Biography
Few producers of West Coast beats could claim a guide as seasoned as Dr. Dre, yet Mel-Man gained exactly that advantage when Aftermath opened its doors around 1996. Although his contributions appeared on Dr. Dre Presents the Aftermath, the project ultimately sank into obscurity and left little impression. Mel-Man nevertheless stayed aligned with Dre the following year, helping shape the first release by the Firm, a collective of East Coast MCs fronted by Nas. That effort likewise failed to register strongly, prompting a return to the studio alongside Dre for the sessions that yielded 2001. Issued late in 1999, the album triggered a revival of West Coast rap. The subsequent triumph of both 2001 and Eminem’s The Marshall Mathers LP, on which Mel-Man again worked with Dre, kept his standing intact. From there he began to operate more independently, teaming with Battlecat to craft several tracks for Xzibit’s Restless.
Albums
