The 20 Most Gangsta Moments From Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle

Murder Was Indeed The Case

In an eerie prophetic moment, the song “Murder Was the Case” vividly detailed a young Snoop being on trial for murder; one that would soon come to life in August of ’93 when his bodyguard shot a man in self-defense. Snoop was tied into the trial as he was the one driving the car at the time of the incident. Both men were later acquitted.

My Name Is My Name

Want to know the best way to become immortalized in the rap game? Never let the people forget who you are. Snoop’s first hit, “Who Am I (What’s My Name)?” remains one of his biggest with a chorus that simply chants his moniker. Bonus points for him admitting he looked like a Doberman Pinscher.

The Ruler’s Back

1993 wasn’t too removed from the Golden Age that 1988 had brung but Snoop still went out his way to pay homage to Slick Rick on “Lodi Dodi,” which Snoop called, “the greatest song ever.” While the template was nearly identical, Snoop (and Dre’s spacey production) added a gangsta’s spin to their rendition.

Photo: Amazon

Training The Pup Early

It’s a little known fact that 106 & Park’s Bow Wow was signed to Death Row as a pre-teen and even had a song that was slated to be on the Murder Was the Case OST. On Snoop’s first album, he made a cameo on the “Betta Ask Somebody” skit that would have got him sent to the principal’s office in real life. The then-6-year-old actually portrayed all the kids in the skit.

A Female Dogg With A Mean Bite

To be a member of the fairer sex while stranded on Death Row meant you had to grow a pair or eventually get chewed up as dog food. The Lady of Rage put down “175 lbs of beef” on the album’s official intro before you even heard Snoop rap, ushering in a classic album with a woman’s touch.

The Evolution Of The Pimp Hand

Doggystyle attracted just as many critics as it did fans for its misogynistic themes being thrusted into pop culture. While there’s no real ethical justification in defense of the outcry, the persona that was molded on the album has carved its way into Hip-Hop’s history books all the same. Sometimes it pays “not to love dem hoes.”

An Endorsement For The Ages

Hip-Hop has always been big business before it was actually a big business. After the second “Gin & Juice” became a hit in the hood and Billboard charts, Seagram’s Gin (which was namedropped in the song) started to see their sales rise significantly. Seagram also owned Interscope Records so you can do the additional math.

Kurupt Unleashed

As one-half of the talented duo Tha Dogg Pound, Kurupt had got a few shots at the target audience with a few appearances on The Chronic. Yet it was his Doggystyle verses that proved he was ready for his shot in the spotlight. (Most notably, “For All My N****z & B*****s.) Barely two years later, he and Daz Dillinger were sitting at #1 on the Billboard charts with their debut, Dogg Food.

Eazy-E Dismissed

With the Chronic smoke stank still lingering from “F**k wit Dre Day (And Everybody’s Celebratin’),” the war between Death Row and N.W.A. was pretty much a done deal. Still, they still dealt Eazy-E a low blow on the “House Party” skit. Listen closely.

They Didn’t Forget About Uncle Luke, Either

Luther Campbell, the genius behind all the scandal dished out by 2 Live Crew, also ingested a bit of the ether spilled from “Dre Day.” On “The Shiznit,” Snoop went at his head with lyrics like, “Gotta take a trip to the M-I-A/and serve your a** with the motherf*****g AK.” Of course that didn’t happen and the two have since put their differences well behind them.

A R-Rated Comicbook

Photo: RMG

The artwork of an album is somewhat of a lost art in the iTunes-era. Doggystyle’s illustrated cover made it instantly appealing but the inside booklet took it a step further with a hilarious ghetto scenario of ghetto birds, figuratively and literally. All praises due to Darryl “Joe Cool” Daniels.

The G-Funk Era In Full Effect

Dr. Dre flashed his brilliance when it came to finding hits within hits from old funk records on The D.O.C.’s No Can Do It Better and Efil4zaggin before perfected it on The Chronic. With Doggystyle, there was new ground broken when it came to supplying Snoop with heat for the studio. Check out the DJ Snoopadelic-hosted sample mixtape below.

Who’s The Mack?

The soundtrack to the album wasn’t the only aspect Doggystyle borrowed from the 70s. Sam Sneed joined in on the fun for “U Betta Recognize” to pay homage to Goldie’s upper-pimp hand from the 1973 movie, The Mack. Of course they had to put another gangsta’s spin on it.

Superfly Had To Have His Taste Too

Ron O’Neal’s 1972 cult classic, Super Fly was the grand inspiration behind the opening “Bathtub” skit. During a friendly exchange with Warren G., Snoop tossed around the idea of hanging up his blue chucks on what was just his first solo album. Eleven albums later, Eddie’s advice still seems like it is working.

The Haboglabotribin Trick

They say the best music is created organically and “Gz & Hustlas” is living proof. While recording Doggystyle, Snoop and Dre were tinkering around in the studio for a simple mic check with Bernard Wright’s “Haboglabotribin.” Snoop freestyled the entire record and Dre simply cut out a chunk of the original track. You can’t over think a classic.

A Natural Born [Track] Killer

With so much drama in the LBC, Death Row’s core theme got somewhat lost in the shuffle, save for Doggystyle’s most slept-on track, “Serial Killa.” RBX of “drop bombs like Hiroshima” fame and those Tha Dogg Pound guys helped Snoop dig six foot ditches for opposing crews.

The Forgotten Love

In 1993, cassette tapes weren’t relics for time capsule fodder. Seeing that they were more affordable than CDs at the time, their viability still made them an asset for record companies. Due to sample clearance issues revolving around Isaac Hayes’ “The Look of Love,” the record “G’s Up, Hoes Down” never made its way onto a compact disc. Sad really. It’s just as classic as Doggystyle’s other inclusions.

R&B Singers Have All The Fun

As a singer, sharing mic space with three other foul-mouthed rappers would prove quite the challenge to most but not the late, great Nate Dogg. The O.G. crooner literally stole the show on “Ain’t No Fun (If the Homies Can’t Have None)” and his pronunciation of the female’s reproductive organ remains a must-rewind to this day.

Dramatics For A New Generation

Although most of Doggystyle incorporated funk and soul samples, “Doggy Doggy World” stood as one song with a truly old school vibe. This was made possible thanks in part to 70s legends, The Dramatics appearing in full to record vocals on the record. Perhaps the most impressive aspect to the duet was the beat was not created from a Dramatics sample.

Dialing In To W Balls

The level of ingenuity that went into a mere 37 seconds was nothing to scoff at. Not only did the skit set up opportunities for further segments on future albums, it took another swipe at Eazy-E, reworked a funk interpolation and its frequency was 187.4. Touché.

#1 With A Bullet On The Billboard Spot

We just had to give you one more. With all the momentum in the rap world behind him, Snoop knocked Pearl Jam’s Vs. out of its #1 ranking on the Billboard charts and went on to sell over five million records worldwide.

Now that’s gangsta.