As one of the greatest rappers of all time, Snoop Dogg’s words carry weight — especially on his native West Coast.
During a recent appearance on Logan Paul’s Impulsive podcast, Tha Doggfather spoke highly of the current crop of artists reppin’ California and beyond, reserving special praise for one MC in particular.
“I love it,” Snoop said. “I get a chance to stand back and watch the youngsters do what they do. I mean, I did my thing with it for 20-something years as far as being the king of the West Coast, gave the crown to Kendrick Lamar — I didn’t give it to him; actually, he took it, but I had to take it off my head and give it to him.
“And he’s been running wild with it and the music that’s been coming out from the West has been very, very good. It’s international, it’s not just regional, it’s not local no more; it’s global. So when I go across the world and I hear music from the West Coast, that makes me feel good to know that it’s constantly growing and it’s constantly being effective.”
When asked about Kendrick Lamar’s latest album Mr Morale & The Big Steppers, Snoop had nothing but high praise for the project.
“F&cking love it,” he replied. “Well-thought-out. You know, when you take your time like that, that’s what you get. You notice he doesn’t come out every blue moon; he comes out when he gets ready and he makes sure he’s calculated with his thought process, his visuals, and his sound.
“Kendrick is the sort of artist that is a part of the production. You can’t just send him a beat and say, ‘I wanna be on your album.’ He has to be in there with you, telling you how to make the music go, changing notes, where it’s stopping, where it’s breaking — he’s a part of the full process.”
When Impaulsive co-host Mike Majlak called Kendrick a “genius,” Snoop concurred, “yes sir.”
Snoop Dogg is far from the only rap legend enamoured with Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. Shortly after its May 13 release, Eminem called the album “fucking ridiculous” and revealed it left him “speechless” while pinging his good friend Dr. Dre on Twitter.
Lupe Fiasco, Earl Sweatshirt, Lil Durk, Tyler, The Creator and Kodak Black (who makes several appearances on the record) are among the many other rappers who’ve publicly praised Kendrick Lamar’s fifth LP, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
As for Snoop Dogg, the love between him and Kendrick is clearly mutual. In a 2013 XXL interview, K. Dot credited Snoop’s 1993 debut Doggystyle for influencing his own meticulous (and not to mention highly successful) approach to crafting albums.
“I’m definitely influenced by that album,” he said. “The structure, the cohesiveness, the skits, the flow, the melodies Snoop kicked, the raw raps — there wouldn’t be a Kendrick Lamar without Doggystyle. Albums that last that long have their own sound. It was nothing duplicated, that’s why it stood out. It was that G-Funk.”
It’s no surprise, then, that Kendrick Lamar was brought to tears when Snoop Dogg — alongside fellow West Coast greats Dr. Dre, The Game and Kurupt — famously passed him the torch during a concert in L.A. in August 2011, shortly after the release of Section.80.
Four years later, Kendrick returned the favour by recruiting Snoop for “Institutionalized,” from his 2015 masterpiece To Pimp a Butterfly.
