# Compton (album)
**Compton: A Soundtrack by Dr. Dre** is the third studio album by the American rapper and producer [Dr. Dre](https://www.edgepedia.org/dr-dre) (Andre Young), released on August 7, 2015 through Aftermath/Interscope, sixteen years after his previous album *2001* (1999)[1](https://www.metacritic.com/music/compton/dr-dre) • [2](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/20935-compton/). Billed as a soundtrack but described by Dre as only "inspired by" the N.W.A biopic film *Straight Outta Compton*, the album replaced the long-delayed, ultimately scrapped project *Detox* and was released exclusively on Apple Music and iTunes as a 16-track album[2](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/20935-compton/) • [3](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/dr-dre-compton-album-review-quality-beats-to-play-through-those-headphones-a6069936.html) • [4](https://www.drdre.com/listen-premiere-dr-dres-new-album-compton-uncensored-and-exclusively-apple-music/). Dre called it his "grand finale" and directed its artist royalties toward building a performing arts center in Compton, the [South Los Angeles](https://www.edgepedia.org/south-los-angeles) city that gave both him and N.W.A their start[5](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/reviews/albums/dr-dre-compton).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Artist and title | Dr. Dre, *Compton: A Soundtrack by Dr. Dre*; his third solo album[1](https://www.metacritic.com/music/compton/dr-dre) |
| Release | August 7, 2015, Aftermath/Interscope; exclusive to Apple Music and iTunes; 16 songs in 1 hour 1 minute[4](https://www.drdre.com/listen-premiere-dr-dres-new-album-compton-uncensored-and-exclusively-apple-music/) • [6](https://music.apple.com/us/album/compton/1440839174) |
| Genre | Rap (West Coast hip hop, gangsta rap); credited producers include Dr. Dre, Dem Jointz, DJ Premier, Trevor Lawrence Jr., and Curt Chambers[7](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/38228-dr-dre-compton.php) |
| Origins | Inspired by the making of the N.W.A biopic *Straight Outta Compton*; it is not the film's official soundtrack[3](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/dr-dre-compton-album-review-quality-beats-to-play-through-those-headphones-a6069936.html) |
| Reception | Metascore 82 from 36 reviews (33 positive, 3 mixed, 0 negative); user score 8.3[1](https://www.metacritic.com/music/compton/dr-dre) |
| Commercial | Debuted at No. 2; certified gold by the RIAA on October 13, 2015[8](https://www.pluggedin.com/album-reviews/dr-dre-compton/) • [9](https://www.riaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/RIAA-OCTOBER-2015-AWARDS.pdf) |
| Stated status | Dre announced it as his final studio album, a "grand finale"[5](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/reviews/albums/dr-dre-compton) |
## Background and the end of Detox
For roughly sixteen years, Dre's announced third album was *Detox*, a follow-up to *2001* that the hip-hop industry had long expected to be his "grand finale"[10](https://time.com/3981531/dr-dre-album-compton/). The project never materialized. On August 1, 2015, during his Beats 1 radio show "The Pharmacy" on Apple Music, Dre announced that *Detox* was dead, saying, "I didn't like it. It wasn't good... I worked my ass off on it, and I don't think I did a good enough job."[11](https://time.com/3989589/compton-album-review-dr-dre/)
In its place he unveiled a finished new album. Dre said the recording was inspired by his work on *Straight Outta Compton*, director [F. Gary Gray](https://www.edgepedia.org/f-gary-gray)'s biopic of N.W.A, the late-1980s Los Angeles group Dre co-founded with Ice Cube and the late Eazy-E[10](https://time.com/3981531/dr-dre-album-compton/). He later described the moment of conception to NME, saying he decided to make the record one night on the way home from the film set[12](https://www.nme.com/news/music/dr-dre-19-1223878). Critics noted the marketing alignment: the album arrived on August 7, one week before the film reached theaters on August 14[10](https://time.com/3981531/dr-dre-album-compton/). Dre himself stated on Beats 1 that "It's an 'inspired by' album; it's inspired by Straight Outta Compton," and multiple reviews stress that despite the title and billing, it is not the film's official soundtrack[13](https://i-d.co/article/dr-dre-confirms-new-nwa-inspired-album/) • [3](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/dr-dre-compton-album-review-quality-beats-to-play-through-those-headphones-a6069936.html).
## Release and promotion
**An exclusive rollout.** The album was made available exclusively through Apple Music and iTunes, a platform tie-in made natural by Apple's 2014 acquisition of [Beats Electronics](https://www.edgepedia.org/beats-electronics), the headphone company Dre co-founded with [Jimmy Iovine](https://www.edgepedia.org/jimmy-iovine)[10](https://time.com/3981531/dr-dre-album-compton/). Apple Music streamed the uncensored album in its entirety for three hours starting at 6 p.m. PDT on Thursday, August 6, 2015, a day ahead of the official release, followed by a Beats 1 special hosted by [Zane Lowe](https://www.edgepedia.org/zane-lowe)[4](https://www.drdre.com/listen-premiere-dr-dres-new-album-compton-uncensored-and-exclusively-apple-music/). The Los Angeles Times observed that the album was "announced suddenly, never leaked and arrived on time as promised," and that Dre even embedded a reference to streaming compensation in the closing track "Talking to My Diary"[14](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-dr-dre-compton-album-20150808-story.html).
The Japanese CD edition followed on August 21, 2015 through Interscope and [Universal Music Japan](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-music-japan)[15](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/dr-dre/products/uics-1305/).
## Music and guests
The 16-track album runs just over an hour and is built almost entirely around guests, with Dre functioning as producer, curator, and occasional rapper[6](https://music.apple.com/us/album/compton/1440839174). The featured artists span three generations: West Coast veterans including Ice Cube (on "Issues"), [Snoop Dogg](https://www.edgepedia.org/snoop-dogg) ("One Shot One Kill" with Jon Connor, "Satisfiction"), Xzibit ("Loose Cannons"), and [The Game](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-game) ("Just Another Day"); marquee names such as Eminem ("Medicine Man") and [Kendrick Lamar](https://www.edgepedia.org/kendrick-lamar) ("Genocide," "Darkside/Gone," "Deep Water"); R&B voices Marsha Ambrosius and Jill Scott; and newer talent including Anderson .Paak, King Mez, Justus, BJ the Chicago Kid, Jon Connor, and Candice Pillay[4](https://www.drdre.com/listen-premiere-dr-dres-new-album-compton-uncensored-and-exclusively-apple-music/) • [1](https://www.metacritic.com/music/compton/dr-dre).
The Los Angeles Times described the result as "for all intents a hip-hop concept album," an "often-tense musical indictment" tackling the conditions of Dre's hometown, framed by an opening narration declaring that "Compton was the American dream" before recounting the city's descent into poverty and violence[14](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-dr-dre-compton-album-20150808-story.html) • [8](https://www.pluggedin.com/album-reviews/dr-dre-compton/). Production was shared with a team including [DJ Dahi](https://www.edgepedia.org/dj-dahi), DJ Premier, and Dem Jointz, and Pitchfork reported that songwriter King Mez, alongside Justus, helped write the bulk of Dre's lyrics[14](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-dr-dre-compton-album-20150808-story.html) • [2](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/20935-compton/).
**Track list** as published by Dr. Dre's official site[4](https://www.drdre.com/listen-premiere-dr-dres-new-album-compton-uncensored-and-exclusively-apple-music/):
1. Intro
2. Talk About It (feat. King Mez & Justus)
3. Genocide (feat. Kendrick Lamar, Marsha Ambrosius & Candice Pillay)
4. It's All On Me (feat. Justus & BJ The Chicago Kid)
5. All In A Day's Work (feat. [Anderson .Paak](https://www.edgepedia.org/anderson-paak) & [Marsha Ambrosius](https://www.edgepedia.org/marsha-ambrosius))
6. Darkside/Gone (feat. King Mez, Marsha Ambrosius & Kendrick Lamar)
7. Loose Cannons (feat. Xzibit & Cold 187um)
8. Issues (feat. Ice Cube & Anderson .Paak)
9. Deep Water (feat. Kendrick Lamar & Justus)
10. One Shot One Kill (Jon Connor feat. Snoop Dogg)
11. Just Another Day (The Game feat. Asia Bryant)
12. For The Love Of Money (feat. Jill Scott & Jon Connor)
13. Satisfiction (feat. Snoop Dogg, Marsha Ambrosius & King Mez)
14. Animals (feat. Anderson .Paak)
15. Medicine Man (feat. Eminem, Candice Pillay & Anderson .Paak)
16. Talking To My Diary
## Critical reception
*Compton* met with broad critical approval. Metacritic assigned it a Metascore of 82, "universal acclaim," based on 36 critic reviews, of which 33 were positive, 3 mixed, and none negative; users gave it 8.3 out of 10[1](https://www.metacritic.com/music/compton/dr-dre). Album of the Year aggregated a critic score of 80 across 34 reviews and listed it as a "Must Hear Album," ranking No. 66 among 2015 releases by critic rating[7](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/38228-dr-dre-compton.php).
Reviewers returned to a few recurring observations. Several noted the album's sequenced, suite-like construction: one review quoted by Metacritic argued that while *The Chronic* and *2001* were collections of songs whose order mattered little, *Compton* is "one giant song presented as a specifically sequenced album"[16](https://www.metacritic.com/music/compton/dr-dre/critic-reviews). Pitchfork's Jay Balfour scored it 88 and found Dre "charged-up, nimble, and relevant" at age 50, with the album communal rather than self-centered, pushing Dre's own voice "towards the margins in favor of other vocalists"[2](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/20935-compton/). The Guardian called the production "velvety" and highlighted the socially outraged "Animals," asking how racism and deprivation could persist a generation after N.W.A[17](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/aug/16/dr-dre-compton-album-review). The AllMusic review by David Jeffries, published the day of release, called it "a brilliant kaleidoscopic LP" recorded in under a year that references Eric Garner and frames the present against N.W.A's history[18](https://www.allmusic.com/blog/post/compton-a-soundtrack-by-dr.-dre-the-allmusic-review).
Criticism centered on Dre's own writing and some guest verses. NME's review credited the beats as "a masterclass in contemporary hip-hop" while faulting lyrical nastiness, singling out Eminem's verse on "Medicine Man" as content that "somehow comes over both hateful and boring"[19](https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-dr-dre-16207-311781). Many retrospectives have noted that the album is frequently mistaken for the film's official soundtrack, an ambiguity reinforced by the title itself[3](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/dr-dre-compton-album-review-quality-beats-to-play-through-those-headphones-a6069936.html).
## Commercial performance and aftermath
The album debuted at No. 2 on the album charts[8](https://www.pluggedin.com/album-reviews/dr-dre-compton/) and was certified a standard gold album by the RIAA on October 13, 2015[9](https://www.riaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/RIAA-OCTOBER-2015-AWARDS.pdf). Dre said he would donate the album's artist royalties to fund a performing arts center in Compton[5](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/reviews/albums/dr-dre-compton) • [17](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/aug/16/dr-dre-compton-album-review).
The release also burnished Dre's collaborators' profiles. Press coverage in late 2015 described a "renaissance" for the 50-year-old producer, who floated a European "Beats and Rhymes" tour with Snoop Dogg, Eminem, and Kendrick Lamar[20](https://time.com/4071019/dr-dre-europe-tour-beats-rhymes/). The album served as an early showcase for Anderson .Paak, whom Dre featured on four tracks including "All In A Day's Work" and "Animals"; [French press](https://www.edgepedia.org/french-press) later noted that the soul-rock singer was "discovered" on *Compton*[14](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-dr-dre-compton-album-20150808-story.html) • [4](https://www.drdre.com/listen-premiere-dr-dres-new-album-compton-uncensored-and-exclusively-apple-music/) • [21](https://www.lemonde.fr/musiques/article/2016/12/30/2016-en-musiques-nos-tympans-font-le-bilan_5055512_1654986.html).
Dre has not released a studio album since. His Apple Music page lists *Compton* (2015) as his most recent album apart from singles and a 2024 collaboration, *Missionary*, made with Snoop Dogg[6](https://music.apple.com/us/album/compton/1440839174).
## References
1. [Compton by Dr. Dre – Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/music/compton/dr-dre)
2. [Jay Balfour (August 11, 2015). Dr. Dre: Compton Album Review. Pitchfork.](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/20935-compton/)
3. [Dr Dre, Compton – Album review. The Independent.](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/dr-dre-compton-album-review-quality-beats-to-play-through-those-headphones-a6069936.html)
4. [Listen to the Premiere of Dr. Dre's New Album, Compton, Uncensored and Exclusively on Apple Music (August 4, 2015). DrDre.com.](https://www.drdre.com/listen-premiere-dr-dres-new-album-compton-uncensored-and-exclusively-apple-music/)
5. [Dr. Dre – Compton – Album review. The Skinny.](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/reviews/albums/dr-dre-compton)
6. [Compton – Album by Dr. Dre. Apple Music.](https://music.apple.com/us/album/compton/1440839174)
7. [Dr. Dre – Compton. Album of The Year.](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/38228-dr-dre-compton.php)
8. [Compton – Dr. Dre, Album Review. Plugged In.](https://www.pluggedin.com/album-reviews/dr-dre-compton/)
9. [RIAA October 2015 Gold & Platinum Awards (certifying Compton, Dr. Dre, 10/13/2015). RIAA.](https://www.riaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/RIAA-OCTOBER-2015-AWARDS.pdf)
10. [Dr. Dre to Release First Album in Over 15 Years](https://time.com/3981531/dr-dre-album-compton/)
11. [Review: Compton Draws Listeners Back Into Dr. Dre's World (August 8, 2015). TIME.](https://time.com/3989589/compton-album-review-dr-dre/)
12. [Dr Dre explains surprise new album: 'I decided to make it one night on the way home from film set.' NME.](https://www.nme.com/news/music/dr-dre-19-1223878)
13. [Dr Dre confirms new N.W.A-inspired album. i-D.](https://i-d.co/article/dr-dre-confirms-new-nwa-inspired-album/)
14. [Randall Roberts (August 7, 2015). Perspective: Dr. Dre's new album 'Compton' a master class in music, culture, business. Los Angeles Times.](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-dr-dre-compton-album-20150808-story.html)
15. [コンプトン [CD] – ドクター・ドレー. Universal Music Japan.](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/dr-dre/products/uics-1305/)
16. [Critic Reviews for Compton. Metacritic.](https://www.metacritic.com/music/compton/dr-dre/critic-reviews)
17. [Kitty Empire (August 16, 2015). Dr Dre: Compton review – velvety production and righteous anger. The Guardian.](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/aug/16/dr-dre-compton-album-review)
18. [David Jeffries (August 7, 2015). 'Compton: A Soundtrack by Dr. Dre' – The AllMusic Review. AllMusic.](https://www.allmusic.com/blog/post/compton-a-soundtrack-by-dr.-dre-the-allmusic-review)
19. [Louis Pattison (August 10, 2015). Dr Dre – 'Compton'. NME.](https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-dr-dre-16207-311781)
20. [Dr. Dre Wants to Tour Europe With Snoop Dogg, Eminem and Kendrick Lamar (October 13, 2015). TIME.](https://time.com/4071019/dr-dre-europe-tour-beats-rhymes/)
21. [2016 en musiques : nos tympans font le bilan. Le Monde.](https://www.lemonde.fr/musiques/article/2016/12/30/2016-en-musiques-nos-tympans-font-le-bilan_5055512_1654986.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Albums and recorded releases › Studio albums › Hip hop albums › West Coast hip hop albums*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license