Dr. Dre's 'The Chronic' Also Available Exclusively on Apple Music

One of the ways Apple will draw customers to Apple Music is through exclusive content that's unavailable on other music services. Pharrell will release his new single "Freedom" exclusively on the platform, Taylor Swift has already promised to make her 1989 album available on Apple Music, and now Apple has confirmed that Dr. Dre's album The Chronic will also make its streaming music debut on the service.

Released in 1992, The Chronic has never before been made available on any streaming music service, including the hip hop star's own Beats Music service.

thechronic
As outlined by Rolling Stone, the site that first reported the news, the album had been the subject of an ongoing legal battle between Dr. Dre and his former label Death Row Records, which may be the reason why it's been previously unavailable. Dre received full digital rights to The Chronic in 2011 and is free to release the album on Apple Music.

Exclusive content will likely be an ongoing feature in Apple Music, with Apple working to secure deals with a number of artists. Ahead of Apple Music's debut, the company was rumored to be in talks with dozens of high-profile musical acts like Florence and the Machine and Taylor Swift.

In addition to sharing exclusive songs and album releases on Apple Music, Apple is also hoping to engage artists and customers through its Apple Music Connect platform, a social network that lets artists share photos, videos, and other content with fans.

The company's worldwide 24/7 live radio station, Beats 1 radio, will also feature one-of-a-kind content like interviews and music curated by celebrities. Eminem, a close friend of Dr. Dre, will be the first Beats 1 interviewee following tomorrow's launch of Apple Music and Beats 1, and Dr. Dre will host his own radio show on the station.

Update 6:35 PM Pacific: The New York Times reports that AC/DC will also be streaming its collection through Apple Music, Spotify and Rdio.

Popular Stories

iphone 17 models

No iPhone 18 Launch This Year, Reports Suggest

Thursday January 1, 2026 8:43 am PST by
Apple is not expected to release a standard iPhone 18 model this year, according to a growing number of reports that suggest the company is planning a significant change to its long-standing annual iPhone launch cycle. Despite the immense success of the iPhone 17 in 2025, the iPhone 18 is not expected to arrive until the spring of 2027, leaving the iPhone 17 in the lineup as the latest...
Clicks Communicator Feature

'Clicks Communicator' Unveiled — Will You Carry This With Your iPhone?

Friday January 2, 2026 6:35 am PST by
The company behind the BlackBerry-like Clicks Keyboard accessory for the iPhone today unveiled a new Android 16 smartphone called the Clicks Communicator. The purpose-built device is designed to be used as a second phone alongside your iPhone, with the intended focus being communication over content consumption. It runs a custom Android launcher that offers a curated selection of messaging...
duolingo ad live activity

Duolingo Used iPhone's Dynamic Island to Display Ads, Violating Apple Design Guidelines

Friday January 2, 2026 1:36 pm PST by
Language learning app Duolingo has apparently been using the iPhone's Live Activity feature to display ads on the Lock Screen and the Dynamic Island, which violates Apple's design guidelines. According to multiple reports on Reddit, the Duolingo app has been displaying an ad for a "Super offer," which is Duolingo's paid subscription option. Apple's guidelines for Live Activity state that...
apple intelligence black

Report: Apple's AI Strategy Could Finally Pay Off in 2026

Tuesday December 30, 2025 9:01 am PST by
Apple's restrained artificial intelligence strategy may pay off in 2026 amid the arrival of a revamped Siri and concerns around the AI market "bubble" bursting, The Information argues. The speculative report notes that Apple has taken a restrained approach with AI innovations compared with peers such as OpenAI, Google, and Meta, which are investing hundreds of billions of dollars in data...
apple fitness 2026 1

Apple Teases 'Something Big' Coming Soon to Apple Fitness+

Tuesday December 30, 2025 2:11 pm PST by
The Apple Fitness+ Instagram account today teased that the service has "big plans" for 2026. In a video, several Apple Fitness+ trainers are shown holding up newspapers with headlines related to Apple Fitness+. What's Apple Fitness+ Planning for the New Year? Something Big is Coming to Apple Fitness+ The Countdown Begins. Apple Fitness+ 2026 is Almost Here 2026 Plans Still Under ...
Mac Pro Feature Blue

What's Happening With the Mac Pro?

Wednesday December 31, 2025 9:59 am PST by
Apple hasn't updated the Mac Pro since 2023, and according to recent rumors, there's no update coming in the near future. In fact, Apple might be finished with the Mac Pro. Bloomberg recently said that the Mac Pro is "on the back burner" and has been "largely written off" by Apple. Apple apparently views the more compact Mac Studio as the ideal high-end pro-level desktop, and it has almost...
macbook air march 2020

Apple Says Final Intel MacBook Air and Apple Watch Series 5 Now 'Vintage'

Wednesday December 31, 2025 8:39 am PST by
Apple today added the final 13-inch MacBook Air powered by Intel processors, the Apple Watch Series 5, and additional products to its vintage products list. The iPhone 11 Pro was also added to the list after the iPhone 11 Pro Max was added back in September. The full list of products added to Apple's vintage and obsolete list today: MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2020) iPhone 8 Plus 128GB ...
Apple Fitness Plus hero

Apple Announces New Fitness+ Workout Programs, Strava Challenge, and More

Friday January 2, 2026 6:43 am PST by
Apple today announced a number of updates to Apple Fitness+ and activity with the Apple Watch. The key announcements include: New Year limited-edition award: Users can win the award by closing all three Activity Rings for seven days in a row in January. "Quit Quitting" Strava challenge: Available in Strava throughout January, users who log 12 workouts anytime in the month will win an ...

Top Rated Comments

DocPenguin Avatar
137 months ago
All of these exclusivity deals are going to drive me back to pirating music.

If you don't release your music to every streaming service, at the same time, I'll gladly download from a source where you won't get a dime of my money.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jimmy James Avatar
137 months ago
Where did he get his PhD? In which field?
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tgwaste Avatar
137 months ago
Where did he get his PhD? In which field?
The field of making one of the best albums of all time.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jazwire Avatar
137 months ago
This is only good news for Apple, bad news for the rest of us.
Yep, this is what is going to making the future of streaming services suck. They always find a way to ruin things.

You want artist A you need to subscribe to service X
You want artist B you need to subscribe to service Y
You want artist C you need to subscribe to service Z
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DocPenguin Avatar
137 months ago
Why, do you use Spotify and you wanted to hear it there instead? :p
It's not an issue of Spotify vs Apple Music, vs Tidal, vs whatever. It's an issue of fragmentation. These deals hurt all users of every streaming service.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Arrr Avatar
137 months ago
Where is Detox at?
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)