The Hip Hop Chronicle UK

Earlier this year, Dr Dre & Drink’s America announced that the super-producer would be releasing his own brand of sparkling vodka. Its a venture that is going to celebrate the release of the ‘Detox’ album. But now a Vodka company based in London has called Dre’s ’sparkling vodka’ a copycat idea of what they already have.

O2 Sparkling Vodka claim that their idea of sparkling vodka has been ripped off by Dr Dre. They patented their method in 2003 and has been a top seller in Europe since 2002 and launched in the USA in January 2008.

02 Sparkling Vodka seemed to be upset at Drink’s America who in their press release said that Dre’s sparkling vodka was “unique new to market sparkling vodka”.

Philip Maitland, the President of International English Distillers Ltd & the patent hold of O2 Sparkling Vodka said

“I am very complimented that Dr. Dre has recognized how innovative and special our sparkling vodka is and is trying to copy it. My concern is that it isn’t produced by our patented method and may well turn out to be a very poor imitation … I hope that consumers will not be swayed by the celebrity endorsement of a copycat product by Dr. Dre. There are a lot of mixed messages going on, Dre’s unreleased album is even called Detox to ad a bitterly ironic twist.”

It seems to me that Maitland needs to take up his beef with the Drink’s company not Dre. Dre didnt write the press release. Maitland says he doesnt want consumers to be ’swayed’ by the celebrity endorsement’ of Dr Dre but yet your using the very same thing when he never claimed authorship over the method.

Also in the run up to Detox, Dre also released a brand of headphones called ‘Beats by Dr Dre’ (see above picture)