Snoop Dogg, 50, once rapped that "Death Row is the label that pays me" and now that lyric is taking on a new meaning — the rapper is the new owner of the iconic label that launched his prolific career in 1993.
Snoop, born Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr., has extended his career beyond the rap game and has dipped into acting, entrepreneurship. He's also a football coach in Los Angeles for a youth football team.
MNRK Music Group is excited that Snoop Dogg will be the head executive of the label.
MNRK Music Group, managed by investment enterprise Blackstone, announced Wednesday that the acclaimed rapper had bought Death Row Records.
"Snoop is clearly the executive to take Death Row into its next 30 years," Chris Taylor, president and CEO of MNRK Music Group, said, according to USA Today.
Snoop said that the opportunity was "extremely meaningful" for him.
"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," Snoop said in a released statement, USA Today reports. "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."
Snoop previously expressed interested in purchasing the record label.
As Blavity previously reported, Snoop publicly shared that he was interested in purchasing the record label. In November, the 50-year-old said that "Death Row should be in my hands."
"I should be running that s**t. Just like I’m [in] a position at Def Jam, Death Row means more to me because I helped create that. I think they should give me that and let me run that s**t with the merchandise out, with the music all over the world. [Add] some new West Coast acts,” he said at the time during an interview on Million Dollaz Worth of Game.
The original founders of the record label included mega-producer and rapper Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, the D.O.C. and Dick Griffey.
When Dr. Dre hooked up with Snoop for his debut album Doggystyle, the budding rapper showed off his witty, relaxed and mellow cadence, according to Death Row Records' official website.
The rapper is preparing for his Super Bowl halftime show.
David Kestnbaum, a senior managing director at Blackstone, congratulated Snoop Dogg for returning to the label he once called home artistically.
"We are excited to put the Death Row Records brand back in the hands of a legend like Snoop Dogg," Kestnbaum said, according to USA Today. "We wish him success in the years ahead as the brand moves forward under his leadership and vision."
Snoop remains busy as he prepares for this year's Super Bowl halftime show. He will share the stage with Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar and Eminem.The West Coast rapper said the opportunity to perform at the Super Bowl solidifies hip-hop's legacy.
"We're all one. We're all united together," he said, People reports. "If you really look at it, that's what the world needs to understand that we need to come together as opposed to division or separation."
"I'm still thinking I'm in a dream because I can't believe that they will let a real hip-hop artist grace the stage in an NFL Super Bowl," the Long Beach native said, according to USA Today. "We're just going to wait for that moment and put something together that's spectacular, and do what we're known for doing and add on to the legacy."
