Snoop Dogg's made some major moves over the past few months. There was the deal with Def Jam Records in late 2021 as a creative consultant, and most recently, he announced that he acquired Death Row Records. The full-circle moment put Snoop Dogg in the CEO seat 30 years after he made his rapping debut on the label.
There's been some confusion surrounding the label, especially when it boils down to ownership of the catalog. Billboard reported last month that the acquisition of Death Row Records did not include Dr. Dre's The Chronic or any of Tupac's albums released under Death Row. Plus, Snoop announced that he wanted to bring the iconic rap label to the metaverse.
During a recent conversation with Elliott Wilson for TIDAL, Snoop Dogg broke down what his new ownership of the label means. For one, he said that he's currently in control of "the masters to the publishing, to the IP, to the label, to the logo, to everything."
"As far as 2Pac’s masters, 2Pac’s masters came back to him last year. But I got a great relationship with his estate, and I’m pretty sure we’re going to be able to work something out … to continue some Death Row 2Pac business now that Snoop Dogg is in control of Death Row," he said. "Same with Dr. Dre and The Chronic. I got The Chronic album. I got Doggystyle, Tha Doggfather, Murder Was the Case, Dogg Food, Above the Rim. I got all those records."
Ultimately, Snoop Dogg said that he plants on bringing the iconic Death Row records to a global market through his network and the metaverse. With his leadership at Death Row, Snoop said that he feels like he can simultaneously honor the iconic catalog and bring it to EDM and Latin markets, which he said are thriving right now,
"These genres are gigantic. So to be able to take Death Row music into those types of collaborations, it’s interesting. I may explore that," he said. "International vibes. And I know what Death Row means to the globe."
