"Let Me Ride" | ||||
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Single by Dr. Dre | ||||
from the album The Chronic | ||||
Released | September 13, 1993 | |||
Recorded | 1992 | |||
Studio | Death Row (Los Angeles, California) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 4:21 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Dr. Dre | |||
Dr. Dre singles chronology | ||||
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Snoop Doggy Dogg singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Let Me Ride" on YouTube |
"Let Me Ride" is a song by American rapper and producer Dr. Dre,released in September 1993 by Death Row,Interscope and Priority as the third and final single from his debut studio album, The Chronic (1992). It experienced moderate success on the charts,until it became a massive hit when Dre won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance for the song during the Grammy Awards of 1994. [2] The song features singers Ruben and Jewell,and uncredited vocals by fellow rapper Snoop Dogg [3]
Dr. Dre's lyrics were written by RBX,originally intended for a different track. [4] Dr. Dre,RBX and Snoop Dogg share songwriting credits for the song.
"Let Me Ride"'s chorus involves both a sample and an interpolation of the chorus of the 1976 Parliament song "Mothership Connection (Star Child)",which itself quotes the Negro spiritual "Swing Down Sweet Chariot". "Let Me Ride" also samples James Brown's "Funky Drummer" and Bill Withers's 1973 single "Kissing My Love".
Hip Hop Dx placed the song on their list of 13 Great Hip Hop Songs For The Summer. [5]
The accompanying music video for "Let Me Ride" was shot on location at Slauson Avenue in Los Angeles and was directed by Dr. Dre. It is the second lowrider cult video of Dre's cinematographic "walk of life" that was nominated for a MTV Video Music Award for Best Rap Video in the same year. The video begins with Dre,in his home watching the $20 Sack Pyramid (a track skit from the album shown as a game show in the video),taking a phone call and being invited to a Parliament concert. He then heads out in his lowrider and the song begins. Many helicopter-view camshots of the super-highways of Compton follow,some cuts of Snoop,a car-jacking scene,and various footage of Dre picking up girls,all of which leads to a street party outside the concert venue. Ice Cube makes a cameo appearance,walking out from a women's bathroom saying "Damn right,it was a good day",referring to his 1992 solo single,and also officially squashing the beef between Dre and Ice Cube which had existed since Ice Cube left N.W.A. It has been proposed that Danny Partridge may have cameos in the video,though the rumors were never confirmed. [6]
The final shots of the video feature footage from Parliament-Funkadelic's 1976 earth tour,including the Starchild flying on wires with the bop gun,the band singing "Mothership Connection",which "Let Me Ride" samples,and concludes with George Clinton departing into the Mothership with a plume of smoke,upon which Dre's face is superimposed.
Rapper Warren G (Dre's stepbrother) makes a cameo appearance,along with rappers The D.O.C. and The Lady of Rage,Death Row Records co-founder Suge Knight,producer Bonita "Bo" Money,and actress Jada Pinkett-Smith.
The video features a Chevy 1964 Impala,which would be used in many other Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg videos. [7]
An official remix of the song features full verses from Snoop Dogg and Daz,and an appearance by George Clinton. It was recorded simultaneously with the original version and was released on the 12-inch vinyl when the solo version was chosen to be a part of the album. The full version of the remix is 11 minutes long and features a guitar solo by Johnny "Guitar" Watson. The beat was later remade as a G-Funk remix and the instrumental was used for the Up In Smoke Tour in 2000. Dr. Dre also produced the beat for the remix.
Nate Dogg refers to "Let Me Ride" in Warren G's 1994 song "Regulate",in which he sings,"She said 'my car's broke down and you seem real nice,would ya let me ride?'"
Rapper Fabolous,in his 2001 hit "Can't Deny It",had the lyric "bitches be yellin "let me ride",like I'm Snoop,and Dr. Dre." Rapper The Game similarly refers to "Let Me Ride" in his 2005 song "Put You on the Game",where he claims to be in a car with Dre in the back and "bitches screaming,'Let me ride!'"
Chart (1993) | Peak position |
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US Billboard Hot 100 [8] | 34 |
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs ( Billboard ) [9] | 3 |
US Hot Rap Songs ( Billboard ) [10] | 3 |
US Rhythmic ( Billboard ) [11] | 1 |
US Cash Box Top 100 [12] | 31 |
Year | Awards Ceremony | Award | Results |
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1994 | Grammy Awards | Best Rap Soloist [2] | Won |
Andre Romell Young,known professionally as Dr. Dre,is an American record producer and rapper. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics,and co-founded and was the president of Death Row Records. Dre began his career as a member of the World Class Wreckin' Cru in 1985,and later found fame with the gangsta rap group N.W.A. The group popularized explicit lyrics in hip hop to detail the violence of street life. During the early 1990s,Dre was credited as a key figure in the crafting and popularization of West Coast G-funk,a subgenre of hip hop characterized by a synthesizer foundation and slow,heavy production.
G-funk,short for gangsta funk,is a sub-genre of gangsta rap that emerged from the West Coast scene in the early 1990s. The genre was heavily influenced by the synthesizer-heavy 1970s funk sound of Parliament-Funkadelic,often incorporated through samples or re-recordings. It was represented by commercially successful albums such as Dr. Dre's The Chronic (1992) and Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle (1993).
The Chronic is the debut studio album by the American hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre. It was released on December 15,1992,by his record label Death Row Records and distributed by Interscope Records. Recording sessions took place in Death Row Studios in Los Angeles and at Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood.
Doggystyle is the debut studio album by American rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg. It was released on November 23,1993,by Death Row and Interscope Records. The album was recorded and produced following Snoop Doggy Dogg's appearances on Dr. Dre's debut solo album The Chronic (1992),to which Snoop contributed significantly. The West Coast style in hip-hop that he developed from Dre's first album continued on Doggystyle. Critics have praised Snoop Dogg for the lyrical "realism" that he delivers on the album and for his distinctive vocal flow.
Robin Yvette Allen,known professionally as the Lady of Rage,is an American rapper,singer and actress best known for her collaborations with several other Death Row Records artists,including Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg on the seminal albums,The Chronic and Doggystyle. The Lady of Rage has been described as "one of the most skillful female MCs" with a "mastery of flow" and "hard-core lyrics".
Tha Dogg Pound is an American hip hop duo made up of West Coast rappers Kurupt and Daz Dillinger. They were signed to Death Row Records in their early careers and were key to the label's success.
Murder Was the Case is a 1994 short film and soundtrack album starring and performed by Snoop Doggy Dogg. The 18 minute film was directed by Dr. Dre and Fab Five Freddy and chronicles the fictional death of Snoop Dogg and his resurrection after making a deal with the Devil. The film's title comes from Snoop's song of the same name from his debut album,Doggystyle,which had been released a year earlier.
David Marvin Blake,better known by his stage names DJ Quik or Da Quiksta,is an American rapper,record producer and DJ,known for his production in the G-funk style of West Coast hip-hop. Blake has collaborated with Snoop Dogg,Kurupt,Tupac,Chingy,R. Kelly and Shaquille O'Neal,among others. Blake's stage name reflects his ability to produce songs in a short period of time. Some of his top songs include "Dollaz + Sense","Tonite","Born and Raised in Compton" and "Jus Lyke Compton."
"Gin and Juice" is a song by American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was released on January 18,1994,as the second single from his debut album,Doggystyle (1993). The song was produced by Dr. Dre and contains an interpolation from Slave's "Watching You" in its chorus and a sample from George McCrae. Tony Green created its bassline;additional vocalists on the song include Dat Nigga Daz,Jewell,Heney Loc,and Sean "Barney" Thomas. "Gin and Juice" peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. It earned a gold certification from the RIAA and sold 700,000 copies.
"Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" is a song by American rapper Dr. Dre,featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Dogg,on Dre's debut solo album,The Chronic (1992). As the album's first single it reached number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 on March 20,1993,behind "Informer" by Snow,outperformed The Chronic's other singles,"Fuck wit Dre Day ",which peaked at number 8,and "Let Me Ride",which peaked at number 34. The single also reached number 1 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles &Tracks chart,and was a number 31 hit in the UK. Its music video was directed by Dr. Dre himself.
"Deep Cover",also known as "187",is the debut solo single by American rapper Dr. Dre and his first track released after the breakup of N.W.A. The track was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Deep Cover. The song features fellow American rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg in his first appearance on a record release.
"Fuck wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebratin')",or as a single titled "Dre Day",is a song by American rapper and record producer Dr. Dre featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg,released in May 1993 as the second single from Dre's debut solo album,The Chronic (1992). "Dre Day" was a diss track targeting mainly Dre's former groupmate Eazy-E,who led their onetime rap group N.W.A and who,along with N.W.A's manager Jerry Heller,owned N.W.A's record label,Ruthless Records. In "Dre Day" and in its music video,which accuse Eazy of cheating N.W.A's artists,Dre and Snoop degrade and menace him. Also included are disses retorting earlier disses on songs by Miami rapper Luke Campbell,by New York rapper Tim Dog,and by onetime N.W.A. member Ice Cube,although Dre,while still an N.W.A member,had helped diss Cube first. After "Dre Day," a number of further diss records were exchanged.
"2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted" is a song by American rapper 2Pac from his fourth studio album,All Eyez on Me (1996). The song features fellow West Coast rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg and was produced by Dat Nigga Daz. The song was released as a promotional single for the album on May 7,1996 and later as the B-side to the album's second major and third overall single,How Do U Want It. The song peaked at number 46 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart. The song contains interpolations of Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five's song "The Message" and "Radio Activity Rap " by MC Frosty and Lovin' C.
"Still D.R.E." is a song by American rapper-producer Dr. Dre,featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was released on November 2,1999,as the lead single from Dre's multi-platinum second studio album,2001 (1999).
Ricardo Emmanuel Brown,better known by his stage name Kurupt,is an American rapper and record producer. Born and raised in Philadelphia,he formed Tha Dogg Pound in 1992 along with Daz Dillinger;the rap duo has released eight albums. He also formed the hip hop group The Hrsmn in 1996,with whom he has released two albums. His debut solo album,Kuruption! (1998) was released by A&M Records and peaked at number eight on the Billboard 200.
"The Next Episode" is a single by American rapper-producer Dr. Dre,released in 2000 as the third single from his second studio album,2001 (1999). The track features Snoop Dogg,Kurupt,and Nate Dogg,but only Snoop Dogg is credited. It is a sequel to Dre and Snoop's famous single "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" from the former's debut album,The Chronic.
"Let's Ride" is a song performed by rapper The Game for his second album,Doctor's Advocate (2006). The song,written by The Game and Scott Storch,was released as the album's second single on September 25,2006. The Game mentioned on radio station KDAY in Los Angeles,California that the track was recorded in Miami,Florida,but had the feel of a West Coast Dr. Dre record. The song peaked at number 46 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Let's Ride" heavily references the 1993 single "Let Me Ride" by rapper Dr. Dre.
"That's That" is the second single by Snoop Dogg from the album Tha Blue Carpet Treatment. The song was the first single taken from the album in the UK;however the single only achieved notable success in the U.S.,where it reached #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song samples the melody played in the 1988 film Coming to America during the bathroom scene in which Eddie Murphy gets washed by female servants.
"Kush" is a single by American rapper Dr. Dre,featuring vocals by Snoop Dogg and Akon. It was released via digital download on November 18,2010. The song was produced by DJ Khalil and mixed by Dr. Dre,with additional keys by Daniel "Danny Keyz" Tannenbaum. The song has additional vocals by Sly "Pyper" Jordan,Kobe Honeycutt and Blackthoven.
"Pimp Slapp'd" is a diss song by American West Coast hip hop recording artist Snoop Dogg,taken from his sixth studio album,Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$ (2002).