Snoop sounds dogg tired on new album

By Nate Adams
Collegian Editor
April 2, 2008

As far as stories go, there are few that we like more than the rags-to-riches tale. It’s the reason people listen to gangster rap and watch movies like Scarface over and over again. It’s the reason albums like The Chronic, Get Rich or Die Tryin’ and Tha Doggpound can still sound good years after being released. They are, in essence, a soundtrack to the American Dream.

A story we like a lot less, however, is the story of a man on top. Watching a person struggle though adverse situations only to achieve flawed victory at the end is a much more compelling story than that of the man who has it all and can now enjoy the fruit of his loins. One of the first lessons any fiction writer learns is that without conflict, there can be no resolution.

Until recently, Snoop Dogg was one rapper who seemed mindful of this point. Rather than trying to maintain his hood status after the massive success of his early albums, Snoop has been aging gracefully, turning himself from a thug with a heart of gold into a singles master and living cartoon character; Flavor Flav with a sense of melody and a bag of pot.

Ego Trippin’, Snoop’s ninth studio album, finds the Doggfather living comfortably, straddling the line between aging gangster and club-ready hit maker, and failing to convince on either account.

Rather than submit an album of original tracks, Snoop seems content to let the album be run by guest rappers and R&B crooners, popping his head in every now and again to drop a lazy verse or two.

None of the content on the album is in any way challenging, original or even compelling. I understand that Snoop is no longer running in the streets of Long Beach, and I commend him for not patronizing his audience with faux attempts to reclaim his edge. At the same time, songs about how good life is, how much money is in the bank and how many women want to sleep with you sound brazen and boastful in the best of hands, and downright boring when spoken through Snoop’s lazy drawl.

Of course, this is a problem that has plagued Snoop’s albums since Tha Last Meal, but he’s been able to make up for these shortcomings by putting out awesome club-ready singles. From “Beautiful” to “Drop it Like It’s Hot,” Snoop established himself as the smoothest rapper this side of Barry White with a flawless sense of rhythm and timing. If nothing else, he was making fun songs.

The same can’t be said of this album, which tries too hard to bend to the recent trend of R&B lead rap singles. Take, for example, the lead single “Sexual Eruption,” which is one of the least sexy sex songs in the history of love-making. Featuring some third-rate Chris Brown knock-off and one verse from Snoop, “Sexual Eruption” is a lazy, stupid sounding song that lacks any element of charm, wit or smoothness at all.

And just in case you’ve suffered some head trauma recently, Snoop is happy to remind you that the song “is about an orgasm.” Gee, thanks.

Ego Trippin’ marks a low point in Snoop Dogg’s career; it is the worst album he has ever put out. Tired, trite and unfun, it is the sound of a man who has lost not only his hunger, but also his edge. The man has spent too much time at the top, and if he wants any shot at redemption, he’ll have to at least capture some of the fire that drove his earlier work.

adamsn1@lasalle.edu