2001 (Dr. Dre album) The album primarily featured co-production between Dr. Dre and Mel-Man and was generally well received by critics. AllMusic writer Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted that Dr. Dre had expanded on the G-funk beats on his previous album, "The Chronic", and stated, "He's pushed himself hard, finding new variations in the formula by adding ominous strings, soulful vocals, and reggae, resulting in fairly interesting recontextualizations" and went on to say, "Sonically, this is first-rate, straight-up gangsta." "Entertainment Weekly"s Tom Sinclair depicted the album as "Chilly keyboard motifs gliding across gut-punching bass lines, strings and synths swooping in and out of the mix,
Dr. Dre Mary J. Blige and new protégé Hittman, as well as co-production between Dre and new Aftermath producer Mel-Man. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of the website AllMusic described the sound of the album as "adding ominous strings, soulful vocals, and reggae" to Dr. Dre's style. The album was highly successful, charting at number two on the "Billboard" 200 charts and has since been certified six times platinum, validating a recurring theme on the album: Dr. Dre was still a force to be reckoned with, despite the lack of major releases in the previous few years. The album included popular hit singles "Still