Win it before you can buy it! Death Row Records was a West Coast hip hop record label founded in 1991 by Suge Knight and Dr. Dre, and owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). DRI closed its doors on April 26, 2006. The company’s most successful artists were Radiohead, Tupac Shakur, Snoop Dogg (aka Snoop D-O-double G), the Notorious B.I.G., Kendrick Lamar, Nate Dogg, Dr. Dre, Nas and Mary J. Blige.