Snoop Dogg: Owner of Death Row Records

2.10.22

B.O.D.R 2.13.22

In breaking news, Snoop Dogg has officially acquired the rights to ownership of Death Row Records: where it all began for the artist. This comes just a few months after landing a consulting role at Def Jam, and a few days prior to his Super Bowl Halftime Show performance - and a new project.

Death Row Records was founded in 1991, with co-founders including Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, Dick Griffey, and the D.O.C. During that time period, Snoop Dogg released his debut album Doggystyle thought the label in 1993. A few years later, Dr. Dre left the label to work on his own: Aftermath. Suge Knight was in jail, Tupac was gone, and Snoop Dogg felt he needed to make the decision to leave.

Almost three decades later, it is full circle for not only Snoop Dogg, but for hip-hop as a whole, as he is able to take ownership of the label that means so much to him, and many other hip-hop artists around.

The acquisition of the label has certainly been something that was on Snoop Dogg’s mind for some time. Just this past December, Snoop had done a few interviews suggesting that he was “hurt” that he was not given the chance to purchase Death Row Records. He suggested that he was looking for a CEO role, which the label did not want to budget on, so the conversation turned to purchasing the label. Apparently, the label suggested they were not selling, until they quickly thereafter sold to Blackstone, MNRK Music Group. The details of this transaction, I am unsure, however it had to have been very quickly after that Blackstone agreed to pass the torch to Uncle Snoop.

Towards the end of January, Snoop Dogg had shared and Instagram image with DaBaby, whose caption read “Guess who just made the. B. O. D. R. Project” At the time, the acronym may have been unclear, but we now know it means Back on Death Row. So, not even two months into the new deal, Snoop Dogg was able to acquire ownership of the label where he began his career.

When first knocked down, he was able to land a consulting role at Def Jam Records, where he has already made major moves like signing Benny the Butcher as the face of the label. It currently does seem like he will continue he consulting role at Def Jam, but will have more responsibilities over at Death Row Records.

Though initially hurt by not receiving this position right away, Snoop had nothing but great things to say about Death Row, his new role, and the company he had acquired the label from.

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. 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. This is an extremely meaningful moment for me. I would like to personally thank the teams at Blackstone, MNRK and especially David Kestnbaum, who worked collaboratively with me over several months to make this exciting homecoming a reality. I’m looking forward to building the next chapter of Death Row Records.

As the first order of business for the new label owner: it’s dropping new music. Back on Death Row will release at midnight, this New Music Friday, as an NFT. On Sunday, the day of the Super Bowl Halftime Show performance, it does appear that it will be released to consumers as a whole. We should expect features from DaBaby, Nas, The Game, Hitboy and more.

This is so incredible for Snoop Dogg, and I am excited to see what he does with the label. On one hand, he could have hip-hop take a U-Turn and head back to styles from the 90s and early 2000s. But, we cannot forget him taking NBA Youngboy under his wing. He understands where the culture is moving and what to do with it. It is sure to be one exciting ride.