About the Album:
While Doggystyle was technically Snoop Dogg’s debut album, audiences were already familiar with him. He rapped on half the tracks on Dr. Dre’s 1992 album, The Chronic, including the hit singles. It set him up as “the biggest star in hip-hop, with legions of fans anxiously awaiting new material.” AM That set up Doggystyle as the fastest-selling debut album RD whopping first week sales exceeding 800,000. WK
Fans expected a “de facto sequel to The Chronic…another round of P-Funk-inspired grooves and languid gangsta and ganja tales.” AM That’s exactly what they got – “the same production, same aesthetic and themes, and same reliance on guest rappers.” AM
“The miracle is, it’s as good as that record.” AM The two albums “stand proudly together as the twin pinnacles” AM for transforming “the entire sound of West Coast rap by its development of what later became known as the ‘G-funk’ sound…[by expanding] gangsta rap with profanity, violent lyrics, basic beats, anti-authoritarian lyrics and multi-layered samples taken from 1970’s P-Funk records.” WK
Speaking of P-Funk, the lead single, “the whomping What’s My Name?,” RD was “a roof-raising reworking of George Clinton’s ‘Atomic Dog’ with a hit video.” RD That song and Gin and Juice both reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Snoop rules as “comfortably cool with the Slick Rick remake Lodi Dodi as the ragga-tinged Serial Killer and bloodcurdling Murder Was the Case.” RD There are also “legendary tracks” RD such as the title cut featuring George Clinton and the original version of Dre’s The Next Episode.” RD
When it came to making Doggystyle, Dre knew “it wasn’t time to push the limits of G-funk, and instead decided to deepen it musically, creating easy-rolling productions that have more layers than they appear. They’re laid-back funky, continuing to resonate after many listens, but their greatest strength is that they never overshadow the laconic drawl of Snoop, who confirms that he’s one of hip-hop’s greatest vocal stylists with this record…Snoop takes his time, playing with the flow of his words, giving his rhymes a nearly melodic eloquence.” AM “Snoop is something special, with unpredictable turns of phrase, evocative imagery, and a distinctive, addictive flow.” AM
Time magazine noted that the lyrics “are often unnecessarily graphic; at some points they're downright obscene.” WK Indeed, they are “as luridly stupid as Darryl Daniel’s controversial cover cartoon, reaching an unpleasant peak on Ain’t No Fun. But overlook that and there is plenty to enjoy on this album.” RD
Snoop raps about “adolescent urges, as he freely talks of casual sex, smoking marijuana and gunning down rival gang members.” WK “The album also covered…drug dealing and pimping.” WK In some circles “he was acclaimed for the realism in his rhymes and his harmonious flow,” WK but in other arenas he was “accused of glamorizing gang violence and black-on-black crime.” WK “Snoop Dogg…said, ‘I can’t rap about something I don't know. You’ll never hear me rapping about no bachelor’s degree. It’s only what I know and that’s that street life. It’s all everyday life, reality.’” WK
Snoop Dogg was weirdly celebrated as “the first major rapper to (apparently) walk it like he talked it.” RD Prior to the album’s release, Snoop Dogg got caught up in some real-life gangsta drama when he was arrested in August. Snoop was charged for driving a vehicle from which his bodyguard, McKinley Lee, shot and killed Phillip Woldermarian, a rival gang member. The rapper claimed the victim was stalking him and it was self-defense. He went to trial in late 1995 and was cleared of all charges in February of 1996. WK
Snoop wasn’t just derided for the violence of his lyrics, but the “many derogatory terms against woman, with expressions such as ‘bitches’ and ‘ho’s’ being used throughout…In certain tracks Snoop Dogg and Tha Dogg Pound casually speak of gang rape, illustrating the demeaning of women.” WK
There are some who say that it is precisely because of the articulation of “the rage of the urban underclass and its sense of intense oppression and defiant rebellion” WK that gangsta rap is an important genre. In any event, Doggystyle “is regarded by many critics as one of the most significant albums of the 1990s, and one of the most important hip hop albums released to date.” WK “It is credited with defining West Coast hip hop; shifting the emphasis to more melodious, synth-driven, and funk-induced beats. About.com stated during the period the album was released, ‘Gangsta rap never sounded so sweet.” WK
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