Many have tried and failed to tell the story of Motown legend Marvin Gayethrough film — Lenny Kravitz, Cameron Crowe, Scott Rudin, F. Gary Gray — but none received the estate’s blessing to do so. Well, what about Dr. Dre? The legendary rapper, producer and hip-hop mogul is making a film about the music icon’s life story, Variety reports.
Gaye, born in 1939, is one of the most successful soul singers of all time, with classic albums and timeless hits from the ’60s to the early ’80s. In 1984, Gaye was murdered by his father. The singer was posthumously awarded the Grammy’s lifetime achievement award and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Rhythm and Blues Hall of Fame.
Dre is the first person to successfully be granted permission to use Gaye’s likeness and music for a feature-length film by the Gaye family estate. Jamie Foxx did receive rights for a mini-series back in 2016, although nothing has come of the project since the rights were granted.
Straight Outta Compton, the film biopic based on the story of Dre’s epochal rap group N.W.A and co-produced by Dre himself, received mass critical and commercial success, ultimately leading to an Oscar nomination for the best original screenplay.
Source: billboard.com
