Iconic rapper, cannabis advocate and brand owner Snoop Dogg already has an impressive resume under his belt. From his songbook and musical career reaching back to the early ‘90s to his consistent, outspoken demeanor working to destigmatize and normalize cannabis and his journey into the cannabis industry, he’s truly a force to be reckoned with.
Now, 30 years into his career, Snoop can boast yet another milestone: being inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF). The class of 2023 inductees will also include other musical legends, like Sade, Glen Ballard, Gloria Estefan, Lynne, Teddy Riley and Liz Rose. The event is scheduled for Thursday, June 15 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York.
SHOF Chairman Nile Rodgers spoke about the new round of inductees, emphasizing that the music industry cannot exist without the songwriters who make it all happen.
“Without them there is no recorded music, no concert business, no merch… nothing; it all starts with the song and the songwriter,” Rodgers said. “We are therefore very proud that we are continually recognizing some of the culturally most important songwriters of all time and that the 2023 slate represents not just iconic songs but also diversity and unity across genres, ethnicity and gender, songwriters who have enriched our lives and, in their time, literally transformed music and the lives of billions of listeners all over the world.”
Snoop, born Clavin Cordozar Broadus Jr., was born in Long Beach, California and began singing and playing piano at the Golgotha Trinity Baptist Church. He also began rapping in sixth grade. He got his big break in late 1990, when one of his solo freestyles, done over En Vogue’s “Hold On,” made it onto a mixtape that caught the ear of producer Dr. Dre, who invited him to an audition. Dre started working with Snoop in 1992 for the theme song of the film Deep Cover, then on Dr. Dre’s solo album, The Chronic.
Snoop first took the stage name Snoop Doggy Dogg. The exposure from his collaboration with Dr. Dre helped expose him to the masses, and he released his debut album Doggystyle the following year.
Among a massive discography, Snoop is best known for key tracks like “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” “Nuthin’ But A ‘G’ Thang,” Young, Wild & Free,” “Gin & Juice” and “Next Episode.”
Throughout his career, Snoop has also been a vocal advocate for cannabis, becoming known for his consistent cannabis consumption and fun tidbits, like having his own salaried joint roller. He founded one of the first celebrity-endorsed feed brands in the country when he launched Leafs by Snoop in 2015, first introducing it to the Colorado market.
“Since I’ve been at the forefront of this movement for over 20 years now, I’m a master of marijuana,” he told the Denver Post at the time. The collaboration with Canopy Growth Corporation was sold exclusively at the LivWell dispensaries, though the brand has ceased operations for a few years now
Though, Snoop maintained his footing in the cannabis industry, launching another cannabis brand through the Death Row Records music label founded in 1991. The brand launched in 2022, fittingly called Death Row Cannabis, with Snoop at the helm. Forbes reported that Death Row Cannabis offers products for craft connoisseurs, featuring cannabis cultivated by AK, a legendary West Coast grower brought onto the team by Snoop himself.
The brand is currently available in California with plans to launch in other states as the year progresses.
“I smoke cannabis, advocate for it on a personal level, but I’m also an investor and entrepreneur. The opportunity in cannabis is clear, and this data highlights that consumers are highly educated, with more buying power than these stereotypes would have you believe,” Snoop said in 2021.
After the announcement regarding his induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Snoop took to Instagram to share his gratitude.
“Damn, Songwriters Hall of Fame? That’s big,” he said. “And just to think, I’ve been telling people for the past seven years, ‘Who you wanna do a song with, Snoop?’ I’d always say Sade. And now we going to the Songwriters Hall of Fame on the same day. Not only that, Teddy Riley? New jack swing? I’m going in with him? Man, God is good.”
