Dr. Dre

His music career started as a DJ when he was a teenager. He explained to Vibe magazine: "I heard 'Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel,' and that made me want to DJ. It made me want to know what hip-hop was. That was the song that did it. I immediately went home and called some friends and we were taking apart one of my friend's mother's stereo sets. They called them component systems back then. We figured out how to make a mixer from the balance button and got it cracking—started making tapes. Not too long after that, my mom got me a Numark mixer for Christmas and I was off and running from there. I still had the raggedy turntables, but it made it a lot easier."

When Dre's mother married for a second time, rapper Warren G became his stepbrother. It was through Warren G that Dr. Dre discovered Snoop Dogg in 1992.

He started rapping with The World Class Wrecking Cru, which included DJ Yella, Dr. Dre, Shakespeare, and Cli-N-Tel. A couple of years later, he found fame through the Rap group N.W.A, along with creator Eazy-E, Ice Cube, Arabian Prince, MC Ren and DJ Yella. Hits like "Straight Outta Compton" and "F--k tha Police" detailed a life of drugs, guns, sex and violence with unflinching honesty. By 1991, however, Dre felt like he wasn't getting an equal piece of the pie. He handled his negotiations Compton-style - allegedly sending bodyguards armed with guns and lead pipes to meet Eazy-E with an ultimatum: let Dre out of his contract or suffer the consequences, which included the fates of Eazy's mother and N.W.A's manager Jerry Heller who were being held hostage. Eazy signed the contract and Dre went on to a successful solo career.