For the rap legend, the future looked anything but rosy in its early years.Calvin Cordozar Broadus Junior, as Snoop Dogg is called, was born in 1971 in a poor district of the California city of Long Beach.The wrong environment did the rest: he got on the wrong track and became a member of one of the largest gangs in California - the "Rollin '20's Crips".Shortly after the high school, the young Calvin was arrested - because of drug trafficking with cocaine.At 18, his mother threw him out.For two months he slept in his car, a 1969 Chevrolet, as he once revealed in an interview with "Spiegel Online".
The first arrest did not scare the petty criminals.Snoop Dogg kept landing in prison for drug trafficking.Before he was 20 years old, he stood there without perspective.His dream was once to be a football star, he said once.However, he knew that his talent was somewhere else.Finally, friends gave him money for a recording studio and Snoop was able to record his first demotapes.
Discovery by DR.Dre
In his young 20s, Calvin founded the hip-hop group 213 with his cousin Nate Dogg (1969-2011) and Warren G (50), the half-brother of DR.Dre (56).He chose Snoop Doggy Dogg as a rappern name.He got the name "Snoop" from his mother as a child because he was a big fan of Snoopy from the series "The Peanuts".Through the connection Warren GS to dr.Dre Snoop Dogg managed to contact the rapper that was already established at the time, who with his own group N.W.A.became a superstar.
At DR.Dre co -founded music label "Death Row Records" signed a contract and produced his debut album "Doggystyle".During the production, however, the rapper got into conflict again - this time he was charged with murder.The young musician is said to have killed a gang rival.In fact, his bodyguard at the time shot out of the moving car while Snoop Dogg was at the wheel.In court, the rapper stated that the shot fell in a self -defense situation.After three years of trial, Snoop Dogg and his bodyguard were acquitted.Despite all of this, his first album sold a total of over ten million times and took first place on the US charts.Snoop Dogg shaped the style of the G-Funk and was known from then on as a gangster rapper.
Friendship with Tupac Shakur
At "Death Row Records", numerous well-known rappers were under contract in the 1990s.One of them was Tupac Shakur (1971-1996), with whom Snoop quickly made friends."He was like a little brother for me," said the rapper about 2pac in an interview.After Shakur was shot on the open street in 1996, left dr.Dre and Snoop Dogg "Death Row Records".Dre founded his own label, Snoop signed "No Limit Records" after the CEO Master P.A transfer fee to the CEO of "Death Row Records" paid.He was a gang rival from Snoop Dogg.Because the label still had rights to the rap name, he stroked "Doggy" from his stage name and from then on called himself Snoop Dogg.
A third album published Snoop Dogg on his first label."Tha Doggfather" was a moderate success for the rapper, but of great importance for him.He devoted the plate to his cronies Tupac Shakur.The next three albums under the new label were successful with platinum awards for the rapper.However, they were characterized primarily from guest musicians who filled the records for Snoop, for which he was often criticized.The cooperation with DR.Dre brought additional success.Especially the hitsingles "Still D.R.E."And" The Next Episode "became known worldwide.
Snoop Dogg longed for more
With the musical success, Snoop Dogg began to look outside the box.He was particularly keen to experiment in 2000 when he was his directorial debut under the pseudonym "Michael J.Corleone "in a porn film.The erotic strip was a complete success and won one of the most important erotic film prices.Two years later, as a "Snoop Scorsese" at the film "Snoop Doggs Hustlaz: Diary of a Pimp", directed and tried again to connect hip hop with eroticism.
However, this should not have been Snoop Dogg's last attempt to get into the film business. Als Schauspieler wirkte er in Filmen, wie "Starsky & Hutch" und "Bones - Der Tod ist erst der Anfang" mit, war damit jedoch nur mäßig erfolgreich.
Finally, the rapper woke the entrepreneur.He brought out his Cadillac's own car model, the "Snoop de Ville".He also founded his own fashion brand "Snoop Dogg Clothing", produced action characters and sold skateboards. Mit dem "Ed Hardy"-Gründer Christian Audigier vertrieb er Kleidung unter der Marke "Rich & Infamous".
Musical chameleon
In 2002 Snoop Dogg found music again, back.Although he could not build on old successes, he managed to sell his album "Paid Tha cost to be da Bo $$" under his own label "Doggystyle Records" over two million times. Sein siebtes Studioalbum "R&G (Rythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece" produzierte er unter anderem mit Musiker Pharell Williams.The best known single of the rapper "Drop It Like It's Hot" was made from this album today.She immediately came to first place on the US charts and stayed there for five weeks.
With "Sexual Seduction" the rapper proved in 2007 that he can also take other music styles.The music video and the melody are reminiscent of past times of the 1970s and the age of "Disco".Snoop Dogg also invented itself with "sweat".In 2010, electric sounds and impacts of the House music direction conquered the world's radios.This was used by the rapper in his new single and landed another hit again.Especially the remix with the French DJ David Guetta (53) brought him high chart places.In 2012 he produced his reggae album "Reincarnated" and called himself Snoop Lion for this.For his electro-plate "Loose Joise" he accepted the artist name "DJ Snoopadelic".However, he quickly returned to his old rap name.
A living legend
Snoop Dogg has not achieved a hit like "Drop it like it's hot".He always produced new music and made it into the charts, but the album sales have been falling since 2011.He was heard more and more as a guest musician in songs from other artists, as in "California Gurls" by Katy Perry (36) 2010.
The 50-year-old is a family man.He has been married to his high school love Sante Taylor (49) for 24 years and has three sons and a daughter in adulthood with her.Today the rapper is particularly welcome on Tikkok and YouTube.Millions of people look at him how he comments on animal videos with his gentle voice.
Snoop Dogg has become a living rap legend and has become an integral part of the hip hop.Through good friends and good luck, he became the world star with an estimated assets of $ 150 million.It is clear to him today: "Dr.Dre and Warren G saved my life."However, the highlight of his career is probably still coming when he is on the stage of the Super Bowl Halfttime Show in 2022.Together with DR.Dre, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J.He will provide a lot of nostalgic moments.
