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Tha Eastsidaz Information
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'Snoop Dogg' (born 'Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr.' on October 20, 1971 (other sources say 1972) in Long Beach, California) is a rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as the most famous MC of the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of producer Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. His mother nicknamed him "Snoopy" as a child, and he took the stage name 'Snoop Doggy Dogg' when he began recording. He changed his name to Snoop Dogg in 1996, when he left his original record label, Death Row Records, and signed with No Limit Records. Several of his cousins, including RBX, Nate Dogg, and Daz Dillinger, are also hip hop artists and collaborate often with Snoop.
Biography
Early years
Calvin Broadus was active in music from a young age, singing in his church choir. Outside of church, Broadus often found himself in trouble, both in school and with the law for selling drugs. He later attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School, where he began participating in schoolyard freestyle MCing competitions.
Success with Death Row
As a member of the Crips, Snoop Dogg was in and out of jail for the three years after he graduated from high school. Pushed by older inmates to make something of himself, he began making homemade rap tapes with his cousin Nate Dogg, and best friend Warren G (stepbrother of Dr. Dre of N.W.A.). Originally, Nate's cousin Lil' 1/2 Dead was also part of the group, called 213, named after the Long Beach area code. This was largely in homage to Richie Rich's group 415, named for the (then) area code of Oakland, California. Dr. Dre began collaborating with the young rapper, first on the theme song of the film Deep Cover, and then on Dr. Dre's debut solo album The Chronic with the other members of his former starting group, Tha Dogg Pound (where the dog symbolism derives from).
Snoop Dogg's contribution to The Chronic was considerable: the rapper's rhymes were as present as Dre's. The huge success of Snoop's debut Doggystyle is largely due to this intense exposure.
While recording his own debut album Doggystyle with Dre in August of 1993, Snoop Dogg was arrested in the shooting death of Phillip Woldermarian, a member of a rival gang who was later revealed to have had a secret obsession with Snoop. He was eventually acquitted on both self defense grounds and because he allegedly drove the car while his bodyguard McKinley Lee fired the fatal shots (Lee was also acquitted on self defense grounds). Snoop remained entangled in the legal battles around the case for three years.
The Doggystyle album was released in November of 1993 on Death Row Records, and became the first debut album ever to enter the charts at number one, helping to fuel the ascendance of West Coast "G Funk" rap. The singles "What's My Name" and "Gin and Juice" went to the top ten, and the album remained in the charts for several months, even as controversy raged over the murder trial and his allegedly violent and sexist lyrics. Gangsta rap became the center of arguments for censorship and labeling, with Snoop often used as an example of violent and misogynistic musicians.
A short film about the trial called Murder Was the Case, and an accompanying soundtrack, were released in 1994. It is said, to Snoop's distress, that a lot of the hype surrounding his debut was generated by his well-publicized trial. Others argue that the Death Row crew knew that any publicity is good publicity, as this film was directed by Dr. Dre himself.
However, by the time Snoop's second album Tha Doggfather was released in November of 1996, both the furor and the popularity of gangsta rap had begun to fade, dragged down by the death of Snoop's friend Tupac Shakur and the racketeering indictment of Death Row co-founder Suge Knight. Dr. Dre had left Death Row earlier that year, and so Snoop co-produced the album himself with Daz Dillinger and DJ Pooh. Missing just Dr. Dre's signature G-Funk sound might not have been such a great blow to this album's reception, if it had not been for earlier mentioned circumstances, thus the album 'only' sold around 2 million copies.
Later years
He has since drawn back a bit from hardcore gangsta rap, performing with the hard rock Lollapalooza tour in 1997, and making several film appearances, in addition to producing and directing music videos for himself and other artists. He released an autobiography in 2001. During this period he released two albums on the No Limit Label. His last album on No Limit was 2000's Tha Last Meal. It featured a more laid-back style with a heavier emphasis on his 'pimp' lifestyle as opposed to his gangbanging lyrics on previous albums.
In 2002, he announced that he was giving up drinking and drugs. Later that year he released the album Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$, which featured the hit singles and videos "From Da Chuuuch to Da Palace" and "Beautiful," featuring guest vocals by the Neptunes' Pharrell Williams.
Snoop Dogg has made no secret of his love for some classic music, most notably Frank Sinatra. Snoop Dogg named his cat "Frankie" in the late singer's honor, and visited Mr. Sinatra in the hospital prior to that singer's death. He referred to Sinatra as "the original gangster". Nevertheless Snoop sang the self-same version of the famous "New york, New york" song on MTV. He is also a big fan of the heavy metal band Metallica, and performed at a 2003 tribute concert to them.
Snoop Dogg has worked with Silkk the Shocker, C-Murder, B-Legit, Babyface, Bad Azz, Bizzy Bone, Mariah Carey, Bootsy Collins, The D.O.C., Daz Dillinger, Dr. Dre, Nate Dogg, 50 Cent, The Game and The Neptunes, among others (see Trivia with link ). Snoop Dogg's sound has been heavily influenced by funk, and R&B. Snoop Dogg's music features samples from earlier black artists and groups, including James Brown, Marvin Gaye, and Parliament - Funkadelic.
On 11 April 2003, Snoop was unhurt after a drive-by shooting on Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles, California.
He was riding in a motorcade of five vehicles with seven armed bodyguards when three men in another car fired multiple rounds from a semi-automatic handgun. One bodyguard was injured in the incident.
On 21 May 2004, Snoop Dogg filed for divorce from his wife Shante Broadus, citing irreconcilable differences and seeking joint custody of their three children, Corde, Cordell, and Cori. They have since reconciled.
Later on in the year, he recollaborated with his old friends Nate Dogg and Warren G, as part of the rap group 213 (who had previously released an album about a decade before), and they released a new album called The Hard Way, which featured the single "Groupie Luv", and reached #4 in the US Billboard 200 album charts.
In 2004 Snoop signed to the Star Trak record label, headed by the Neptunes, who produced several tracks for his 2004 release R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta) The Masterpiece. "Drop It Like It's Hot" (featuring Pharrell), the first single released from the album, was a hit and became his first single to reach number one. His third release was "Signs", featuring Justin Timberlake & Charlie Wilson, which did not do as well.
Trivia
*Snoop Dogg is famous for using slang invented by Frankie Smith and The Gap Band in the early eighties, and popularized in part by fellow rapper E-40,much of which is simply derived by adding an "izz" or "-izzle" sound to the word. Some examples:
**"Fo' Shizzle" = for sure, the real thing
**"Mr. Swayne Dizzle" = Himself (His parody character of Sway (reporter on MTV) appeared in Doggy Fizzle Televizzle)
**"Death Rizzow" = Death Row ("Gz And Hustlas" off "Doggystyle")
**"Nate Dizzle" = Nate Dogg ("Ditty Dum Ditty Doo" off Nate Dogg's "Music And Me")
*A large number of Snoop Dogg's songs mention "the LBC." This is a reference to the city of Long Beach, California, or to the Long Beach Crips. He and a group of associates from Long Beach's East Side formed the group 'Tha Eastsidaz', releasing both an album and a direct-to-video film under the name in 2000.
*in 1996 Snoop and 2pac appeared in a TV commercial for St. Ides malt liquor, while there had been several tracks recorded in tribute to it (Dogg Food and Drank, St.. Ides in the LBC feat. Nate Dogg) ( )
*In May 2002 he has been in a commercial for Nike with George Clinton and Bootsy Collins and several NBA stars.
*During the 2004 Christmas season, he was featured in a series of television commercials for T-Mobile, promoting the T-Mobile Sidekick, the company's version of the Danger Hiptop mobile phone and Internet device.
*In July 2005, he also appeared in TV ads for Chrysler automobiles, alongside Lee Iacocca. In August 2005-- he apeared in a TV add for a Dutch phone store called the phone house.
*In 2005 Snoop played at Live 8.
*Snoop Dogg recently announced to British Radio that his next album, "The Blue Carpet Treatment", will feature production by long-time partner Dr. Dre, dispelling rumors of a rift between the two in recent times. In addition, Snoop will be featured on Dre's proclaimed (and much delayed) masterpiece "Detox".
* Snoop Dogg has his own show on XM Satellite Radio called "Welcome to Da Chuuch with Big Snoop Dogg." On December 8, 2005, he was named Executive Producer for XM's classic hip-hop channel, The Rhyme, and will provide the creative direction for the channel and assist in the development of new exclusive programming for The Rhyme as well as other channels.
* Snoop Dogg appears as a hidden character in the "True Crime: Streets of LA" video game, which was released for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and GameCube. He can be unlocked in a special mission known as "Dogg Patrol" in which he patrols the streets of LA as an undercover cop.
* Snoop Dogg is a nephew of a few Gap Band members (from whom he learned his -izzle lingo, and sampled in his music), and he is rumored to be the cousin of R&B singer Brandy.
* He tried to launch his own clothing line called "Snoop Dogg Clothing", but after some distribution and transport problems it bankrupted (even the internet site was shut down), though has never been gone off the market, because Snoop always and exclusively wears SD monogram-trademarked gear in TV broadcasted events.
* He has a little brother called P.T (Pretty Tony, born Bing Worthington) who is a member of a duo called Lifestyle (with H.I.T.) and is an owner-founder of . Their debut album is out called "Liquid Cocaine" released by BCD Music Group. P.T is also featured on Welcome to the church vol.8, Raw N' Uncut vol.1 and Eastsidaz. He is a co-owner of a clothing line called Lifestyle Clothing alongside with Darryl Wagner.
* He is the operator of the Snoop Youth Football League, a football league for youth similar to Peewee Football.
* Snoop Dogg is the most "well-connected" rapper of all time based on a study of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology . This is counted from the album sales and the collaborations made so far.
* Snoop Dogg participated in the protest held on Nov 19 2005 at San Quentin against the execution of the death sentence of former Crip leader Stanley "Tookie" Williams imprisoned there. The protest was unsuccessful, and the execution took place on the 13th December, 2005.
Studio albums
*1993: Doggystyle (Death Row/Interscope) #1 US (3 weeks), #38 UK
*1996: Tha Doggfather (Death Row) #1 US (1 week), #15 UK
*1998: Da Game Is to Be Sold Not to Be Told (No Limit/Priority) #1 US (2 weeks), #28 UK
*1999: No Limit Top Dogg (No Limit/Priority) #2 US
*2000: Dead Man Walkin' (Death Row) #24 US
*2000: Tha Last Meal (No Limit/Priority) #4 US
*2002: Snoop Dogg Presents...Doggy Style Allstars, Welcome to tha House Vol. 1 (Doggystyle)
*2002: Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$ (Doggystyle/Priority/Capitol) #12 US
*2004: R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta) The Masterpiece (Doggystyle/Star Trak) #6 US, #12 UK
*2005 Welcome to tha Chuuch - Da Album (Doggystyle/Koch)
Singles
| 'Year' | 'Title' | 'Chart positions' | 'Album' | | US Hot 100 | US R&B/Hip-Hop | US Rap | UK Singles Chart | | 1993 | "Who Am I (What's My Name)?" | #8 | - | - | #20 | Doggystyle | | 1993 | "Gin and Juice" (feat. Daz Dillinger) | #8 | - | - | #39 | Doggystyle | | 1994 | "Doggy Dogg World" (feat. The Dramatics & Tha Dogg Pound) | - | - | - | #32 | Doggystyle | | 1996 | "Snoop's Upside Your Head" (feat. Charlie Wilson) | - | - | - | #12 | Tha Doggfather | | 1997 | "Vapors" (feat. Charlie Wilson & Teena Marie) | - | - | - | #18 | Tha Doggfather | | 1997 | "We Just Wanna Party with You" (feat. Jermaine Dupri) | - | - | - | #21 | Men in Black O.S.T. | | 1998 | Tha Doggfather | - | - | - | #36 | Tha Doggfather | | 1998 | "Still a G Thang" | #19 | - | - | - | Da Game Is to Be Sold Not to Be Told | | 2002 | "From tha Chuuuch to da Palace" (feat. Pharrell) | - | - | - | #27 | Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$ | | 2003 | "Beautiful" (feat. Pharrell & Uncle Charlie Wilson) | #6 | - | - | #23 | Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$ | | 2004 | "Drop It Like It's Hot" (feat. Pharrell) | #1 | - | #1 | #10 | R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta) The Masterpiece | | 2005 | "Let's Get Blown" | #54 | - | - | #13 | R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta) The Masterpiece | | 2005 | "Signs" (feat. Charlie Wilson & Justin Timberlake) | #46 | - | - | #2 | R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta) The Masterpiece | | 2005 | "Ups & Downs" (feat. The Bee Gees) | - | #67 | - | #36 | R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta) The Masterpiece |
Filmography
*The Show (1995) (documentary)
*Half Baked (1998)
*Caught Up (1998)
*Ride (1998)
*I Got the Hook Up (1998)
*The Wrecking Crew (1999)
*Hot Boyz (1999)
*Urban Menace (1999)
*Whiteboyz (1999)
*The Eastsidaz (2000) (also executive producer)
*Crime Partners 2000 (2001)
*Baby Boy (2001)
*Training Day (2001)
*Bones (2001)
*The Wash (2001)
*Volcano High (2001) (voice in MTV English dub)
*Tupac Shakur: Thug Angel (2002) (documentary)
*Old School (2003) (Cameo)
*Pauly Shore Is Dead (2003)
*Malibu's Most Wanted (2003) (voice)
*Starsky & Hutch (2004)
*Soul Plane (2004)
*The Tenants (2005)
*Racing Stripes (2005) (voice)
*The L.A. Riot Spectacular (2005)
*Boss'n Up (2005) (also executive producer)
*Beef 3 (2005) (documentary)
*Hood of Horror (2006) (currently in post-production) (also executive producer)
*Arthur and the Minimoys (2006) (voice) (currently filming)
*Coach Snoop (2006) (currently announced start of production)
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