Calabasas : Dr. Dre Helps Family Pay Funeral Costs

Popular record producer Dr. Dre, known for spinning out top-selling rap music, has agreed to help a Los Angeles family pay funeral costs.

Dr. Dre, a Calabasas resident whose real name is Andre Young, responded to a plea from Rayford Ray’s twin brother, Rayshawn, after Rayford died in his sleep last week of a heart attack at the age of 21. The twins’ parents and grandparents are deceased, so Rayshawn, of Los Angeles, was struggling to pay for the funeral.

Family members and friends had begun planning fund-raisers when they decided to call Dr. Dre’s assistant, Bruce Williams, to ask for help. Jerome Moss, who owns Angel Lena’s Soul Food Kitchen in Sherman Oaks, contacted Williams.

“It wasn’t going to kill us,” Williams said about donating the money. “It’s not just about making money, it’s also about giving back. Brothers make music, but we still got hearts.”

Williams said once Dr. Dre was told about the family’s situation, the former Death Row Records producer told Williams “to get the invoice so we can handle it.”

“I think Dre did this out of the kindness of his heart because he knows how hard these things can be,” said Taneka Williams, a lifelong friend of Rayford Ray.

Compton native Dr. Dre gained fame in the late 1980s with the rap group NWA. More recently, he has produced music for Snoop Doggy Dogg and Tupac Shakur.