Xzibit has recently sat down with Cece Valencia on 935 KDAY where the Detroit legend talked about his upcoming album, Dr. Dre getting a star on Hollywood Walk Of Fame next to Snoop Dogg, Dre’s role in hip-hop and shared unknown fact about recording process of “What’s The Difference” track with Dre and Eminem.
Xzibit on Up In Smoke Tour and Dr. Dre’s impact on Hip-Hop culture
Up In Smoke is always gonna be like a turning point and a highlight of my career. I’ll never forget that tour. It was definitely the beginning of a bunch of great experiences so yeah, shout out to Dr. Dre, he’s about to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame, right next to [Snoop] Dogg. We gon’ pull up. We gon’ go big, come check us out! Dre is our Quincy Jones. He’s the chairman of the board. Dr. Dre is the root of the family tree. Dr. Dre makes stars for the universe and they stay there for a long time, they don’t burn out. You can see there’s a method to the madness. The people that he’s been involved with have longevity past and there is a reason for that, because he’s so dedicated to the craft and the music and he brings out best out of everyone that he works with. Dr. Dre is essential for West Coast hip-hop to be in existence. We made timeless materials. The things that are going to be here after we are gone. [The best lesson I learned from Dre is] ‘Your ego is not your amigo.’
Xzibit on recording process of “What’s The Difference” with Dr. Dre and Eminem
“Nah, he don’t let you hear it. You just do your part. And then you hear it when it comes out. I didn’t hear anything. All I heard was beat. That’s it. He don’t do that. He don’t wants us to point guns at each other. You do your part, everybody does their part and then if you get s–t on, you get sh–t on. [Laughs] That’s how it is. That’s why you got to come with your A game every time.
“What’s the Difference” is a song from Dr. Dre’s second studio album 2001 (1999), featuring Eminem and Xzibit, as well as additional vocals from Phish, and was produced by Dre and Mel-Man. The song contains a horn section in the instrumental, as well as a sample of “Parce Que Tu Crois” by Charles Aznavour. Lyrically, the rappers talk about the differences between themselves and other rappers. Dr. Dre reflects on three of his friends, Ice Cube, The D.O.C., and Eazy-E in his verse. Eminem’s verse sees him considering the hypothetical situation of killing his girlfriend Kim, rapping that he would put sunglasses on her corpse and drive around with her in the front seat. He also defends Dre’s legacy, threatening those who doubt him.
