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Dr. Dre

One of hip hop's most important figures, Dr. Dre helped shaped the sound of the genre throughout the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s as the Grammy Award-winning beat maker for Eminem, Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent. Learning his trade as a 15-year-old studio engineer, he made his name with electro rap group World Class Wreckin' Cru before meeting Ice Cube and Eazy-E and becoming a producer and key member of legendary gangsta rap collective NWA. Despite never being regarded as the greatest rapper, his debut album The Chronic (1992) became a classic, reaching Number 3 on the US chart and producing the hit single Nuthin' But A 'G' Thang while defining his signature woozy bass lines and strutting, G-funk style. Its follow-up The Chronic 2001 (1999) again celebrated the hazy, laid-back West Coast rap style, selling over 10 million copies and reaching Number 2 in the US, while Dre went on to produce huge hits for Eve, Gwen Stefani and Mary J. Blige. A workaholic who also launched his own brand of headphones named Beats By Dr. Dre, he first started work on his long-promised third album Detox in 2002 but despite the release of singles Kush and I Need A Doctor the record's release was mysteriously delayed.