In a Rolling Stone article posted last week, Andre Romelle Young, better known as Dr. Dre (@drdre) kept it 1,000 (100 is nothing for a rap-tivist/CEO/entrepreneur – the man keeps it 100 while daydreaming…). Mr. Young also kept it simple. Stating he was “gonna keep it all-the-way 1,000,” Dre states he simply “didn’t like” Detox, the album that wasn’t, despite a high profile Grammy (@TheGRAMMYs) performance of an allegedly lead single, I Need a Doctor (with Rihanna, protégé Eminem and Skylar Grey). The video for the single had two guest spots of note, Em and Dre’s physique, illustrating that the 50 year old might just be a real doctor to get results like that.
Flash forward to the filming of Straight Outta Compton, which tells the story of N.W.A. and Dre says he was “so inspired by the movie that I started recording an album.” That album would become Compton: A Soundtrack by Dr. Dre, intended both as a complement to the movie and to serve as Dre’s “grand finale.”
Although Compton the album is done, Dre isn’t quite done with the City of Compton. The powerhouse will now produce, with bricks and mortar, a gift funded by the artists’ royalties he will earn on the album, Compton. The finished product will be an artistic and cultural touch point for the city: a new performing arts and entertainment center on which he is partnering with Compton mayor, Aja Brown (@AjaLBrown). The major music mogul equally successful at “show” and “business,” understates his goal and its phenomenal impact: “I’ve been really trying to do something special for Compton” [and] “I feel it’s the right thing to do.”
NBC News reports that the Dr. had been in talks with Ms. Brown for many months looking to give back. This was coupled with Dre’s wish to do “something to make this album really special.” The mayor responded joyfully via Twitter and Facebook, respectively, with #ComptonUP and the following thoughts: “Our community should be proud and honored for Compton’s son Dr. Dre to come back to Compton and lift our community in a huge way.”
On Vulture.com, Dr. Dre confirms that the center is for “the kids in Compton.” Seems as if no one has forgotten about Dre as this move has garnered much positive praise and the Dr. has been lauded for the philanthropic future he is literally laying the ground work for in his hometown. Vanyaland.com declares the move ‘effing’ “awesome” and proclaims it is now “Dre Day, everyday.”
Call me a square, but I loved the now defunct Detox’s “I Need a Doctor.” Dre seems intent on giving his city and its children exactly what they need – a positive shot in the arm and a chance to find their path in life through the opportunity to create and be exposed to art and performance, just like five other young men, straight outta, you know.
