Death Row Records was a record label founded in 1991 by Marion "Suge" Knight Jr. and Andre "Dr. Dre" Young, and was once home to some of West Coast hip hop's best-known rappers, including Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, 2Pac, Nate Dogg, Tha Dogg Pound, Sam Sneed and DJ Quik.
Death Row has sold nearly 50 million albums worldwide, and generated close to $750 million in revenue. The label was also once home to The D.O.C., Jewell, RBX, The Lady of Rage, K-Solo, Michel'le, Danny Boy, Petey Pablo, Tha Realest, and Crooked I. In addition, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes of TLC was signed on and working on an album when she died in a car accident in Honduras.
Origin/Leaving Ruthless Records
In the late '80's, producer
Andre "Dr. Dre" Young was a member of the
gangsta rap group
N.W.A., signed to fellow member
Eric "Eazy-E" Wright's
Ruthless Records. As head of production at the label, Dre produced a large number of Ruthless projects, many of them high-selling; feeling the pressures of having to produce so many acts, Dre became frustrated with Ruthless. After the departure of
Ice Cube over financial disagreements with manager
Jerry Heller, artist and friend
The D.O.C. went over the books with a lawyer. Convinced that Heller was dishonest, they approached Young about forming a label with them, away from Heller and Eazy-E. Allegedly using strong-arm tactics, Knight was able to procure contracts from Eazy for The D.O.C., Dr. Dre and singer
Michel'le.
Knight approached successful rapper Robert "Vanilla Ice" Van Winkle, using management connections with rapper Mario "Chocolate" Johnson, claiming that Johnson had written and produced the song "Ice Ice Baby", and had not received credit or royalties for the song. Knight and two bodyguards arrived at The Palm in West Hollywood, where Van Winkle was eating. After shoving Van Winkle's bodyguards aside, Knight and his own bodyguards sat down in front of Van Winkle, staring at him before finally asking "How you doin'?" Knight also approached Michael "Harry-O" Harris, a businessman incarcerated on drug and attempted murder charges. Through David Kenner, a criminal attorney handling Harris's appeal, Harry-O set up Godfather Entertainment, a parent company for the newly-christened Death Row Records.
International success & controversy
The Chronic
With Kenner's expertise as incentive, Suge Knight began signing young inner-city California artists and arranged for Death Row to handle the
soundtrack for the 1992
Laurence Fishburne/
Jeff Goldblum film
Deep Cover. The single, "
Deep Cover", established Dre as a solo artist and a young
Snoop "Doggy" Dogg as his protege. Work soon began on
The Chronic, Dre's solo album, which heavily featured Snoop and the rest of the label's core roster. Its singles, "
Fuck Wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebratin')" and "
Nuthin' but a "G" Thang", saw Dre and Snoop responding to disses by Eazy-E and other artists at Ruthless over Dre's leaving the label and N.W.A.
The album went on to sell three million records, establishing the west coast in hip-hop and popularizing the distinctive style of g-funk. Continuing to release albums boycotting Dre, Eazy-E claimed the success of the album and its singles netted him nearly as much money as it did Young, though the album became Death Row's first landmark release and solidified the status of the label and its artists.
Doggystyle
After finding solo success, Dre began crafting Snoop Dogg's debut album
Doggystyle; the process took two years, and Snoop's debut was finally released in 1993 due to public demand and high pressure from retailers. Though unfinished, it outdid The Chronic'' at four times platinum, and garnered similarly glowing reviews. Soon after the release of the album, controversy began to hit the label; Snoop was charged with murder, fueling the debate that politicians
C. Delores Tucker and then-presidential candidate
Dan Quayle sparked by denouncing
gangsta rap as against American values, encouraging violence towards police officers, and degrading to black women. They used the music and video images of Death Row Records as examples.
Suge Knight's rise & Dr. Dre's departure
Signing 2Pac and Bad Boy feud
By 1995, the label began to flood with Knight's cronies—friends and gang members fresh out of jail, as well as off-duty police officers later implicated in the
Rampart scandal, working as security. Emboldened, Knight began taking more control of the label and further sought the spotlight, while Dr. Dre receded into the background, shying away from the increasingly violent atmosphere and Suge's newfound volatility. C. Delores Tucker's pressure to conform extended to a joint proposal by herself and a Warner executive to set up a record label with Knight to put out content-controlled rap music, which Knight billed as a breach of contract, His control over the label diminished, Nate Dogg was able to leave, followed by Snoop Dogg and Kurupt; after the release of his own and the
Lady of Rage's solo albums, Daz and Rage followed suit.
Jamal Wright left for good in 1999 and Daz would later return in 1999 with Big C-Style to form Dogg Pound Records only to leave again in early 2001. Kurupt returned to the label in 2002 upon Suge Knight's release from prison. The record label was renamed Tha Row.
Death Row in the 2000s
2nd generation exodus
Maintaining artistic control from behind bars, Knight launched smear campaigns against several of his former artists, most notably Snoop Dogg. The label supported itself with releases pulled from vaults—most successfully various posthumous 2Pac albums, along with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg re-releases and then-unreleased compilation records such as
and
Snoop Dogg: Dead Man Walkin. He signed new talent, including
Crooked I,
Left Eye of TLC, Top Dogg and
Tha Realest, picking up affiliates
Spider Loc and Eastwood. He also appointed former Ruthless Records artist
Cold 187um head producer, to oversee the 2Pac album
Until the End of Time and unauthorized Dogg Pound release
2002. Despite bad blood, Kurupt would again sign with Suge Knight in exchange for the position of Vice President, which sparked a feud between himself and former friends Daz and Snoop Dogg. Mentoring Crooked I, he began work on
Against tha Grain; his verbal feud with his former partners continued from 2002 to 2005.
After promoting his new talent for years from prison, directing a campaign against his former artists and exacerbating the conflict between Daz and Kurupt, Suge had still yet to release any albums by his living artists. In 2004, Spider Loc signed a deal with G-Unit and enjoined a verbal bout with rapper The Game, leaving Knight and Death Row behind. After Kurupt's second departure, Against tha Grain was released; soon after, citing dissatisfaction with serving five years on the label and seeing no release, Crooked I also left Death Row, eventually filing a gag order on Knight to prevent the mogul's interference with his finding a new deal. Petey Pablo, who had signed in 2005 and started the never-released album Same Eyez on Me, left along with rapper Tha Realest in 2006.
Legal troubles
Further legal troubles included Suge Knight's possible implication in the 1997 murder of The Notorious B.I.G. in Los Angeles, California. A federal informant provided testimony that
Los Angeles police officers David Mack and
Rafael Perez--both implicated in the Rampart scandal—worked as security for Death Row when off-duty, and that they and Suge Knight had conspired to have Biggie killed after a party the rapper attended on the night of his murder. However, testifying in a wrongful-death lawsuit brought by B.I.G.'s mother and widow, he went back on his testimony, claiming it as hearsay. In the same case, a second prison informant named Kenny Boagni claimed that Mack and Perez were indeed on the label's payroll at the time. The case was eventually declared a mistrial, and criminal investigation reopened, though a second suit has thus far brought no claims against Knight directly.
Knight was also investigated in 2005 for paying a man to punch Dr. Dre as he accepted a lifetime achievement award at the 2004 Vibe Awards; though he denies the claim, the assailant apparently told Santa Monica police that Knight offered him $5,000 for the job. A lawsuit was brought against him by Lydia Harris, resulting in a court order to pay her $107 million in profits owed after she'd been forced from the label. The judgment resulted in Knight declaring bankruptcy in 2006, after turning down Warner Music Group's offer to buy at $25 million, and made to auction off all assets of the label.
'06 also saw Dr. Dre bring a lawsuit against the label demanding rights to The Chronic, by reason of unpaid royalties. By 2008, it was reported separately that Susan Berg, president of Global Music Group, bid on the label at auction for $24 million, and that Warner had topped her bid by reiterating its $25 million dollar offer, but neither sale went through; questions regarding Knight's financial status surfaced when he sued Kanye West over a shooting/robbery at the rapper's birthday party.
On January 15 of 2009, Death Row Records was successfully auctioned to entertainment development company WIDEawake Entertainment Group, Inc. for $18 million.
On January 25 of 2009, an auction was held for everything found in the Death Row Records office after the company filed for bankruptcy. Of note was the Death Row Records electric chair which went for $2500.
WIDEawake ownership
Acquisition by WIDEawake
WIDEawake-Deathrow Entertainment LLC, the current holder of the Death Row assets, is a Delaware LLC. An off-shoot of WIDEawake Entertainment Group, Inc., the LLC was formed concurrently when the material and associated rights were acquired in February 2009 by WIDEawake Entertainment Group Inc. Since the acquisition, the company has continued to release material from its vast archives of materials acquired in the sale. Noteworthy releases include previously commercially unreleased material from such artists as Snoop Dogg, Kurrupt, Danny Boy, Crooked I, Sam Sneed, and the LBC Crew. Since the acquisition of the material, WIDEawake-Deathrow Entertainment LLC, under the management of WIDEawake Entertainment Group Inc., has made many positive steps towards improving the image of Death Row by making good on its promise to make royalty payments to many of the various artists, producers, and songwriters with commercially released material under the label.
Releases
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!align="left"|Album information
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Dr. Dre –
The Chronic
Released: December 15, 1992
Chart positions: #3 Billboard
RIAA certification: 3x Platinum
Singles: "Fuck Wit Dre Day", "Let Me Ride", "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang"
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Snoop Doggy Dogg –
Doggystyle
Released: November 23, 1993
Chart positions: #1 Billboard
RIAA certification: 4x Platinum
Singles: "Who Am I (What's My Name)", "Gin and Juice", Doggy Dogg World
|-
|align="left"|Soundtrack –
Above the Rim (soundtrack)
Released: March 22, 1994
Chart positions: #2 Billboard
RIAA certification: 2x Platinum
Singles: "Regulate", "Anything", "Afro Puffs", "Part-Time Lover"
|-
|align="left"|Soundtrack –
Murder Was The Case
Released: October 15, 1994
Chart positions: #1 Billboard
RIAA certification: 2x Platinum
Singles: "Woman To Woman", "Natural Born Killaz", "U Better Recognize", "Murder Was The Case", What Would You Do?"
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Tha Dogg Pound–
Dogg Food
Released: October 31, 1995
Chart positions: #1 Billboard
RIAA certification: 2x Platinum
Singles: "Respect", "Let's Play House", "New York, New York"
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2Pac –
All Eyez On Me
Released: February 13, 1996
Chart positions: #1 Billboard
RIAA certification: 14x Platinum, 4x Diamond
Singles: "California Love", "2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted", "How Do You Want It", "All Bout U", "Life Goes On", "I Ain't Mad at Cha"
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Makaveli (2Pac) –
Released: November 5, 1996
Chart positions: #1 Billboard
RIAA certification: 4x Platinum
Singles: "Toss It Up", "To Live & Die in LA", "Hail Mary"
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Snoop Doggy Dogg –
Tha Doggfather
Released: November 12, 1996
Chart positions: #1 Billboard
RIAA certification: 2x Platinum
Singles: "Doggfather", "Snoop's Upside Ya Head", "Vapors"
|-
|align="left"|Soundtrack –
Gridlock'd (soundtrack)
Released: January 28, 1997
Chart positions: #1 Billboard
RIAA certification: Gold
Singles: "Wanted Dead or Alive", "Lady Heroin", "It's Over Now"
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Lady of Rage –
Necessary Roughness
Released: June 4, 1997
Chart positions: #32
RIAA certification:
Singles: "Sho Shot", "Get Wit' Da Wickedness"
|-
|align="left"|Soundtrack –
Gang Related (soundtrack)
Released: October 7, 1997
Chart positions: #2 Billboard
RIAA certification: 2x platinum
Singles: "Made Niggaz"
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Daz Dillinger –
Retaliation, Revenge and Get Back
Released: March 31, 1998
Chart positions: #8 Billboard
RIAA certification:
Singles: "In California", "It Might Sound Crazy"
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Michel'le –
Hung Jury
Released: August 24, 1998
Chart positions: #56 Billboard
RIAA certification:
Singles: "Hang Tyme", "Can I Get A Witness?"
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2Pac –
Greatest Hits
Released: November 24, 1998
Chart positions: #3 Billboard
RIAA certification: 9x Platinum
Singles: "Changes", "Unconditional Love"
|-
|align="left"|Death Row artists –
Christmas on Death Row
Released: December 5, 1996
Chart positions:
RIAA certification:
Singles: "Santa Clause Goes Straight to the Ghetto"
|-
|align="left"|Death Row artists –
Too Gangsta for Radio
Released: September 26, 2000
Chart positions: #171 Billboard
RIAA certification:
Singles: "Thug Nature"
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Snoop Doggy Dogg –
Dead Man Walkin'
Released: October 31, 2000
Chart positions: #24 Billboard
RIAA certification:
Singles: "Head Doctor"
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Tha Dogg Pound –
2002
Released: July 31, 2001
Chart positions: #36 Billboard
RIAA certification:
Singles: "Just Doggin'"
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Snoop Doggy Dogg –
Released: October 23, 2001
Chart positions: #28 Billboard
RIAA certification:
Singles: "Midnight Love"
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2Pac –
Until the End of Time
Released: March 27, 2001
Chart positions: #1 Billboard
RIAA certification: 3x Platinum
Singles: "Until the End of Time", "Letter 2 My Unborn"
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2Pac –
Better Dayz
Released: November 26, 2002
Chart positions: #5 Billboard
RIAA certification: 2x Platinum
Singles: "Still Ballin'", "Thugz Mansion", "Who Do U Believe In?"
|-
|align="left"|Death Row artists –
15 Years on Death Row
Released: December 26, 2006
Chart positions:
RIAA certification:
Singles:
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Various Artists -
Released: June 26, 2007
Chart Position:
RIAA Certification:
Singles:
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Dr. Dre –
The Chronic Re-Lit
Released: September 1, 2009
Chart positions:
RIAA certification:
Singles: ""
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Snoop Doggy Dogg –
Released: October 13, 2009
Chart positions:
RIAA certification:
Singles: "Fallin Asleep On Death Row"
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Various Artists –
The Ultimate Box Set
Released: November 24, 2009
Chart positions:
RIAA certification:
Singles: ""
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Kurupt -
Down & Dirty
Released: April 9, 2010
Chart Position:
RIAA Certification:
Singles:
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Danny Boy -
It's About Time
Released: April 20, 2010
Chart Position:
RIAA Certification:
Singles: "All About You"
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Crooked I -
Hood Star
Released: June 16, 2010
Chart Position:
RIAA Certification:
Singles:
|-
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Sam Sneed -
Street Scholars
Released: January 25, 2011
Chart Position:
RIAA Certification:
Singles: "Lady Heroin", "New World Order", "The Exodus"
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LBC Crew -
Haven't You Heard...
Released: February 8, 2011
Chart Position:
RIAA Certification:
Singles:
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Snoop Doggy Dogg -
Three Disc Collection: Tha Doggfather, & Murder Was The Case
Released: March 8, 2011
Chart Position:
RIAA Certification:
Singles:
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O.F.T.B. - ''
Hostile Environment
Released: July 12, 2011
Chart Position:
RIAA Certification:
Singles:
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On "Record Store Day" April 18, 2009, the label has issued a free Death Row "Record Store Day" CD sampler, which included Petey Pablo's "Pay for the Pussy," Crooked I's "Hoodstar," and Danny Boy's "Do What You Do." On May 14, John Payne announced that the label plans to re-release Dr. Dre's The Chronic. Remastered to work with current equipment, and featuring new songs recorded in the same time frame as the album, the project will be called The Chronic Relit. In addition to this, he announced a competition in which fans may submit verses over Dre production, which will not be featured on the album.
"The Chronic Re-Lit" was released on September 1, 2009. The album contained the original Chronic album re-mastered and 7 bonus songs from the vault by Snoop Doggy Dogg, CPO, Kurupt, Jewell, and more and a DVD containing music videos, a rare Dr. Dre interview, a Dre and Snoop mini movie, and rare 1992 television commercials for the original Chronic release.
"Snoop Doggy Dogg - Death Row The Lost Sessions Vol 1" was released October 13, 2009 and contains 15 previously unreleased tracks with 4 being produced by Dr. Dre.
"Death Row The Ultimate Collection" was released on November 24 and was a special box set containing 3 audio CDs (1 greatest hits disc and 2 discs of unreleased content), 1 DVD of music videos which includes the unreleased Dr. Dre music video "Puffin' On Blunts" and a limited edition Death Row T-Shirt. The set boasts over 20 unreleased tracks from the likes of: Snoop Doggy Dogg, LBC Crew, Dogg Pound, Kurupt, Lady of Rage, O.F.T.B., Crooked I, Petey Pablo, J-Flexx, Sam Sneed, Lil C-Style and more.
See also
Death Row Records artists
References
Further reading
Have Gun Will Travel: The Spectacajr Rise and Violent Fall of Death Row Records, Ronin Ro, Doubleday, 1998, 384 pages.
Labyrinth: A Detective Investigates the Murders of Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G., the Implications of Death Row Records' Suge by Randall Sullivan, Atlantic Monthly Press, April 2, 2002, 384 pages, ISBN 0-87113-838-7
Welcome to death row. Dir. S. Leigh Savidge & Jeff Scheftel, 2001
The Killing of Tupac Shakur, by Cathy Scott, Huntington Press, 2002 (2nd ed), 235 pages, ISBN 092971220X
External links
Death Row Records - Official website
Death Row Records - Official Myspace
Death Row Records - Official Twitter
Death Row Records - Official YouTube
Interview with new owner of Death Row Records
GEL Media Interview with John Payne of Death Row Records / WIDEAwake Entertainment
Allhiphop.com Exclusive Interview - Lara Lavi: Death Row Records' New Warden by Han O'Connor
Suge Knight
Category:Record labels established in 1991
Category:Vanity record labels
Category:Hip hop record labels
Category:American independent record labels
Category:Tupac Shakur
Category:Record labels disestablished in 2008
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![Welcome To Deathrow Record's Documentary - [Part 1]](http://web.archive.org./web/20110719115355im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/aFZVsH8NOp0/0.jpg "Welcome To Deathrow Record's Documentary - [Part 1]")
