Don’t Change the Dizzle, Turn It Up A Little.

February 28, 2010

 

Like most rappers who peaked during the 1990’s, S-N-double O-P D-O-double G is starting to get old. However, his nearly 40 years of age is not holding the Dogg back. Snoop is still making new hits and touring as much as he did in his youthful puppy days! And, of course, still smoking that green bubonic-chronic.

This past Thursday, 2/25, Snoop’s two-month tour brought him to the Ryan Center at the University of Rhode Island. URI, a very marijuana-friendly campus, also known as U-R-High (no wonder Snoop performed there) welcomed the Dogg with a ton of excitement and lots of joints, according to a good friend of mine, Ilana Eides, who was lucky enough to attend the concert.

Snoop at URI. Photo taken by Ilana Eides.

Snoop was supposed to play at eight pm but he didn’t come on until ten-thirty. He played an awesome set that lasted close to two hours, I wasn’t expecting him to play that long since he’s getting old. He definitely made up for the lateness,” said Eides.

According to Eides, Snoop played a combination of old classics, such as Still a G Thang, and new hits from his latest album Malice ‘N’ Wonderland, as well as a few Biggie and Tupac covers.

Does this mean that the East Coast/ West Coast war is finally over?

 “The crowd went crazy for his old songs, but his newer songs got a lot of applause too,” said Eides.

If there is one thing that Snoop and I have in common, it’s the love that we share for a good party. Unlike me though, Snoop has been sippin’ on gin since the 80’s. Any one who tries to party at the seasoned-veteran’s level is just asking for trouble. “Three or four people were taken out in stretchers before Snoop even came on-stage,” said Eides.

…. Too much Gin and Juice? I think so.

“Now that I got me some seagrams gin
Everybody got they cups, but they aint chipped in
Now this types of shit, happens all the time
You got to get yours but fool I gotta get mine
Everything is fine when you listenin to the d-o-g
I got the cultivating music that be captivating he
Who listens, to the words that I speak
As I take me a drink to the middle of the street,” Gin and Juice lyrics.

A lovely glass of gin and juice. Courtesy of Pinstripeonline.com

Most artists end their performance with an encore of two or three songs, but the always-different Doggy-Dog ended his show with a crucial piece of advice to fans. “As he was going off the stage Snoop instructed the crowd to do three things. 1.) Brush your teeth, 2.) Thank G-d for everything you have, and last but not least, smoke some weed,” said Eides.

I guess Snoop never wants to be accused of having Dogg-breath.

Just like a lot legendary-performers, Snoop is known for many talents aside from rapping. Partying like a rock star since his days in the LBC, Snoop is no stranger to rock music. He opened for 311 for their 2008 Unity Tour and co-headlined with Slightly Stoopid and Stephen Marley for last summer’s Blazed and Confused TourSnoop Dogg has appeared in many major motion-pictures such as Old School, Malibu’s Most Wanted and Half-Baked. He has also been featured on the tube quite a few times making guest appearances on hit-television shows such as Weeds and his own family’s reality-show, Snoop Dogg’s Father Hood..

Below are a few select clips of Snoop’s greatest music, movie and television moments:

Weeds, MILF Weed episode:

Snoop as a mouse in Malibu’s Most Wanted:

The Next Episode, a Snoop and Dr.Dre classic:


Snoop Dogg’s Fatherhood
trailer:


I Like to Mix With Walks of Life, Who Live Life on the Other Side.

February 23, 2010

  

 The unseasonably warm weather this past weekend caused my brain to focus on one thing and one thing only: SUMMER CONCERTS. 

Courtesy of PBase.com

Bogged down with school and work from September- May, the summer months are a great time to  relax, tailgate and party at lots of out-door concerts. Seeing your favorite band perform on-stage in at park or beach is a much better experience than observing from a dark and dingy bar. 

Since I am taking classes my usual amount of classes this semester, plus an internship and tons of “extracurriculars,” concerts have not been part of my vocabulary as of late. As I walked to the library yesterday (finally) with out my gigantic winter coat, and fully decked-out in aviator sunglasses and my IPod, all I could think about was the annual 311 Unity Tour as Freeze Time blasted through my headphones and the sun shined down on my face. 

 Courtesy of 311.com 

Every summer since 2003, 311 plus a few awesome opening bands hop on the road  and stop in most major cities in the U.S. to perform easily the best tour of the summer. Staying true to their reggae/laid back-rock roots, past openers have included Matisyahu, The Wailers and Ziggy Marley.

I have been in attendance for the past three summers and always walk out of the venue gushing that it was the best concert I have seen all year.  
 
 
Neither the tour dates or the opener have been announced for this summer’s Unity Tour just yet, but 311 is actually on a 6-week west-coast and international tour right now, click here for the full schedule. 311 is not only a band, but also a lifestyle. 311’s music is all about remaining chill at all times, having a great time with friends and family and never letting the obstacles of life get in you down, and most importantly, the UNITY. 311‘s Unity Tour is all about uniting music-lovers of all ages and backgrounds and making listeners realize that they all share a common-ground; music.  Most die-hard 311 fans that I know embody this lifestyle perfectly. 

311 Logo. Courtesy of 311.com

With the release of their first full-length studio album, Unity, in 1991, 311 has been touring and making music for the past 20 years. Although Unity is one of the best rock albums of all time, band members Nick Hexum, P-Nut, SA Martinez, Time Mahoney and Chad Sexton know that fans come to the Unity Tour to hear a variety of 311 beats. All of the band’s albums, including early 90’s hits such as Hydroponic, Music and Grassroots, are perfectly incorporated in to the set-list. 311 has released two albums in the past five years, Don’t Tread On Me and Uplifter, which attracts a lot of new younger fans to the tour, but 311 is sure to satisfy all of their different audience groups. 

 

 

311 performing in Central Park at last summer's Unity Tour. Photo taken by me!

My friend Lauren grillin’ and chillin’ at the Unity Tour at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ summer 2007. Photo taken by me!

  

Ziggy Marley opening for 311 at last summers Unity Tour in Central Park. Photo taken by me!

Here is an example of one of the set-lists from last summer’s Unity Tour. My favorite songs are linked to their music videos: 

  

311’s Unity Tour is synonymous with SUMMER and FUN and I can not imagine a summer with out going. Even if you only know two 311 songs (which I’m sure most people do because eight 311 songs have been top-five hits on the Billboard Modern Rock Radio Chart) a great time is guaranteed. Fans arrive at the concert site hours in advance to spend the day grillin’, chillin’, hanging out with old friends as well as making new ones. Like I staid before, there is just something so incredibly different about 311 fans. I always meet new people at 311 concerts. Every one is down for The Unity. 

 
 

 


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