Soopafly: "The last job I had was at McDonald’s"

[Lil Jay]

VH1: Snoop, what made you decide to start your own record label?

Bigg Snoop Dogg: Doggy Style Records was a dream I had about six or seven years ago. I saw a lot of artists who couldn’t stay in position because they didn’t have patience or talent. This is true talent right here. Everybody [on Doggy Style Records] is signed, sealed and delivered. All I do is put them on a pedestal, let them shine, and the world will tell me what they think about them.

VH1: Guys, how long had you known Snoop before you hooked-up in a business sense?

Soopafly: We’ve all known each other for years. We were just waiting on Dogg’s call.

VH1: Did you know that running a label and producing others had always been his dream?

Mr. Kane: Yeah. Way back before Snoop got with [previous record label] No Limit, he told me, “Man, I’m going to put it down one day,” and said this is what he wanted to do.

Soopafly: Even though he was young back then, I knew that he had the brain, the persona, the charisma and the talent to head his own label.

VH1: What’s Snoop like as a boss? How does he compare to other bosses you have had?

Soopafly: I never had a boss. The last job I had was at McDonald’s. So he’s the best boss I ever had.

Mr. Kane: Snoop has everything sewn up like in The Godfather. He’s very comfortable about his business. If you’re comfortable, you get good results.

Snoop: I gotta thank my momma for that. She taught me how to be fair. All of these artists got all of their publishing. If I didn’t write their music, I shouldn’t be paid for their music. That’s the first step of being fair and being a great CEO. If you treat your artists with love and respect, they’ll always wanna be with you. I don’t never want none of these artists to feel like I’m forcing them to do anything.

VH1: Snoop, you’ve worked with two of the biggest moguls in the business - Suge Knight and Master P. What tips did you pull from them in starting your label?

Snoop: From Master P I learned what to do. From Suge I learned what not to do. Suge Knight was a crook. He just took, took, took, took. He took publishing. He took heart and he took soul. He didn’t give nothing back. Master P showed me how to love, how to be considerate, how to give a chance to people who maybe didn’t have all the talent or the charisma that they deserved to have. It’s important to believe in them and give them a shot. So Suge Knight, thank you for f*cking up the game. And Master P, thank you for creating the new game.

VH1: You’ve stopped smoking weed, too. Is that the cost you have to pay to be the boss?

Snoop : Hmmm … sorta kinda. That’s the cost that you have to pay if you wanna be here for your people. I’ve got three kids. I wanna be a grand-pop. At the rate I was going, I wasn’t gonna be here. I had to check myself before I got checked. I’m not trying to be a dead legend. I’m trying to be a living legend. I care about myself and I love me and I wanna be here. I don’t care what you say or what you feel. If you have something negative to say about me not smoking weed, f*ck you in your mouth. [Laughter.]

VH1: Let’s talk about influences. Everybody, aside from Snoop who is your biggest influence?

Mr. Kane: My father [Jerry Long], rest in peace. He was a giant of Motown who wrote “Just My Imagination” and “Still Waters Run Deep.” One of the biggest inspirations of my life was seeing him doing all this genius work. I plan to cover some of his songs on my album.

E-White: I loved the whole NWA era. I’m also into a lot of old school like Afrika Bambaataa.

LaToiya Williams: Aretha Franklin, of course. But also Gladys Knight, Chaka Khan, and Nancy Wilson.

Vinnie Bernard: I’m influenced by early Stevie Wonder and Earth Wind & Fire. I’m a soul cat, but I also like blues and rock like Steely Dan and Rod Stewart. I listen to it all.

Uncle Reo: I love Sam Cooke, but I love these guys, too. Snoop gave me an opportunity to sing what I feel. I like the way LaToiya sings, because she sings from the heart. Soopafly, E-White, Kane and Vinnie, they got it going on. When you’re dealing with the best, why settle for less?

Soopafly: I’ve been really influenced by Quincy Jones. He’s all around. He started the concept of the complete producer.

VH1: A lot of labels have people who try to shape an artist’s image. Is that the case with Doggy Style Records?

Snoop: I like ‘em raw. Like Vinnie Bernard. He makes his music and presents it to me. I don’t have to take him out of the plastic wrapper, but I’m going to add some of my flavor. We’re throwing down a record called “Just Get Carried Away.” My Uncle Reo inspired me to put him on the record because he’s got a great voice and he’s an up-front personality. Put us on a record, produced by DJ Scratch, and you’ve got a banging-ass record.

VH1: So when you all sell a million copies of your first records, what’s the first thing you’re going to get with the money?

E-White: A studio. I’m about music.

Soopafly: I’m going to pay my taxes and put the rest of it into my work. It’s a hustle, so whatever you make, you’ve got to put it back into your hustle.

Mr. Kane: I’m investing in my six beautiful kids and my wife of 12 years. I’m making the right moves…like investing in a hemorrhoid cream factory … [Laughter.]

Uncle Reo: Keep on opening more barbecues so people can eat good food. Without food, no one’s going to make it. I’m also going to pay my tithes. When you pay your tithes and pay your dues, the master will always send a blessing to you. When the praising goes up, the blessings have got to come down. All my blessings are going to come through like rain. Can you dig it?

VH1: Snoop, you’ve been involved in a lot of beefs in your time. Where do you stand on the current battle between Nas and Jay-Z?

Snoop: Jay-Z and Nas, much power to both of you brothers, because you’re very powerful and positive. But just keep it on records. Don’t get so personal with it like a lot of others that have. We need you guys to be alive for everybody that’s inspired by y’all.

VH1: Why are hip-hop fans so passionate about what they love and what they hate?

Snoop: When fans see other people disrespecting us, it’s only right for them to feel it’s their job to bring it to your attention. But the fans gotta understand one thing. This is how we eat. A lot of us cannot afford to get involved in those beefs. Because [if you lose] you cut your fans in half. If you’re not an artist like myself, who already has millions of fans that are going to buy my records no matter who I talk about, it’s useless [to start trouble with someone]. So when we have a beef, it’s my job to handle it. Hopefully nobody will say nothing disrespectful about me and my people. If they do, they got a real big long one coming at their ass.

VH1: A lot of labels end up making their own movies. If Doggy Style Records makes a movie, what kind of characters do you all want to play?

E-White: The young gun, that novice who comes in swinging.

Vinnie: I want to play that guy that worked hard all his life and came into his own.

Soopafly: I want to play that dude kicking that girl up the house. [Laughs.]

Mr. Kane: I’m gonna play a black Oompa Loompa!

LaToiya: I want to play the first lady.

Uncle Reo: That guy who says my time has finally come and I want my kids and all the people to see the work that I leave them. It’s very inspiring to me to get this opportunity to shine like the moon in the sky. Without the moon you can’t see a thing. Can you dig that?

VH1: Snoop, will you always be the Doggfather?

Snoop: Yeah. I’m gonna play Marlon Brando. Everybody comes to me with their problems and I handle them in a professional manner. Marlon Brando is the godfather. I am the Doggfather.

[goldeneyeoutlaw]

tight interview, thanks 4 posting it dude.

[LAZY]

LMMFAO @

Mr. Kane: I’m gonna play a black Oompa Loompa!

so is this gunna b on TV or sumthin?

[platinumk777]

nice post, homie

[Smooth]

nice post, homie

[TobyTizzle]

thanks for that...and cant wait for the black oompa loompa lol

[Sikotic™]

Great interview man

[budsmokeronly]

thanks for the interview

[Funkadelic]

Thanks for the hook up...

[Kill]

Nice read, Snoop's quite on point about several things

[ExZit]

good read... thanx  

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Kokane has 6 kids  


LoL, when I first read that line by Kokane ("My wife of 12 years"), i misunderstood, and thought he meant his wife was 12 years old...LMAo...But than I went and read it again...LoL