Blunt instrument

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/06/2024 (796 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Snoop Dogg was laid-back, with his mind on nostalgia and nostalgia on his mind during a pitstop in Winnipeg Monday night. Maybe a little too laid-back.

The weed-smoking West Coast rapper is on the tail end of his cross-country Cali to Canada Tour — a flashy production that leans into the early California hip-hop scene and features a sampling of hits from the multi-platinum artist’s more than 30-year career.

Snoop arrived in style, rolling onto the stage in a blue low-rider convertible. He stepped out of the ride to the opening sequence of The Next Episode; his tall, slim frame backlit, a plume of smoke rising from his mouth.

The 52-year-old headliner wore a red and white tracksuit emblazoned with a maple leaf, dark sunglasses and his signature braids — now peppered with touches of grey.

He performed with a rotating cast of male and female back-up dancers (as well as a blunt-smoking monkey mascot) on a stage flanked by chain-link fences and a pair of red and yellow dog houses, à la the cover of his 1993 debut album, Doggystyle.

Snoop released his 20th studio album in 2022 and has dozens of mixtapes under his belt. Yet, despite his deep, beloved catalogue, the setlist included as many Snoop solo releases — such as Lodi Dodi and Murder Was the Case — as it did ‘90s and ’00s covers and collaborations. They weren’t in Winnipeg in the flesh, but Dr. Dre, Pharrell and Akon joined the party via songs Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang, Beautiful and I Wanna Love You.

During the latter, the stage was crawling with scantily clad female dancers performing athletic feats on free-standing poles. Snoop paraded around with a money dispenser, sending faux dollar bills into the crowd.

When he wasn’t rapping, the headliner was vibing out and engaging the hydraulics of the prop car. He also went AWOL during an extended set by Dogg Pound members Daz Dillinger and Kurupt, causing the night to lose major momentum.

The crowd rose to its feet and the room again filled with cheers when Snoop returned to the stage along with the deep bass of Drop It Like It’s Hot. At press time he had won back some of the flagging energy.

While the concert featured a who’s who of Cali rap royalty, Snoop faithfuls were likely disappointed by his lack of presence, both physically and musically, especially since it’s been so long since his last visit.

Snoop last performed in Winnipeg in 2007 with fellow West Coast rapper Ice Cube at the Convention Centre. Ice Cube also broke his 17-year visitation hiatus this year with a show at Canada Life Centre in February. It’s a mystery why both artists decided 2024 was the year to return to Winnipeg, but the post-pandemic trend of aging retrospective tours likely has something to do with it.

Whatever the reason, the sold-out arena — filled with an eclectic, multi-generational crowd — was still eager to spend a weeknight getting down and smoking up with the prolific rap icon.

Weed was the unofficial star of the evening. From the street corner to the rafters of the arena, the smell of cannabis permeated the venue and the room only got hazier as the night ensued.

The three-hour-plus show started with a surprise set from fast-talking Vancouver rapper Merkules, a Canadian artist signed to Death Row Records, the star-studded hip-hop label recently purchased by Snoop. The heavily tattooed rapper delivered a handful of original songs, FaceTimed his dad, reminisced about previous under-attended shows in Winnipeg and preached about the value of manifesting your goals.

DJ Quik, a Compton-born rapper and producer, followed with a short, groovy and somewhat chaotic set. Despite admitting to being hungover, Quik and his accomplice bounced around the stage, acting as effective hype men, running through a sampling of songs by the likes of 50 Cent and Kendrick Lamar that bear his producing credit.

Warren G rounded out the openers. The bespectacled rapper, joined at one point by Cali rap duo the Twinz, gave a funky, but sleepy 30-minute performance full of odes to marijuana. He took a “small chronic break” and puffed on a fat blunt before getting into his 1994 crowd-pleasing anthem, Regulate.

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com

X: @evawasney