Snoop Dogg

O2 Academy, Bristol

It’s really no wonder that this gig sold out within seconds. Everyone wants to see Snoop Dogg in the flesh, right? With a charisma that’s simultaneously humorous and eerie, the 43-year old’s career has gone from being accused (and later acquitted) of participating in a fatal drive-by shooting months before his debut album dropped, to launching an iPhone app that allows you to decorate photos with cartoon spliffs.

And since his catalogue boasts some of the biggest rap hits ever, Snoop’s wacky social media activity, phoney alter-egos and profoundly uncool product endorsements (TomTom sat navs, Norton Anti-Virus software, Hot Pocket microwavable pastries, Orbit chewing gum and price comparison website MoneySupermarket.com to name a few) haven’t really damaged his reputation, they’ve just enhanced his appeal as a surreal cultural phenomenon. 

And after making the crowd wait for a measly 50 minutes, Snoop joins Kurupt – tonight’s hypeman – and his immensely stoned DJ and keyboard player onstage. Strutting with an effortless swagger, Snoop’s voice is so clear and precise that he could almost be miming, and with a medley that draws heavily from Doggystyle and 2001 material, the first half of the set is basically flawless.

  • © Ben Price

  • © Ben Price

  • © Ben Price

And then comes all the goofy shit – which, to be fair, is pretty funny at times. “Y’all like rock music?”, Snoop asks the crowd. “I can’t hear you,” he continues after a slightly muted response. “I said… y’all like rock music?!” It looks like we’re getting a cover of Joan Jett’s I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll. But among all the routine crowd-pleasers (an equally cringe-worthy rendition of Jump Around, obligatory Biggie and Tupac tributes etc), some of Snoops’ cheesier hits provide unexpected highlights, with the crowd warming to the chorus of the ultra-sleazy Akon collab I Wanna Fuck You, and the 808 thuds and flute motif of 2014 single Wiggle sounding surprisingly great through the Academy’s sound system.

Wrapping up the set with the hilariously corny anthem Young, Wild and Free, it feels like there’s nothing Snoop can do to spoil the feeling that an adolescent fantasy has been fulfilled. We practically inhaled his blunt fumes, we rapped every word of Lodi Dodi and we witnessed Kurupt do his verse on Ain’t No Fun. But his after party set as DJ Snoopadelic, we quickly decide, is a gimmick we probably can’t justify.