During an episode of Million Dollaz Worth Of Game in November, Snoop Dogg sat down with Gillie Da Kid and Wallo, speaking on many topics, including his missed opportunity to buy his former label, Death Row Records.
Snoop discussed his music career with over 20 years in hip-hop, classifying him as one of the most iconic rappers in the genre today. So when the conversation shifted towards Death Row, he was compelled to make a bold statement, according to HotNewsHipHop.
He stated that “all of Death Row should be in my hands,” the California native said he helped build the record label from the ground up and that no one else was remotely qualified to operate the company.
After releasing his new album “Algorithm,” Snoop spoke with GQ about Death Row and his failed attempt to gain full ownership of the label, founded by former music executive Suge Knight.
The “Drop It Like It’s Hot” rapper sat down with Elliot Wilson and explained how he tried to purchase the record label, and when that didn’t pan out, he decided to find a new home with Def Jam Recordings.
“I went looking for this job because I wanted to be the CEO of Death Row Records and basically take over the merchandise and rerelease their music, do documentaries, and possibly do my life story,” he told Wilson. “But then eOne Music [which owned Death Row Music until April 2021] didn’t want to give me action at it. So then I asked could I buy it? And they acted like they didn’t want to sell it. Then they sold it.”
The 50-year old was ‘hurt’ after learning eOne Music sold Death Row Records to the Blackstone Group.
“The man in me was hurt, but the businessman in me said, ‘Okay, I got to find something else to do to take this energy of mine that I’m holding on to.’ I knew that Def Jam didn’t have a CEO, and I didn’t want to be the CEO, but I wanted to be in the position of consulting and creativity,” he said. “I was thinking Death Row Records—movies, merch, television, catalog…The Chronic, Doggystyle, Murder Was the Case; All Eyez on Me. It was all that shit I was going to…then I flipped it, like, ‘Def Jam bigger and better than Death Row any muthaf**kin’ way.’ So I called LL Cool J: ‘LL, what’s happening with your life story?'”
Since joining Def Jam in June, Snoop released his 19th studio album and played a crucial role in signing Benny the Butcher.
