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 Impaulsive 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.
“Fucking love it,” he replied. “Well-thought-out. You know, when you take your time like that, that’s what you get. You notice he don’t come out every blue moon; he come out when he get ready and he makes sure he’s calculated with his thought process, with his visuals, 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.”
Kendrick Lamar 'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers' Examines The Ugly Side Of A Modern Rap Superstar
Snoop Dogg is far from the only rap legend enamored 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 favor by recruiting Snoop for “Institutionalized,” from his 2015 masterpiece To Pimp a Butterfly.
Game is gonna cry and beef about this too probably next
The little circle of rap celebrities sucking each other’s off makes me puke. Let’s be real. The album is average. Not a banger. Just accoustic sounds with singings and Kendrick spitting with is Gollum voice.
People always hating in Kendrick because he ain’t doing that stupid drill shit.
Nah, I think its a bit of the opposite. Most hating on Kendrick nowadays are upset that he now has a very newschool rap sound, lots of synthesized voices, singing, intricate production, etc. I think Kendrick initially flourished because people loved his raw, product of the 90s sound. When black hippy was first around, they sounded like a rap group from the late 90s. Simple but dope beats, just spitting naturally with a more mono tone voice, not super intricate production. We all have our tastes. My ideal hiphop is Masta Ace. Kendricks music from like 2009 to 2012 was soo dope. Go listen to Kendricks “Thanksgiving”. He just doesn’t rap like that anymore, and that was some killer rap music. So fresh yet reminiscent of the old-school. Today Kendrick sounds like everyone else. Lyrically, he isn’t. I’m saying SOUND.
“Can’t Please Everybody.”
I’m curious….If his album was average. What do you call a great album?
Nas – Magic
Average album??? Man, the album is well above average bro.
I already forgot about this album. No repøay value whatsoever.
Your comment has been deemed irrelevant. Next time, try learning how to spell your words properly.
I’m curious, what do you call a “replayable” album then?
Funny, the same thing can be said about your mom
Kendrick does have the crown for now, Koko Tha Madam is coming!
Lol really HHDX? Snoop dogg, one of the greatest rappers of all time? He has ONE classic album. ONE. His second best album was Tha Blue Carpet Treatment. Then like 12 other not so great, below average albums. Doggystyle is a true classic, yes. But the top rappers are usually considered to be very talented at writing or rhyming, and snoop is kind of neither. Snoop was just a great entertainer. Not one of the best rappers. Like who would every mention Snoop as a top 10 rapper? Nobody. And Kendricks new album is his worst to date I’d argue. Lyricism is good. Sonically it’s horrible. It’s just not something I’d care to replay like his first few albums, which I bumped for many years.