By Jeff Clemens and Kyle Francis
Doctor’s Advocate is an album containing songs about an unrequited love, but not the sort everyone’s used to. This love is The Game’s obvious adoration of Dr. Dre and regret at turning his back on the rap legend.
“When Doc says it’s a rap, it’s a rap/It’s aftermath and there ain’t nothing after that,” Game repeats on the title track, attempting to emulate the flow of his idol.
Thankfully he comes close to this goal, creating something that sounds close to Chronic 2006. The Game has made an album to hold the West Coast over till Dre finally releases the long-awaited followup, Detox. Dropping his old crew in favour of guest-spots from Kanye West, Busta Rhymes and others, The Game is able to expound his undying love for Dre with enough raw talent to raise his Doctor’s Advocate well above fan-boy loveletter staus. His requisite gangster-arrogance shows throughout, but the humility represented by his Dre worship is refreshing enough to keep the rap tropes from growing too stale.
Pumped up with strong production, wicked guest spots and steel-edged lyrics, Doctor’s Advocate brings the old school drug-rap and brings it hard. Certainly not your average love letter.