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Snoop Dogg got his big break in the industry through his many appearances on Dr Dre’s debut solo album, The Chronic, home to hit singles like ‘Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang’. The project was released on Death Row Records, with Snoop going on to release his first two albums, Doggystyle and Tha Doggfather, on the label. What the Long Beach rapper never would have imagined is that one day, he would be owning that very label.

Snoop left Death Row in 1997 following Dr Dre’s departure and Tupac Shakur’s death, proceeding to sign a life-changing deal with Master P’s No Limit Records. However, he miraculously returned to his original label in 2022 by purchasing it himself. In doing so, he secured ownership of the brand and its catalogue.

He originally wanted the masters for Doggystyle when Death Row was owned by eOne, before the company was absorbed by Hasbro. Snoop offered to work for them, to which they said they would return his masters in exchange for 12 years of work. After finding out the label was being sold to “trillionaires,” the rapper got involved and took ownership.

“I hollered at them and said, ‘How much for the masters?’ and I said, ‘Not just mine I want all of them!'” he told Drink Champs. “Then there’s one piece missing. ‘What about the publishing? I need all of them.’ Then I snatched everything Death Row off traditional, iTunes, Apple, and Spotify. So I took the Death Row catalogue to Gala Games, the company I fuck with in the Metaverse, Then built a Death Row app, so we can be like Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and we have an app for all of our content.”

Part of his reason for buying the label was wanting the late Nate Dogg, The Lady of Rage, RBX, Daz Dillinger, Kurupt, and Warren G to be compensated for their work. In Snoop’s announcement after purchasing Death Row, he reminisced on his early days while looking to the future of the company.

“I am thrilled and appreciative of the opportunity to acquire the iconic and culturally significant Death Row Records brand, which has immense untapped future value,” he said. “It feels good to have ownership of the label I was part of at the beginning of my career and as one of the founding members. This is an extremely meaningful moment for me.”

Death Row was founded by Dre, Suge Knight, The D.O.C., Dick Griffey, and Harry-O in 1991. Dre’s The Chronic, Snoop’s Doggystyle, and 2Pac’s All Eyez on Me are among some of the biggest releases on the imprint. Despite being one of the biggest hip-hop labels of all time, it was well-known for its violence in the 90s.

Since returning to Death Row, Snoop has released several solo albums, including Bacc on Death Row, the Dre-produced Missionary, and Iz It a Crime?. Although it will be hard to top, the West Coast legend is hoping to see more success with his new crop of artists, including D Smoke and October London.