Review: Snoop Dogg at RAC Arena

Snoop Dogg at RAC Arena
w/ D12 and Versatile
Monday, February 28, 2023

Back when Snoop Doggy Dogg burst onto the rap scene in 1993 with his debut album Doggystyle, his tall, lanky frame draped in a big flannel shirt, no one would have foreseen that the man born Calvin Broadus Jr. would still be going strong 30 years later! Having released 19 studio albums and countless other releases and features, he has gone on to become one of the most recognised, prolific and successful hip hop artists of all time.

But here he was, performing onstage to a packed Arena. And the Doggfather didn’t disappoint – the 51 year old veteran rapper performed an epic 30-song set that blew the roof off the joint. That wasn’t the only joint getting blown, with clouds wafting through the cavernous venue from early on, as many sparked up some sweet, skunky smoke in tribute to the patron hip hop saint of sticky icky. It was an entertaining and extravagant performance – Snoop Dogg knows how to put on a show! He’s a true hip hop survivor, a savvy businessman, an evergreen icon, who has flourished in old age. He’s the Willie Nelson of rap.

After three years of Covid-related delays, and a postponed tour last year, the LA legend made it back to Perth for his I Wanna Thank Me tour. It was his first time performing here since he headlined one stage at what ended up being the last ever Big Day Out festival at Joondalup Arena in 2014. At that point he was Snoop Lion, having just released a reggae album, and a documentary about his Jamaican pilgrimage and conversion to Rastafari.

I Wanna Thank Me was the name of his seventeenth solo album, released in 2019, maybe not one of his finest, but that is the album he was going to tour originally. Since then, he’s bought out his old record company, the legendary Death Row Records, released another, better new album on it, called BODR (Bacc On Death Row) and appeared on the Superbowl half-time show, for one of the best performances in the sport’s history, alongside Dr. Dre, Eminem, 50 Cent, Mary J Blige and Kendrick Lamar. Snoop’s star continues to rise.

It was the first stop on his Australian tour, and Snoop had been making headlines with his social media posts since arriving. One showed him cruising down a familiar looking road in Belmont while singing along to Men At Work’s Land Down Under, while another post featured a picture of him and Dr. Dre, causing wild speculation that Dre was also in town. Sadly that wasn’t the case, but another great surprise was D12 were in support, Eminem’s one time rap group.

Another unexpected addition was Dublin rap group Versatile. The rising Irish duo were a burst of energy, thick accents and loud outfits to kick things off. It was a bit of an odd selection with their different sound, but the boys worked hard to win the crowd over. A bit of a sensation in their home country, they’re the first Irish hip hop act group to ever sell out an arena. They played a couple of their biggest tracks like Prefontaine and the viral hit Ketamine and seemed to make some new fans.

Much more in the vein of Snoop, Detroit legends D12 were in the house. There were six original members (each with an alter-ego, hence the 12, but with Eminem no longer part of the group, and other founding member Proof having died years ago, there’s only four of left. For tonight’s show we got two of them – with Swift and Kuniva.

Their DJ, Invisible, performed a bit of a mashup to start things off, before the duo came out a rocked the crowd with a tight set. Veteran rappers, they work together well and can both spit bars, and they have a solid back catalogue to call on. It's a real reminder of high level of MC talent in the old school of hip hop. The only issue was that with all the D12 songs, which usually features all the members rapping, they only rapped their own verses, which resulted in some fairly short renditions. However their flow was tight and they got through plenty of heavy hitting tracks.

Nasty Mind was a funny, funky jam as they got the crowd to sing “I just wanna get freaky baby.” And the normally Eminem-led Pimp Like Me got the crowd bopping, and singing along to the “Ho-ohhh!”

They gave a sentimental little speech and how grateful they were to still be doing this after everything they’ve been through, and gave shouts out to Big Proof who was tragically shot during an altercation in a club on 8 Mile Road in 2006. “We still out repping for him. Without him, none of this would be possible.” They then got the crowd to shout “Big Proof!”

They then lightened the mood, asking “What do you do with a mother fucker who disrespects you?” before launching into the juvenile but banging Shit On You and Shady classic Under The Influence, as well as the hilarious and ironic My Band, which is a great track, but doesn’t work as well without Eminem delivering the ironic chorus.

They had some fun striking poses for photos and created a magical moment where they played Purple Rain while everyone waved their phone torches. Then the track everyone was waiting for, Purple Pills, D12’s big hit, and still a huge tune, though again truncated somewhat, but it was a big support set as good as any headliners you're likely to see. It's a shame their other homie Obie Trice, who was originally slotted to join them, couldn't make it in the end, as that woulda opened up a whole swag more of classic Detroit tunes.

Then it was time for the main event. And after a short break, suddenly the video screens came to life, showing Snoop Dogg backstage smoking a blunt and getting ready, before he looked at the camera/crowd and said “Are all y’all mofos ready for me to come out here and rock this shit?!” It was a nice gimmick played to great effect, and the crowd went wild. People started running back to their seats and those in the standing section up front surged forwards. The excitement and anticipation in the air was palpable. We watched him choose his outfit – an amazing blue onesie emblazoned with the paisley patterns and colours of the Crips gang. Then we watched him walk down a corridor, before all of a sudden, there he was on stage!

And he wasted no time at all raising the roof, launching straight into the one-two punch of The Next Episode and Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang. Timeless bangers that still sound fresh. As great as D12 were, they didn't have the full production, and they aint Snoop. Suddenly we had a stadium show! Almost immediately everyone in the seats stood up and started dancing, and stayed that way for the rest of the night. There was a DJ on a big podium at the back and four poles had appeared, flanking the stage, followed by four pole dancers twirling and spinning. Snoop had an offsider backing him up, and there was a breakdancing guy in a monkey suit with a giant head, smoking a blunt, of course.

The atmosphere levels in the arena doubled instantly. The man is almost a myth, a legend, and just seeing him in the flesh on stage, doing his thing, brought joyous shrieks from the crowd. The sound was great, with Snoop’s voice loud and clear, front and centre. Hearing him live, with his distinctive flow and soft vocal delivery, you are reminded that Snoop’s MC skills are still rock solid and effortless – the man is really very good at what he does! The whole thing was a polished production, from his outfit to his gold plated mic and dollar bill gun.

A consummate showman who knows how to entertain, the hits just kept coming! Gin and Juice sounded effervescent, as the crowd sang along. “Give me some pimp music!” he decreed, as they launched into a cover of 50 Cent’s classic P.I.M.P.

“Thanks to all those who bought their tickets for this before Covid!” he shouted, before dedicating the next couple to the ladies in the house, with the smooth sounds of Sexual Eruption which saw the pole dancing return. This blended into the touching ode to pole dancers, a cover of Akon’s I Wanna Fuck You. And the classic Beautiful was a truly great moment, with its snappy Pharrell/Neptunes produced beat, and Snoop just owning some heavy verses. The sexually explicit language and lyrics of gangsta rap has always been controversial, but with Snoop it's all delivered with style and a wink.

The next segment was a bit more of a questionable foray into some of his EDM pop material like the David Guetta produced Sweat and the Katy Perry track California Gurls. While some of his experiments with pop and other styles have varying success, you can’t help but be impressed with how versatile he is. Who says you can’t teach an old dogg new tricks?

Then, thankfully it was back to the old school, with Lodi Dodi from Doggystyle from all the way back in 1993. From there he finished strong with a string of classic jams – Snoop’s Upside Ya Head, the Bee Gees-sampling Ups & Downs off 2004's Rhythm & Gangsta: The Masterpiece and Legend from 2016 Coolaid album. It's sequences like this that make you realise how incredibly vast, deep and varied the Dogg's back catalogue is. He's been releasing albums, compilations and features almost constantly for 30 years!

There was a tribute section dedicated to people he's lost, fallen soldiers, with a slideshow playing as he sang Ashtrays and Heartbreaks from his Snoop Lion album featuring Miley Cyrus on the hook. It was a touching moment, as images of Nipsey Hussle, Nate Dogg and Tupac among others flashed up. In a further dedication to his old west coast mate, he broke into the Pac classic 2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted.

Jump Around by House of Pain dropped out of nowhere. Then he said “Now I got you jumping around, now I want you to… Drop It Like It’s Hot!” There was some great crowd interaction, with well rehearsed routines and schtick, and by the end Snoop just seemed like everybody’s friend, that you wanted to go to the afterparty with.

He then gave a big shout out to all those that have been with him since 1992, which of course was the queue for his signature tune Who Am I? (What's My Name?) which set the room alight. Then it was up to the sentimental, feel good number Young, Wild and Free to finish the night on a high, with a big singalong. A surprisingly emotional and nostalgic moment, especially for the older fans.

The Dogg didn’t seem like he wanted to leave, as he slowly shimmied offstage to the little instrumental funky jam Snoopy Don’t Go, fittingly the closing track to his latest album BODR.

Spending a night with Snoop is a real trip through hip hop history. He’s a larger than life character, hip hop royalty, the elder statesman of the scene, and he seems in a good place. Thankful for everything this life has given him, and thankful to still be alive, unlike a lot of his old friends. Snoop is now just here to spread peace, love, good vibes and positivity. A biopic of the Dogg’s life is rumoured to be in the works, which would be great to see, as there's not many more worthy living candidates in the world of hip hop. Legendary.

ALFRED GORMAN

Photos by Stu McKay