Snoop Dogg Concert in Cape Town

Reformed rapper hits the Mother City for a sizzlin’ show

Grammy-nominated, Eastside rap artist and godfather of hip-hop, Snoop Dogg (now known as Snoop Lion) is set to drop it like it’s hot in Cape Town with a concert at GrandWest Grand Arena on Tuesday, 21 May 2013.

After being scheduled to perform at music channel MTV Base’s MTV Africa All Stars show in Durban, the legendary music-maker decided to extend his visit to South Africa, scheduling one-night performances in both Cape Town and Johannesburg to showcase his latest album, “Reincarnated”.

As a child, Calvin Broadus – the emcee’s given name – was nicknamed Snoopy by his mom because of his likeness to the “Peanuts” cartoon character; the title morphed into Snoop Dogg, and it wasn’t long before the innocence associated with the name of past gave way to a figure now accepted as a cussing kingpin of hip-hop.

Embroiled in numerous bouts with the law in his younger days, Snoop D-O-double-G brought the life he was living into mainstream media, glorifying gangsterism and pioneering a new genre of music: g-funk.

Best known for Doggystyle (the debut album has gone four-time platinum), he’s also received much attention for being vocal throughout his career,  never missing an opportunity exercise his freedom of speech, crass delivery and all. And, more recently, when not giving young’uns like Kris Humphries marriage advice, the bad boy of hip-hop’s been known to host his own reality TV shows as well as demonstrate his acting skills, with a number of appearances in movies like “Training Day”, “Starsky & Hutch” and “Soul Plane” (watch out for his cameo as himself in the upcoming flick “Scary Movie 5”).

However, following an introspective trip to Jamaica in 2012, Snoop Dogg turned over a new leaf and was prompted to abandon his hard-earned violent and misogynist lyric-spitting reputation to embrace a more peaceful and positive take on music and life. "I came out in hip-hop; gangsta rapper, West Coast, that is who I am, that is what I will always be in hip-hop. That's why the transformation into reggae fits the mode better, because to me, reggae is about love and peace and unity and struggle," says the long-time rapper.

Dropping his canine moniker for a more regal association with the kind of the jungle, Snoop Dogg officially joins the ranks of “formerly known as” stars, like Prince and Diddy (at least that’s what it is for this week).What’s more, to follow on the name change, he’s fully transformed his identity to embody his new Rastafari way of life, and has ditched his manicured pigtails and signature beanie for unruly dreads and a rastacap.

Similarly, since moving to Rastafarianism, the reggae singer now seems intent on dropping his old gangster-style music for dancehall tracks. He’s even gone so far as to swap ‘Gin & Juice’ for ‘Fruit Juice’, and he’s handed in his weapons to advocate non-violence in his track ‘No Guns Allowed’ featuring Drake.

His latest album, aptly named “Reincarnated” – it also features Miley Cyrus and Akon, to name but a few – may not be as popular as his chart-topping rap albums, but its easy-listening tunes reggae-pop beats and catchy riffs are nonetheless registering the world over.

Though, Snoop’s impromptu South African tour serves to promote his latest release and documentary, concert-goers can certainly look forward to performances of smash hits like ‘Drop It Like It’s Hot’, ‘Beautiful’ and ‘Young, Wild and Free’.

Tickets for the Snoop (Dogg) Lion Concert in Cape Town

Tickets are available via Computicket.com and Computicket outlets and cost R550p/p for the golden circle (standing), R380p/p for general access standing tickets and R320p/p for seated spots.

by Meagan Hamman
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