Apple Music Rank: 84
Album: Doggystyle
Artist: Snoop Doggy Dogg
Year: 1993
Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
Was I familiar with Snoop Doggy Dogg? If you’re not familiar with Snoop you’ve either been hiding deep in the woods for 30 years or you’re in one of those religions that doesn’t allow you to anything but ride horses and perform other old fashioned farm-related activities. By the way, I’m aware that he’s Snoop Dogg now, but back in the day he was Snoop Doggy Dogg, so I’m officially using that as the artist’s name for this album.
Had I heard Doggystyle before? Yes. Several hundred times.
Thoughts on Doggystyle: I don’t know what your life was like in 1993. I was a high school junior in a small northern Wisconsin town at that time. I had plenty of friends, but at a high school with about a thousand students I shared the same musical taste with less than five of them. I was accustomed to being ridiculed for the music I listened to. When Doggystyle came out I could feel the tide shifting. I can still close my eyes and put myself in my English class. Sitting at my desk I can see a couple kids coming up to me to ask, “Did you hear the new Snoop Doggy Dogg yet?” I see their faces but I don’t remember their names because I’m terrible with names. Anyway, I’m sure they came to me because they knew I was the resident hip hop enthusiast at Pulaski High in 1993, but I wasn’t used to kids eagerly coming to talk about it. I’m sure I said something like, “Hell yes,” but in my mind I was probably like, “Who the fuck are you? Weren’t you just making fun of me for this shit like six months ago?” Even 30 years ago there was something about Snoop. It should come as no surprise that in 2024 he’s America’s Sweetheart.
Actually, yes it should. Nobody could’ve seen this coming. The world’s introduction to Snoop was a “Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang” video in which he seemed too timid to make eye contact with the camera. He was just a dude with a laid back flow who stared at the ground while he rapped. Snoop quickly got over that, but his lyrical content was far from radio or family friendly. He’s going on decade four of being America’s best known stoner. Also, there was a real murder case. When I see him as America’s Olympic mascot or pitchman for T Mobile I have to think that the people in charge have never heard “Ain’t No Fun (If the Homies Can’t Have None)” or 2002’s “Wasn’t Your Fault“, among others. “Ain’t No Fun” is a stunning, standout work of misogyny even in a genre full of it. I’m surprised this post-Me Too society threw some people who were relatively innocent bystanders by comparison under the bus but was willing to look the other way on Snoop, even if the incredibly offensive shit he said about women was (presumably) a work of fiction written over 30 years ago. I’m not mad about it. In fact, I’m thrilled. I’m glad to live in a world where a guy like Snoop can grow up the way he did, do and say the things he did, and still hustle to get to where he is now. He’s not actually guilty of anything as far as I can tell. If we’re all judged by the shit we did when we were younger most of us would be screwed. I just can’t see him hanging out with royalty and emissaries at the Olympics with hearing his voice saying, “Guess who’s back in the motherfucking house with a fat dick for your motherfucking mouth?” Makes me smile every time.
Note: I should point out that “Ain’t No Fun” and “Wasn’t Your Fault” are lyrically appalling and also two of my favorite Snoop songs. I’m not turning up my nose at them. It’s one of those, “The thoughts expressed by the rapper does not reflect the views of this author,” situations. I still love the songs. Forget the lyrics, even though they’re hilarious. Musically I put “Ain’t No Fun” up against any west coast hip hop track. If I was to teach a class about 90s west coast hip hop and I had to come up with one song that encapsulates the sound, “Ain’t No Fun” would probably be my choice. “Wasn’t Your Fault” is just funky as hell and belongs on the short list of Pharrell’s best production work. I’ll gleefully ignore Snoop rapping about putting his foot in hoes’ asses if the beat is right.
It occurs to me that I’ve written a few hundred words on this album so far without really saying anything, so I’ll add this: In my opinion, Doggystyle is the best album to come out of west coast hip hop in the late-80s/early-90s era. I know Straight Outta Compton put the west coast on the hip hop map and The Chronic changed the sound of all hip hop. Doggystyle perfected it, partially because Snoop is a much better rapper than any of them. It was loaded with hits. See: “Who Am I (What’s My Name)?“, “Doggy Dogg World“, “Gin and Juice“, and the original version of “Murder Was the Case“. The Chronic understandably gets the love because it was first, but Doggystyle is the best album of that era. As mentioned above, Snoop has become part of the fabric of America in the 2020s so anything he does now is mainstream. It’s difficult to describe to a millennial or Gen Z kid how exciting it was to be a hip hop fan in the early-90s when Snoop and Dre – and a lot of other rappers – were doing things we’d never heard before. It was an incredible time to be a hip hop fan.
Favorite track: Even on an album full of classics, this is an easy choice for me. “Gin and Juice” is my favorite track by any artist in the 90s west coast hip hop canon. The song carries so much nostalgia that it has actually moved me to near tears purely due to the great memories it produces. It only takes a few seconds for “Gin and Juice” to transport me back to one of my friends’ cars, a dorm room, or a house party in the mid-90s. I have loved songs more, but few – if any – take me back to the glory days the way this one does.
Will I listen to Doggystyle again? I will always listen to Doggystyle.
Would I buy it on vinyl? It’s already done.
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