Review Summary: While not as good as Doggystyle, it is still a great album by Snoop Dogg. Featuring guests from past Death Row albums and funky beats, it will definitely make you bounce in your car while driving down the street.
Snoop Dogg is one of those rare people that has never changed. After being 16 years in the rap game, he is still the same old Snoop D O Double G. After being a very big part of Dr. Dre's The Chronic, Dre decided to give Snoop Doggy Dogg a big offering of having a solo album. With Dr. Dre's amazing production, everyone knew Snoop's debut album Doggystyle would be great, and boy did it not disappoint, becoming the first ever debut album to enter on the charts as #1. With amazing G-Funk beats and Snoop's fresh rapping style, this album was golden. 3 years later, Snoop Doggy Dogg would release his 2nd go at the West Coast Hip/Hop scene. Now without Dre behind the board, thing's are a little different this time. Does Snoop's 2nd album live up to his glorious debut, or does fail to deliver.
Kicking off with a groovy beat, "Tha Doggfather" begins Snoop to deliver his unique vocals and great flow. This is a very laid back song, with a catchy chorus being sung by Charlie Wilson & Teena Marie. As always, Snoop raps about chillin' back and smokin' a fat one, and he makes sure that you know he is Tha Doggfather. With a funky beat, good flow, and a sing-a-long chorus, this is a great way to start the album, being one of the highlights of the album.
Entering with a electronic voice, "Up Jump Tha Boogie" definatly lives up to the "boogie" part of the title, having a funk influenced beat with the occasional scratch. The first rap guest on the album, Kurupt, raps the 2nd verse with a calm voice and is very laid back. Snoop seems to crave this "relaxed" feeling on his albums, but hey it works! As the rapping is typical for a Snoop song, the funky beat makes up for this, as you hear it instrumentally for the last minuet of the song. Not being one of Snoop's best, it's still a good performance by the D O Double G.
Now you always hear about how Snoop always provides the listener with fat beats, but does anyone ever talk about his free styling? "Freestyle Conversation" makes you understand that Snoop can freestyle pretty well. In this song, Snoop raps a lot faster than usual, making this track very fun to listen to, hearing a side of Snoop that has not been shown before. Since the song is more about Snoop's rapping than his beats, the beat is a lot more basic then the his other material, but the song of course is stating a point. This is one of my favorite tracks, and a definite must when listening to the album.
Charlie's back! Starting "Snoop Bounce", Charlie sings the chorus with a soul filled heart. Now we are back to the funky beats, with Snoop's typical rapping style. Now there's nothing much to this song that makes it special, other then the catchy chorus. I usually skip this track and go right to "Gold Rush" which is probably my favorite song on the album. The beat is amazing! It has a very night-time feel to it, and pretty dark for Snoop. He also brings in more rap guest such as Techneic & Bad Azz, along with Kurupt. Techneic & Bad Azz have a lot more hard vocals, giving the song a heavy feel to it. After listening to Snoop's laid back vocals, it's refreshing to hear the L.P.C. Crew get into action. You start getting tired of listening to Snoop, so the guests really make this track come alive. If you had to listen to one song of the album, I would probably pick this one, for it gives a new feel to Snoop Dogg's style.
"Me & My Doggz" is your typical filler. With more of the same rapping and beats, there's nothing in this song that can hold my attention. With Snoop being solo'd here, it's pretty disappointing, but not ever song by Snoop can be perfect right? Probably the worst song on the album. "You Thought", which features Soopafly and Too Short. Soopafly opens the song with the first verse, and is a pretty typical rapper, but still gives the album some fresh air. Snoop is pretty funny in this song, stating that "[he] like[s] the big bitc*es cause they large, and big bitc*es always take charge". Too Short has a pretty high voice, making an interesting 3rd verse for the song, but nothing amazing like in anyways. It might not be the best off the album, but it's still a listen-to.
And back to the laid back and relaxed Snoop we know. "Vapors" is another filler, but I think it's better then Me & My Doggz. Again, it's more of the same beats and rapping of Snoop, but it's still a fun listen. Luckily, we have "Groupie" coming right after it, which is another highlight on the album, featuring Tha Dogg Pound, Nate Dogg, Warren G, and of course, Charlie Wilson. I think the reason I like the songs with guests so much is that they give a refreshing taste to it, and I don't think I could stand to just listen to Snoop Dogg for 80 minutes. Plus Charlie Wilson is pretty damn catchy.....Anyways, this song introduces Warren G to the album, and he is a pretty laid back as well, sounding a lot like Snoop. All of Snoop's guests seem to fit together really well, making this song shine. Make sure you check it out.
The next track "2001" is alot more fast paced than the the other songs. This song is just Snoop on his own, but it's probably one of his best solo tracks on the album, as the beats flows with Snoop's lyrics pretty well. He talks about making the whole crowd bounce, and he does so, as you can definitely bounce to this song. "2001" is probably one the highlight solo tracks from Snoop.
"Sixx Minutes" is the most relaxed song on the album. You could easily kick back in your rocking chair while listening to this track. After the more fast paced "2001", this gives you the chance to calm down. It's still more of the same, but if you want a really laid back song, then you should check this one out, as we stroll right onto "Wake Up".This song features Tray Deee, and while he isn't the most exciting guest on the album, he still delivers. "Wake Up" is still another filler on the album, and coming right after it is "Snoop's Up Inside Ya Head". The chorus will have you singing that line all day, as it features people singing SNOOP'S UP INSIDE YA HEAD! Another solo by Snoop, this one shines above the other solo's along with "2001". Thought the verses are pretty typical, the chorus makes up for it.
Feeling like it just came off of Doggystyle, "Blueberry" is another great track. It starts off with guest Prince Ital rapping a reggae type intro, and kicks right into a funky beat. Bad Azz and Tech really make this song shine, and there good rhymes and hard vocals make them fun to listen to, and are probably my favorite guests featured on the album. Coming right after "Blueberry" is "Doggyland", which has one of my favorite chorus's on the album, making you sing "Doggylaaaaaaand" all day long. Also, the song is pretty funny too. It's not amazing, but it's still a great track.
Ending the album is the track "Downtown Assassins". It's not the best track off the album, but it's still a great way to end it. The track has more of a hardcore gangsta feel to it, fading away from the more laid back style of what you have been listening to the whole album. Like I said, it's not the best, but it will do.
Now while Tha Doggfather might not be anywhere near as great as the acclaimed Doggystyle, it is still one of Snoop's best albums, sticking to his roots. Listening to Snoop can be boring at time, seeing how he doesn't really rap about anything new, although he can be funny at times, but the guests on the album and the funky beats make up for those flaws. If you liked Doggystyle, then you should definitely check this out.
Recommended Tracks -
1. Gold Rush
2. Tha Doggfather
3. Freestyle Conversation
