REVISITING REVIEW '25 The highs here are higher than Snoop's past two albums featuring some of Snoop's best since 'Doggystyle', so I can see why I wrote what I did in my original review. Songs like 'Bitch Please', 'Don't Tell' and 'Party With a D.P.G.' in particular are great. There are a lot of lackluster songs though. I would say more than his previous two albums. 'In Love with a Thug', 'Down 4 My N's', 'Betta Days', 'Somethin Bout Yo Bidness' and 'Ghetto Symphony' are all average moments. So in ranking Snoop's albums, it depends what you value. Do you put more weight on a consistent listen or standout songs? Judging by what I normally see, with people ranking this album quite highly in Snoop's disography, it must be the latter. As I wrote in my review of 'Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told', it's like splitting hairs trying to rank these Snoop albums. The beats are maybe a little better here, but the hooks are less enjoyable. There isn't much in it. Beats: ★★★☆ Rapping/Bars: ★★★ Hooks: ★★★ Best Tracks: My Heat Goes Boom, Bitch Please, Party With a D.P.G., Don't Tell 1. Dolomite Intro 2. Buck 'Em This is decent, but it's an underwhelming start to the album, especially given it's the return of Dre with Snoop. This sounds like a song that should be in the middle of an album, not trying to kick it off. 3. Trust Me It's always nice to hear Suga Free. Passable after he opens the song. There is nothing too memorable about this one either. 4. My Heat Goes Boom After a lackluster start, this is the first song to get me moving. Catchier hook and a funkier beat. 5. Dolomite 6. Snoopafella Snoop covers 'Cinderfella' by Dana Dane telling a story about a low budget male hood-Cinderella of sorts. 7. In Love With a Thug Everything about this is unfulfilling from the beat to the lyrics to the hook. Snoop tells some stories about being in love with the wrong people. 8. G Bedtime Stories As I’ve been revisiting Snoop’s discography, I’ve noticed more covers and nods to other artists than I’d realised. This track is essentially a more gangsta-flavoured spin on Slick Rick's 'Children’s Story'. It also uses Public Enemy's line, "You can get a smack for that". 9. Down 4 My N's This reminds me of a track I love that makes better use of the horns. The instrumentation here doesn’t change enough with the hook and verses blending too closely, but the rappers bring plenty of energy. 10. Betta Days Another okay song. Worse than the above. It sounds like there's no hook because it sounds no different from the verses. It has a positive message and the production is okay. 11. Somethin Bout Yo Bidness I complained about the guy on the intro here, Kevin Slow Jammin James, on Daz's recent album, 'Retaliation, Revenge and Get Back 2, and here he is annoying me again. He just sounds like such a wanker. As for the song, this is average pop rap at best. 12. Bitch Please Classic. Enough said. Snoop shouted out Dre on Doggfather (I think it was) inviting him back and here he is to finally give us a great song. 13. Doin' Too Much DJ Quik's first of two beats. Another decent but forgettable track. It doesn't really have his iconic sound. Snoop calls people for being fake or actin' too hard to impress. 14. Gangsta Ride A little better with more of a discernible hook and funky beat. 15. Ghetto Symphony The No Limit posse track. This beat though is so damn simple. KLC remade/sampled 'The Symphony' from '88 (with Marley Marl, Big Daddy Kane Masta Ace, Craig G and Kool G Rap) and made it more bare bones and worse... 16. Party With a D.P.G. Jelly Roll gives us the best beat aside from 'Bitch Please'. Dope chorus, enjoyable spitting and a beat that goes a couple of different places. 17. Buss'n Rocks DJ Quik didn't bring his best here. It's better than most tracks on this album but still nothing great. 18. Just Dippin' The third Dre track. I feel like this beat was used for something/someone else? Maybe I heard it on a freestyle... This one is above average for the album, but it's not touching 'Bitch Please'. 19. Don't Tell Third time lucky for DJ Quik. One of the best tracks. It features an incredibly catchy hook that takes it to the next level. Vibey funky production. And then Nate drops in at the end. I never forget this one. 20. 20 Minutes Another okay song bringing back the street after Quik's last funky song. 21. I Love My Momma The obligatory mum tribute to finish an album that few rappers haven't done. It's aight. --------- Original Review: An improvement on Snoop's previous two albums, and we finally see another great track to rank up with Snoop's best in 'Bitch Please', thanks to Dre who returns to produce with Snoop, and the other two Dre produced tracks ('Buck Em' & 'Just Dippin') are among the best also. While there still isn't a lot of great stuff here, the standard is higher than we've received with the last couple of albums, and it's well worth a listen for fans of Snoop Dogg. 3-3.5/5.

REVISITING REVIEW '25 As I revisit Snoop’s discography, I realise I was far too harsh on this album the first time around. Maybe the lengthy runtime put me off, and I didn’t give it the extra spin that longer albums often need. Sure, there are some filler tracks you'd expect from a No Limit release pushing the capacity of a CD, but as I even noted in my original review, the quality never dips too far, and there are definitely strong moments. Having Beats by the Pound on production, along with DJ Pooh and others, gives the album a more varied sound which is something a lot of No Limit albums lack. That sonic diversity helps it stand out. The hooks are overall quite solid that help some of the weaker moments not become poor songs. I feel like I'm splitting hairs as I try to rank Snoop's albums, but I think this is slightly better than his previous album, Tha Doggfather. There is a bit more life, fewer weak moments and greater highs. Beats: ★★★☆ Rapping/Bars: ★★★ Hooks: ★★★☆ Best Tracks: Woof!, Tru Tank Dogs, Whatcha Gon Do?, Still a G Thang, Ain't Nut'in Personal, DP Gangsta, Doggz Gonna Get Ya 1. Snoop World A fun track overall, but damn, Master P's final verse really drags it down. His over-the-top, grating delivery does the song no favours which is something that holds true every time he shows up here. 2. Slow Down This is basically bars over 'Slow Down' by Loose Ends. The song is also known as 'I Can't Take the Heat' and sees Mia and Snoop encouraging listeners to stay in control and not do what you'll pay to regret. Mia X performs well. 3. Woof! In contrast, this beat is more of what you'd expect from Snoop's move to No Limit. It's a hype anthem that is the kind of song you'd want to commit a crime to. You get three very different performances too from Fiend, Mystikal and then Snoop that add to the variety. 4. Gin & Juice II Borrows lines from the original - "Rollin down the street, with heat/Drankin, trees, sittin on D's/Top rolled back so I can feel the breeze/Never slippin', I keep my eyes on my enemies." This one has a darker feel than the classic and doesn't quite do enough in the production. 5. Show Me Love Charlie Wilson contributes an enjoyable hook. A little like the last song, it's too slow and not eventful enough on the verses to reach the next level but isn't bad. 6. Hustle & Ball More welcome energy here from O’Dell from Beats by the Pound on the production. 7. Don't Let Go Snoop switches up his flow here, opting for a more conversational delivery. It’s another solid track, which a catchy hook and all, but nothing particularly groundbreaking. 8. Tru Tank Doggs I'm not sure why people don't like this. Mystikal was so damn good who kicks of the song with his iconic energy. It's fair to say that Snoop doesn't match his energy from there. I would have loved a Mystikal solo with this beat and hook. 9. Whatcha Gon Do A funky/gangsta beat drives this. I have always found Master P's "Ugh"s annoying but this is him at his most palatable for the album only appearing on the hook. 10. Still a G Thang Sequel to 'Nuthin but a G Thang'. One of the strongest songs and the strongest without Mystikal. Snoop is entertaining the way he changes up his flow and rhymes throughout the verses. 11. 20 Dollars to My Name This is one of the weaker songs. It's not terrible, but there is nothing that interesting about it. Standard beat. Standard topic. Standard spitting. 12. D.O.G.'s Get Lonely 2 Snoop talks over Jon B's great 'They Don't Know' like he is in Boyz 2 Men. A good sung R&B hook. 13. Ain't Nut'in Personal After 'Woof!', Craig B is back with another banger with the classic Beats by the Pound sound. 14. DP Gangsta Also known as 'Gangsta Gangsta' it samples N.W.A's song of the same name and is a remake of sorts. 15. Game of Life Like '20 Dollars to My Name', it's not terrible, but it drags on a touch. The hook standing out more musically from the verses would've helped this one. 16. See Ya When I Get There Another decent hook here too, something that this album does pretty well. 17. Pay for Pussy Interlude. Snoop Dogg produced this and it has some nice production touches. It's shame more isn't made of it than Big Pimpin’ Delemond talking. 18. Picture This While not the bangers of earlier, Craig B provides another funky beat that'll get you bouncing. It's a short song and unfortunately lacks a memorable hook. 19. Doggz Gonna Get Ya Snoop tells some stories over a simple, yet effect beat. It samples 'Atomic Dog' by George Clinton but not as obviously as many before. The beat is much more infections that you'd expect after you first listen to it. 20. Hoes, Money & Clout Soopafly gives Snoop a decent beat here, but at this point in the album, something else is needed. Nothing special here. "From basketball to alcohol, everybody love the Dogg/I'm sure Billy Clinton probably got a Doggystyle tape/Somewhere hidden in his briefcase." 21. Get Bout It & Rowdy Master P is annoying again here. It's like he was trying extra hard and it oversteps the mark. "UGHHHHHHHHHH!" When Snoop is just rapping on the verses it's okay, but Master P ruins the song. ----------- ORIGINAL REVIEW If Snoop didn't drop far enough from 'Doggystyle' to 'Tha Doggfather', he took another step down with this album. The move to the south with No Limit is of course very interesting and it makes for an album of west coast beats with some southern influence, and vice versa. At times Snoop sounds great on this, other times he sounds unpolished, overall though, it's fairly boring, and I probably wouldn't even rank the best songs here near Snoops top 20-25 tracks. And in saying that, most of the best feature Mystikal because he adds some more energy to the tracks, and the same thing applies to 'Ain't Nut'in Personal' as well with its features. The opener, 'Snoop World', feels like a track you'd put somewhere in the middle of the album, not as a song to kick an album off. The following 'Slow Down' isn't much better. He tried to build on a success with 'Gin & Juice II' , but it doesn't work too well. Charlie Wilson tried on the hook of 'Show Me Love', but it's another lackluster song with non-eventful production. Snoop sounds bored too. On the whole, there is nothing terrible but most tracks lack that something extra.

We are way too kind when rating albums like this. I can see people thinking it's a consistent body of work (if you avoid the lack of any worthwhile lyrics), but what are you playing again from this? There is nothing memorable here. Too often the lyrics are incredibly cliche and simplistic with 'Let It Go' coming to mind as the main offender. '1Question?' also has similar issues that features weak/annoying vocals from Steve Arrington. 'Systamatic' as well where the DPG features say nothing with their eight bars. As a aside, 'Hit Da Pavement' reminds me of 'Bang Out' from 'R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece'. There's nothing here to shout about. Give me an album with some hits and misses over an album that just has decent songs. Beats: ★★★ Rapping/Vocals/Bars: ★★ Hooks: ★★☆ Best Tracks: Hit Da Pavement

Overall this is a consistent EP and better than most people give it credit for. The only track I'm not feeling is 'I Don't Care' but everything else is decent to good with the classically g-funk sounding 'Doggytails' being the best of the bunch. There's nothing groundbreaking though and nothing essential that will have you rushing back to it. Beats: ★★★ Rapping/Bars: ★★★ Hooks: ★★★ Best Tracks: Doggytails, Motivation 1. Intro Snoop introduces the EP over some nice dark production. It's a shame more isn't made of it. 2. Everything (featuring Jacquees and Dreezy) 60 A decent smooth alternative R&B/pop rap tune. 3. 220 (featuring Goldie Loc) 66 Something harder here. Goldie Loc contributes for some street bars. 4. Waves (featuring October London) 60 Why does Snoop put on a Jamaican accent here for the start of his verse? Again, decent dreamy atmospheric alternative R&B/pop rap. More of an October London song with Snoop just providing a verse. 5. I Don't Care (featuring LunchMoney Lewis) 44 The worst song here. "You got shots in yo' butt, I don't care, I don't care/Girl I still wanna fuck, I don't care, I don't care." 6. Doggytails (featuring Kokane) 75 Classic throwback west coast shit. Kokane kills the hook. The best song here. 7. Motivation (featuring Hypnotic Brass Ensemble) 70 The Hypnotic Brass Ensemble provide some dope nice horns making for a fun track. Lyrically it's too repetitive to make it a better song. 8. On the Double 64 A decent Snoop solo to finish the project.

I'm not someone who finds Doggystyle to be an absolutely amazing record to be ranked with the absolute upper echelon hip hop albums, but this is still a huge step down and it's hard not to compare it to that album. Soopafly and Daz, who I enjoy more often than not, handle a handful of tracks, and DJ Pooh, who has created some hip hop classics like 'It Was a Good Day', handles half a dozen, but I can't find anything amazing on the boards here. And for much of the time the production lacks the fun, crispness and originality of 'Doggystyle'. And while I like Snoop, and he was going through a lot of personal drama before this album, I think he is a rapper, due to his lazy type of flow at times, who needs a dope beat, or at least something as close as possible to one. In saying all of this, there are still some good songs here, but overall there's not a lot of classic material, and I don't know if many will have me rushing back to them. Beats: ★★★ Rapping/Bars: ★★★ Hooks: ★★☆ Best Tracks: Doggfather, Vapors, 2001, Snoop's Upside Ya Head 1. Intro 2. Doggfather A contagious hook by Charlie Wilson, Snoop's rhymes, and a funky Daz Dillinger beat make this an enjoyable opener and nothing betters it for the rest of the album. 3. Ride 4 Me 4. Up Jump Tha Boogie Decent synth-funk. “But before I give a nigga a 9 / I'd rather give a nigga a mic and write him a rhyme" - This line is odd given all of the gangsta rap Snoop has spat over the years. 5. Freestyle Conversation "Word is on the streets, your beats gon' be delicate/Since Dre did shake the spea's out, man/Delicate? Beats?/So that's what makes me now?/Man, I don't give a fuck about no beat" Given this starts with those lines, I expected Snoop to go acapella. Soopafly provides a simple beat for Snoop to pretty much just rap for four minutes. He flows a little like Suga Free. This won't be for everyone. 6. When I Grow Up 7. Snoop Bounce DJ Pooh samples 'More Bounce to the Ounce' by Zapp. Yeah, it's a bit bouncy but the chorus instrumentation barely changes making for a hook that's lacking. The songs continue to drop from the opener. DJ Pooh wasn't really "cooking", as they say, on this album yet. 8. Gold Rush Arkim & Flair do a nice job here creating a likeable beat that has a wild west feel that the rappers play with for their lyrics. 9. (Tear 'Em Off) Me & My Doggz Why does Snoop sound like he recorded this over the phone. Not just for that reason, but this one is a skip. 10. You Thought This is a song you'd place in the middle of an album. It has the same problem as 'Snoop Bounce'. 11. Vapors DJ Pooh redeems himself here with one of the album's standout productions, flipping Biz Markie’s track of the same name into a darker, west coast reinterpretation. Snoop adds his own flavour with slick storytelling that fits perfectly. 12. Groupie Daz is back on the boards. It sounds like one of the sexual tracks from DPG's debut or some of the tracks on Doggystyle with its chilled-out g-funk style. Daz and Warren G claimed that they contributed a lot to Doggystyle and didn't get the credit, which you can believe given the sound of some of these tracks. The topic isn't interesting but the smooth production works. 13. 2001 DJ Pooh is back again who creates an energetic fun song with a likeable hook. 14. Sixx Minutes Samples 'The Show' by Doug E Fresh. Snoop again mentions the doubt people seem to have had with him not having Dre beats on this. It's good without being worth raving about. 15. (O.J.) Wake Up Samples Run-D.M.C. There are nice elements to the production. The hook drags on with Snoop's slow rapping over it that hurts the song. 16. Snoop's Upside Ya Head I used to like this one more than I do these days, but it's still one of the strongest songs. 17. Blueberry Sam Sneed on the track here. It sounds like a Daz beat and again something from DPG's debut. I think it's too similar to what we'd heard before to rank it highly. 18. Traffic Jam 19. Doggyland This is kind of like Cube's 'It Was a Good Day' in subject matter. "Everything is free/And ain't no HIV. (What?)/And niggas don't kill one another/(Oh really why is that?)/Because a brother is a brother." Snoop raps about his perfect world. It's one of the weakest moments. 20. Downtown Assassins Daz is back and offers another more than solid beat. Here we begin with a (weak) Scarface impersonation that sets the tone for some dark street storytelling. 21. Outro Features a live recording of '2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted' to pay tribute to Pac passing.