After 30 years as one of the foremost elder statesmen of the rap game, West Coast godfather Snoop Dogg has joined forces with another storied, foundational entity within hip-hop culture. Today, he announced he is joining Def Jam as executive creative and strategic consultant, according to Variety. In conjunction with Variety‘s report, Snoop also released a short announcement video explaining the move, which again has come nearly thirty years deep into a legendary career.
As Snoop himself puts it, “As a young rapper, Def Jam Records was the Holy Grail of hip-hop… they did all types of sh*t that I wanted to be a part of. Then Death Row Records happened, so I didn’t get a chance to be on Def Jam. But I always had a dream to be on Def Jam and to be in the place where hip-hop was originated.”
According to Variety, Snoop’s new role will see him continuing to be based out of Los Angeles and focusing on A&R and creative development. For those in the know, this is actually great news, as Snoop’s always had an ear for rising talent, lending early co-signs to any number of rising stars from the Golden State, including (but certainly not limited to) The Game, Kendrick Lamar, and Nipsey Hussle. “When I got the opportunity, my main focus on Def Jam was to help the artists and give them love and wisdom and guidance and understanding, teach them some tricks that I learned in the game — to diversify their portfolios to be superstars,” he says in his announcement.
One thing is for sure: Snoop’s presence as a playable character in Def Jam: Fight For NY finally makes sense now. Watch his announcement/explainer above.