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Origins
However, some have alleged that Dr. Dre stole the concept of G-funk from Above The Law's Cold 187um (AKA Big Hutch) while N.W.A. and Above The Law were both signed to Ruthless Records in the early-1990s. Above The Law have claimed that their album Black Mafia Life(1992), although it was released after The Chronic, had been in the works while Dre was still on Ruthless, and that he heard tracks from the album and imitated the style on The Chronic. It is notable that several songs on Black Mafia Life contain the same samples as songs on The Chronic ("Pimp Clinic", for example, is based upon the same samples as Dr. Dre's hit single "Let Me Ride"; therefore, the two songs are distinctly similar). Above The Law continue to argue that they are the architects of the G-funk style. Others have drawn comparisons between G-funk and San Francisco-based Mobb Music, which has never gained widespread mainstream success but incorporates elements similar to G-funk, with more tempo variations, less portamento, synthesizers, Moog bass lines, and more live instruments. InfluenceAfter the release of The Chronic, many producers from the West Coast and even some from the East Coast began producing in the G-funk style or imitating it. Most notably, producers Warren G and DJ Quik produced their most well-known material in the G-funk vein, Dre's fellow Death Row "inmate" Daz produced Tha Dogg Pound's debut Dogg Food in the same style. In the "Making of Ready to Die" issue of XXL magazine, ex-Bad Boy producer Easy Mo Bee stated that he was trying to bring a G-funk-inspired sound to The Notorious B.I.G.'s debut album.
Criticism and backlashAudio samples of G-funk
Prior to the success of The Chronic, prominent groups of the golden age of hip hop such as Public Enemy and Native Tongues Posse, embraced more socially aware issues such as drug abuse, poverty, racism, and African American empowerment. Whereas rappers utilizing the G-funk sound essentially rapped about the gangsta subject matter that Dre's former group, N.W.A, had helped bring to the mainstream in the late 1980s. This led to some criticism from hip hop purists, who accused these rappers of "dumbing down" rap. In 1994, Chicago rapper Common released the song "I Used to Love H.E.R." on his album Resurrection; the track essentially summed up the sentiments of hip-hop purists, and received notable attention in the underground. It was this disillusionment with mainstream hip hop that led certain hip hop critics to enthusiastically embrace East Coast albums such as Black Moon's Enta Da Stage, The Wu-Tang Clan's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (see 1993 in music), and Nas's and The Notorious B.I.G.'s respective debuts: Illmatic and Ready to Die (see 1994 in music). These successive releases were hailed as the beginning of an East Coast hip hop renaissance, that later included albums such as Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, The Infamous, Doe Or Die, and Reasonable Doubt. Ready to Die, in particular, established Bad Boy Records as a significant competitor against the West Coast hip hop scene led by Death Row Records. Despite such criticism and mounting pressure from censorship groups (most notably C. Delores Tucker) opposed to gangsta rap, The Chronic and Doggystyle, were both critically-acclaimed as well as commercially successful. The singles "Nuthin' But a "G" Thang" (The Chronic) and "Gin and Juice" (Doggystyle) became the most famous examples of G-funk in this era. The G-funk sound could also be heard in rapper Tupac Shakur's most popular releases, including Me Against the World - "Heavy in the Game" and most notably the song "Cant C Me" (produced by Dr. Dre) featured on All Eyez on Me, the latter of which was released on the Death Row label. Future of the G-funk eraIn 1996, following Dr. Dre's departure from Death Row Records, Tupac Shakur's murder, and Suge Knight's imprisonment for racketeering, the G-funk era effectively came to an end. Dr. Dre attempted to update and expand on the sound with his 1996 release Dr. Dre Presents...The Aftermath as well as 1997's Nas, Foxy Brown, AZ, and Nature Present The Firm: The Album, the latter of which he partially produced. While both albums went platinum, they were unsuccessful by Dre's standards, and had little impact on the hip-hop scene. However, the G-funk sound has had a lasting impact on hip hop, and its influence can be heard in albums such as Dre's successful 1999 comeback 2001, which features a significantly different production style from The Chronic but has its roots in the G-funk sound he helped pioneer. Kokane has been leading the G-funk sound since its inception and released 3 albums in 2006 named "Kokane presents the Hood Mob", "Back 2 tha Clap, and "Pain killer'z" respectively. DJ Quik and Warren G's last albums were released in 2005, and were both solid indie albums. Sugafree released an album called "Just Add Water" in 2006. DJ Quik and AMG are planning on making an album together which will be released in 2007. Dr. Dre is planning to release his next Album Detox in September of 2007. See alsoReferences
es:G-funk fr:Gangsta Funk it:G-funk ja:Gファンク ru:Джи-фанк sv:G-funk
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