The Slatest

Dr. Dre Apologizes to “the Women I’ve Hurt,”Apple Issues Statement

Dr. Dre at the Straight Outta Compton premiere in Los Angeles on Aug. 10, 2015.

Valerie Macon/AFP/Getty

Dr. Dre has issued a statement apologizing to “the women I’ve hurt,” the New York Times reported Friday. The release of the N.W.A. biopic Straight Outta Compton has triggered significant coverage—including a harrowing Gawker first-person piece this week by music-industry figure Dee Barnes, who was attacked in a 1991 incident that led to Dre’s conviction for assault and battery—of past incidents in which the rapper/producer assaulted or allegedly assaulted three women. Here’s the Times on Dre’s statement:

In a sign that the uproar was threatening not only his reputation but also his business dealings, Dr. Dre, who has previously spoken dismissively or vaguely about the allegations, which are decades old, confronted them on Friday in a statement to The New York Times. While he did not address each allegation individually, he said: “Twenty-five years ago I was a young man drinking too much and in over my head with no real structure in my life. However, none of this is an excuse for what I did. I’ve been married for 19 years and every day I’m working to be a better man for my family, seeking guidance along the way. I’m doing everything I can so I never resemble that man again.”

He added: “I apologize to the women I’ve hurt. I deeply regret what I did and know that it has forever impacted all of our lives.”

Apple, which paid $3 billion in 2014 for the Beats headphones and streaming-music companies co-founded by Dre and now employs him, also put out a statement:

Dre has apologized for the mistakes he’s made in the past and he’s said that he’s not the same person that he was 25 years ago. We believe his sincerity and after working with him for a year and a half, we have every reason to believe that he has changed.

Dee Barnes and two other accusers spoke to the Times for the piece, which you can read in full here.