Strange, A. (1996, December). "Angel of death: After three years of absence from the rap scene as a soloist, Snoop Doggy Dogg, one of the chief architects of g-funk, resurrects himself to again rap anew." The Source, pp. 102-110.

OVERVIEW

Snoop Doggy Dog is back with his second album, Tha Doggfather. Becoming a father in reality has influenced him:

Before I had a son, I was like, ‘I ain’t no role model…’ But I see that little kids love Snoop Doggy Dogg. So I’m like, d---, I got some kind of creative control over what they can do with themselves. (p. 110)

Tracing Snoop’s life through his early family, the gang-related death of a close friend, the making of his first album, his falling out with Dr. Dre at Death Row Records, and his recent 2½ years in court facing murder charges, this article raises the question: how has Calvin "Snoop Doggy Dogg" Broadus changed?

Though the author asserts that Snoop’s latest album "is more about music than rampant gangsterisms" (p. 110), Snoop’s allegiance to gangsta rap remains. This is especially so after the recent death of Tupac Shakur:

When I lost Pac, I lost my heart…When I did ‘Murder was the case,’ I didn’t know that that was really gonna happen…I had a talk with Pac (spiritually) and he said to keep Death Row and the music alive. Dre said ‘gangsta rap is dead,’ but we have to prove him wrong.

To the author, Snoop Doggy Dogg is an example of positive change within the gangsta rap industry. Indeed, for a gangsta rap artist to state, " ‘I’m a family oriented person,’ " seems to be a profound step. It will be for the listener to decide whether Snoop’s new realization is evident in his latest music.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION

1. Do you think Snoop can reconcile his new beliefs about being a role model and a family man with the genre of gangsta rap?
2. What kind of role model has Snoop been in the past and what kind of role model should he be now?
3. Is Snoop a positive or negative role model for young people? Explain.

IMPLICATIONS

• We need to determine, now that Snoop realizes he is a role model, what model he is portraying in his music.
• Parts of this article could be used to help students critique how Snoop’s comments reconcile with his album, Tha Doggfather.