Snoop Dogg Said Working With Death Row Records ‘Broke My Spirit’
Death Row Records introduced listeners to many of the most influential figures in hip-hop history. However, the record label’s success was short-lived as many unfortunate circumstances impeded it. Snoop Dogg was one of the central figures of Death Row in the 1990s, and he said the experience with the record company “broke [his] spirit.”
Death Row Records had a quick rise and fall in the 1990s
Death Row Records was founded in 1991 by Marion “Suge” Knight, a former bodyguard for rapper and producer Dr. Dre. The label’s first release was Dr. Dre’s Chronic, a huge success that put Death Row on the map. In 1993, Death Row released Snoop Dogg’s Doggystyle, another massive commercial success that sold over 11 million copies worldwide.
During the 1990s, Death Row signed many excellent artists, including Tupac Shakur, The D.O.C., Warren G, and Kurupt. However, the label dealt with several legal and financial troubles, mainly related to Knight’s criminal activities. After the death of Tupac Shakur in 1996, the label struggled financially, and it eventually declared bankruptcy in 2006.
Snoop Dogg said working for Death Row ‘broke my spirit’
Snoop Dogg ascended to hip-hop royalty during the 90s. While his career survived Death Row’s downfall, it left him confused and uncertain. In an interview with the 85 South show, the Doggfather said Tupac’s death, Knight going to jail, and Dr. Dre’s departure were tough to deal with in one year.
“My spirit wasn’t that. See that’s what you gotta understand. N-ggas broke my spirit. That broke me, man,” Snoop said. “They broke my spirit. Look, Doggystyle, working on Doggfather, win my murder case, Dre leaves, Tupac get killed, Suge going to jail, Death Row want to kill me. That’s all in the same year.”
Snoop is giving Death Row new life
In 2022, Snoop Dogg acquired Death Row Records from the Blackstone-controlled company MNRK Music Group. First, he removed any music under his control from streaming platforms so artists could get their dues.
“First thing I did was snatch all the music off those platforms traditionally known to people because those platforms don’t pay,” Snoop Dogg told Drink Champs. “And those platforms get millions and millions and millions of streams, and nobody gets paid other than the record labels. So, what I wanted to do is snatch my music off, [and] create a platform, which is something similar to Amazon, Netflix, Hulu. It’ll be a Death Row app, and then the music, in the meantime, will live in the metaverse.”
According to Afrotech, he recently said the record label had made $40 million in the Metaverse. He also has plans to expand the company and make it international.
“I wanna do Death Row India, Death Row Africa, Death Row Asia — everything. I want to go global because you gotta look at it like this, that logo and that brand is so well known,” Snoop explained. “It’s so established that it’s time to start letting other countries give it a shot at what they sound could be because Death Row was just a small company with a big a– dream, and I feel like taking it to a country with some small artists with a big a– dream is gonna keep it growing.”
