A Night in the Dog(g)house

 

Thousands of miles away from his hometown of Long Beach, California, the rap legend known as Snoop Dogg, packs a sold out crowd of over 20,000 in the illustrious O2 Arena located in North Greenwich, London. Born Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr., Snoop Dogg has transcended racial and cultural boundaries to evolve from a local draw into a world-renowned attraction. His use of charisma and charm has resulted in a nickname of “The Doggfather,” a play on his stage name with his Godfather persona. Despite a troubled history that includes various drug and violence charges, Snoop Dogg has been able dodge his past and affix himself amongst the top acts in music. The O2 Arena serves as the largest entertainment venue in all of London and exuberates the lively nature of London with its beautiful exterior. On October 7^th, 2011, I was able to attend the Snoop Dogg concert at the O2 Arena and determine firsthand, whether he was worthy of such acclaimed stature.

                                                        

         As I approached the entrance to the O2 Arena, I began to notice the disparity of cultures of the attendees. My eyes wandered throughout the extended queue and the presence of every ethnicity fascinated me. I finally take my seat at 7:30 pm and it didn’t take me by surprise that the 20,000-seat arena had yet to be filled to capacity. The opening acts of Chipmunk, The Airplane Boys, Yasmin and MistaJam were unable to entertain the restless crowd and the majority of the arena flocked to the bars and concession stands until the arrival of the main act, Snoop Dogg.

The lights cut off unexpectedly and Snoop Dogg electrifies the crowd with an entrance filled with bright lights, flames and fireworks. He emerges from the pyrotechnics to a deafening roar from the crowd. Simultaneously, I begin to notice a scent dispersing throughout the arena that reminded me of the controversial Prop. 17. Snoop entertains the crowd with notable classics, “Gin and Juice” and “Still A G Thang.” But also performed his modern hits “Beautiful” and “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” intertwining past and present tunes to produce a cohesive showcase of his lengthy career. The most memorable moment of the night occurred when Snoop Dogg challenged the audience to recite a verse from his song “Gin and Juice.” To my surprise, the audience rapped the song word for word without skipping a beat. Afterwards, Snoop praised the crowd for its brilliance and thanked them for “makin’ a brotha feel special.”

            Each and every aspect of the show was planned accordingly to specifically fit the personality of the crowd. He was able to dictate the energy level of the audience with pyrotechnics, composition of his set list and interaction with the audience. Despite the lack of guests, he was able to fully entertain the crowd with the usage of commentary between songs that created an interactive relationship between him and the audience. The concert provided me with a greater understanding of London culture but a bit home sick as well. 

By: Henry Tran