One can’t count the number of highlights from Dr. Dre‘s career. The rap mogul is one of the most revered and respected musicians in hip hop, and while there have been plenty of monumental moments throughout his reign, his discovery and development of Eminem stands out among fans. It was decades ago that Dre and Em joined forces, and what emerged were hit songs, world tours, coveted awards, and street accolades. Rapper Royce Da 5’9″ recently reflected on what it was like recording with Dre back in those early days and he shared some wisdom delivered by the Aftermath founder.

“There was a door that we went to, I believe we went down some stairs to get in the studio room,” Royce recalled. “It was just like a studio in a building. Like, rather it had been in a house or in a building, it looked like we were in a huge studio in a building… After we had been coming back and recording there a couple days, he actually showed us the house.”

Royce added, “We went through another door and went up some stairs and now we’re in his kitchen. That was my first time being in a mansion. So, we lookin’ around, he’s showing us different rooms and then we think that’s the whole house and then it’s like, ‘Alright, come down here.’ Then we go down another long hallway and now we’re on a whole ‘nother side.” The house tour of all the rooms seemed like a never-ending process. 

“The whole time, I just remember him going, ‘Now remember, money is easy to make, but it’s hard to keep,'” Royce said. Dre would take them from room-to-room occasionally interrupting his own train of thought to remind his guests that “money is easy to make, but hard to keep.” A line similar to that ended up on Kendrick Lamar‘s track “Wesley’s Theory” from To Pimp a Butterfly in a recorded message from Dre where the mogul says:

Yo, what’s up? It’s Dre
Remember the first time you came out to the house?
You said you wanted a spot like mine
But remember, anybody can get it
The hard part is keepin’ it, motherfu*ker

Check out Royce Da 5’9″ share his story in full below, including Eminem receiving permission to put his feet on the superproducer’s table.