Dre too busy with Eminem to work on own record

Rap superstar Dr Dre has abandoned plans to release a new album in 2008, because he is too busy working on his pal Eminem's comeback LP.

The pair have been locked in the studio perfecting the 'Stan' hitmaker's long awaited 'Relapse', which has itself been pushed back to early next year.

And it has left Dre with no time to finish his own record 'Detox', with all studio sessions now postponed until January at the earliest.

But record boss Jimmy Iovine insists the rapper/producer's album is still a priority.

The Interscope-Geffen chairman told Billboard: "He'll be finished with Eminem by then, and he'll finish his album. Eminem was always coming next year. But what happened was, I lost Dr. Dre to Eminem. Dre had to stop making his album to finish Eminem's album. Eminem hit a streak, and when a guy like Eminem gets on fire, you stop everything. That's how we lost Dre."