The Chronic stands as one of the greatest albums of all time (although DJ Clark Kent might say otherwise). But perhaps, one of the reasons why it came out as a a bonafide classic is because Dre felt he had his back against the wall. Following the tumultuous falling out between members of N.W.A., Dr Dre could’ve easily failed to realize his potential but apparently, a push from The D.O.C. helped him challenge himself in the studio to concoct a timeless body of work that would withstand the test of time.
In a clip from Kevin Hart’s Hart To Heart series obtained by Billboard, Dre detailed how he shifted towards a solo career after NWA. “The difference there was money and business got involved, and it separated the friendship,” Dre tells Hart in a clip. “I had to separate myself from [Eazy-E] because he decided to take a different route. [Ice] Cube had already left, so I’m out here on my own. I have absolutely no idea what the f**k I’m gonna do, I just know I have this talent.”
Dr. Dre Made The Chronic With His Back Against The Wall
Eventually, a conversation with a close friend of his – the D.O.C. – convinced him to begin working on The Chronic. “A close friend of mine, we’ll call him D.O.C., talked me into doing the Chronic album,” he reveals. “It wasn’t my decision, I was talked into doing that. I just went in there and went for it because I felt, at that time, it was a life-or-death situation… Back was against the wall. Life or death situation. This record is going to determine whether I’m going to stay in the studio or not.”
Kevin Hart explained that’s often when people do their best work – when they have everything to lose. “When all the eggs are in one basket and either, this basket is going to be responsible for how I eat or it’s going to break,” Hart said. Dre explained that type of hunger is not common to find these days among artists, either. Check out the clip above and sound off with your thoughts in the comments.