Los Angeles, CA

HBO’s The Defiant Ones chronicles the intersecting paths of Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre and as the four-part docuseries digs deep into the N.W.A founding producer life both at home and in the booth, there is one undertone that is not blatantly spelled out but lies just beneath the surface: The West Coast would probably have an entirely different makeup if it weren’t for The D.O.C.

From masterminding his own classic album, No One Can Do It Better to penning lines for members of N.W.A that would catapult the imposing group into the realm of cultural immortality. After a car wreck that would change his voice forever The D.O.C., whose real name is Tracy Curry channeled his inner genius into the foundation of Death Row Records and once again helped mold the landscape into something that would set off an era of West Coast dominance.

In our conversation with the Dallas, Texas born MC and songwriter, HipHopDX’s Jake Rohn, the “It’s Funky Enough” rapper revealed the surprisingly short amount of time it took for him and Dre to make No One Can Do It Better, as well as the truth about his relationship with Eazy-E and why Death Row was one of the low points in his life.

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Recording No One Can Do It Better

“No One Can Do It Better” was basically an album full of freestyles. Me and Dre, it took us about maybe three weeks of actual work time and we just worked when those guys weren’t on the road and it really wasn’t hard at all. If you listen to the record I’m not really talking about anything other than “I’m good,” so I hadn’t even figured out who I was yet. In my mind, I’m just good.”

the doc no one can do it better
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Classssssssic!: Stream No One Can Do It Better right here.

His Relationship with the late Eazy-E

“I never had a real issue with Eric like that. I understood that it was business and he was for better or for worse doing business and the fact that he got the better end of it was because I wasn’t. That’s how this genre is and you have to be prepared if you’re going to be a part of it.”

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On his time at Death Row

“It was a dark time for me. It was bad for me, cause the wreck was still brand new and the loss of my voice was fairly brand new and I was in California surrounded by all these elements that were not a part of my DNA to quote Kendrick so it was rough for me and I imagine it was rough for a lot of those guys but I survived it and we’re here today.”

Check out the full D.O.C. interview above as well as our conversations with Xzibit and Jimmy Iovine from The Defiant Ones red carpet.