doo) | 4:43 | |
| 8. | "Got Me Open" (performed by Hands-On featuring Dr. Dre) | Real Live featuring K-Def & Larry O - "Real Live Shit" | 4:19 |
| 9. | "Str-8 Gone" (performed by King T) | 4:33 | |
| 10. | "Please" (performed by Maurice Wilcher and Nicole Johnson) | 4:22 | |
| 11. | "Do 4 Love" (performed by Jheryl Lockhart) | Heath Brothers - "Smiling Billy Suite Pt. 2" | 3:23 |
| 12. | "Sexy Dance" (performed by Cassandra McCowan, Jheryl Lockhart and RC) | 4:55 | |
| 13. | "No Second Chance" (performed by Who'z Who) | 4:49 | |
| 14. | "L.A.W. (Lyrical Assault Weapon)" (performed by Sharief) | 4:24 | |
| 15. | "Nationowl" (performed by Nowl) | 4:06 | |
| 16. | "Fame" (performed by Jheryl Lockhart, King T and RC) | David Bowie - "Fame" | 4:30 |
Charts
| Charts (1996)[7] | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian RPM Albums Chart[8] | 69 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 6 |
| U.S. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums | 3 |
Singles
| Year | Song | Chart positions | |||
| Billboard Hot 100 | Rhythmic Top 40 | ||||
| 1996 | "East Coast, West Coast, Killas" | – | – | ||
| 1996 | "Been There, Done That" | – | 40 | ||
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[9] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
|
*sales figures based on certification alone | ||
References
- "Dr. Dre reveals the struggles of launching Aftermath". 2017-08-02. Retrieved 2019-11-20.
- 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: The Untold Story (New York & London: Hachette, 2017).
- 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)".
- "Dr. Dre & LL Cool J Have Recorded More Than 40 Songs Together (Audio)". 2019-04-24. Archived from the original on 2019-04-25. Retrieved 2019-04-25.
- "Dr. Dre & Jimmy Iovine meet French journalist/Producer Mouloud Achour". Archived from the original on 2018-05-20. Retrieved 2018-05-19.
- allmusic ((( Dr. Dre Presents...The Aftermath > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums ))). Allmusic. Accessed May 29, 2008.
- "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 64, No. 17, December 09 1996". RPM. Archived from the original on 2012-10-21. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
- "American album certifications – Various – Dr. Dre Presents... The Aftermath". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.