I don’t own much rap music. I can probably count on one hand the rap artists in my collection: Eminem, Public Enemy, Outkast, Snoop Dogg, Kanye West, maybe one or two more I’m not thinking of.
Looking at that list, Snoop Dogg is the one that stands out as unlike the others. The rest are groundbreaking in one way or another… Public Enemy’s outspoken politics, Outkast’s prog-rock ambitions, Kanye’s alternative musicality, Eminem’s lyricism (and the color of his skin).
But Snoop Dogg is just another L.A. gangsta who raps about scoring bitches and getting high. He kind of epitomizes the macho excess that typifies that sub-culture. If he has a standout trait, it’s probably that he smokes more weed than any of his contemporaries.
So why do I own Doggystyle, his 1993 debut album (and his best selling record to date)? Because as sex- and drug-fueled gangsta party albums go, this one is a tour de force. Produced by Suge Knight and Dr. Dre, the album captures the West Coast G-Funk sound that must have poured out of speakers in South Central L.A. on repeat for months.
Snoop’s laid-back rapping style is perfect for the material. He’s a rapper who succeeds not so much for the words he says or his phrasing but for the actual sound of his voice — a lazy drawl that doesn’t compete with the music or even complement it but instead just sort of lays on top of it, smoking a J.
It’s kinda hard bein Snoop D-O-double-G
But I, somehow, some way
Keep comin up with funky ass shit like every single day
May I, kick a little something for the G’s (yeah)
and, make a few ends as (yeah!) I breeze, through
Two in the mornin and the party’s still jumpin
cause my momma ain’t home
I got bitches in the living room gettin it on
and, they ain’t leavin til six in the mornin (six in the mornin)
So what you wanna do, sheeeit
I got a pocket full of rubbers and my homeboys do too
So turn off the lights and close the doors
But (but what) we don’t love them hoes, yeah!
So we gonna smoke a ounce to this
G’s up, hoes down, while you motherfuckers bounce to this
Rollin down the street, smokin endo, sippin on gin and juice
Laid back (with my mind on my money and my money on my mind)
Now, that, I got me some Seagram’s gin
Everybody got they cups, but they ain’t chipped in
Now this types of shit, happens all the time
You got to get yours but fool I gotta get mine
Everything is fine when you listenin to the D-O-G
I got the cultivating music that be captivating he
who listens, to the words that I speak
As I take me a drink to the middle of the street
and get to mackin to this bitch named Sadie (Sadie?)
She used to be the homeboy’s lady (Oh, that bitch)
Eighty degrees, when I tell that bitch please
Raise up off these N-U-T’s, cause you gets none of these
At ease, as I mob with the Dogg Pound, feel the breeze
beeeitch, I’m just
Rollin down the street, smokin endo, sippin on gin and juice
Laid back (with my mind on my money and my money on my mind)
Later on that day
My homey Dr. Dre came through with a gang of Tanqueray
And a fat ass J, of some bubonic chronic that made me choke
Shit, this ain’t no joke
I had to back up off of it and sit my cup down
Tanqueray and chronic, yeah I’m fucked up now
But it ain’t no stoppin, I’m still poppin
Dre got some bitches from the city of Compton
To serve me, not with a cherry on top
Cause when I bust my nut, I’m raisin up off the cot
Don’t get upset girl, that’s just how it goes
I don’t love you hoes, I’m out the do’
And I’ll be
Rollin down the street, smokin endo, sippin on gin and juice (beeotch!!)
Laid back (with my mind on my money and my money on my mind)
Rollin down the street, smokin endo, sippin on gin and juice (beeotch!!)
Laid back (with my mind on my money and my money on my mind)
Meet Me In Montauk 
Okay, you need to help me understand. Regardless of whether this is a tour de force or not, why, on earth, do you want or need to listen (let alone OWN) a “sex- and drug-fueled gangsta party album”? I mean – come on! When are you in the mood to listen to this album?
I understand why this music appeals to your average 16 year old boy. I wish it ididn’t, but I understand why it does. But I have no idea why a man would want to listen to this music. So… explain it to me.
I don’t think it’s very complicated. It has a great beat, a catchy chorus, intricate production… it’s like junk food, which is nice from time to time.
I’m with Amy on this one, I have no idea why a man in his upper 30’s with 2 kids would have any desire to own or listen to this, other than to maintain his renaissance man status (“I can listen to Rufus Wainwright AND Snoop Dog!)
And I’m not sure I agree with your junk food analogy. To me, the better analogy would be to a film like Jackass, Step Up, Piranha or any number of vapid movies aimed at an urban teen crowd. Sure, you COULD go see it and you COULD say that, for what it was, it was the best of the bunch, but, honestly, why would you be drawn to it in the first place?
Well, that attitude sort of requires you to ignore a sizable chunk of rap music (which I admittedly do, too). I’d argue that this album (like Dr. Dre’s The Chronic) is ground-breaking and strong musically and for that reason alone it’s worth hearing. Are the lyrics reprehensible? Sure… as are most rap lyrics.
I don’t hear groundbreaking or great musical strength here, but maybe I’m just missing it.