"Pimp Slapp'd" is a diss song by American West Coast hip hop recording artist Snoop Dogg, taken from his sixth studio album, Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$ (2002).[1]
| "Pimp Slapp'd" | |
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| Song by Snoop Dogg | |
| from the album Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$ | |
| Genre | |
| Length | 5:42 |
| Label | |
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) |
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Background
editSignificance of Death Row Records
editIn the early 1990s Snoop Doggy Dogg was unknown, but he gained fame from frequently being featured on Dr. Dre's 1992 debut album The Chronic. The Chronic was on the Death Row Records record label, a West Coast hip-hop label founded by Suge Knight in collaboration with The D.O.C. and Dr. Dre.[2] The release of The Chronic prompted Death Row's popularisation, and Snoop Doggy Dogg released his 1993 debut album Doggystyle on Suge Knight's label, and other artists released music on Death Row, including 2Pac's All Eyez On Me.
Controversy of Death Row Records
editDr. Dre was the first to depart from Death Row due to infighting, as Sam Sneed was beaten up by other Death Row members due to featuring East Coast rappers on his music video for Lady Heroin, since this was during the East Coast-West Coast rivalry, then The D.O.C. and RBX followed Dre in leaving the label.[3] However, months after the departure of Dre, RBX, and D.O.C., large exoduses coalesced because Suge Knight assaulted members of Death Row because like All Eyes On Me, he wanted 2Pac's album The Don Killuminati: The Seven Day Theory to have many appearances from Death Row artists, but the album had few appearances from Death Row artists, instead mostly appearances from members of Outlawz, if not mostly solo songs.[4] Many artists left, and Suge Knight slandered them, and death threats ensued between Snoop Dogg (a departed artist) and Suge Knight, Snoop Dogg released Pimp Slapp'd to diss Suge Knight.[5][6][7] In his diss song, Snoop Dogg also claimed Suge Knight was underpaying him.[8]
Lyrics
editThe song’s lyrics contain vulgar insults and violent threats to Suge Knight ("Suge Knight's a bitch, and that's on my life") ("Run up, get done up, I stay one up"), with accusations of Suge Knight underpaying Snoop Dogg ("And I still ain't been paid for 187 On a Cop"), dissing Suge Knight's record label known as Death Row Records and promoting Doggystyle Records (made by Snoop Dogg) as an alternative ("Doggystyle Records is the realest, nigga").[9][8] Snoop Dogg (in the song) claims Suge Knight is jealous (the chorus is "It all boils down to the fact that you're jealous how my papers stack" and Snoop Dogg calling Suge Knight a "jealous ass nigga").[8]
The song also has disses towards Xzibit, Crooked I and Kurupt. Xzibit was approached by Suge Knight and his entorage in a club sometime in 2002, and when asked about his relationship with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, Xzibit replied that he only made music with them, resulting in Snoop spitting the lyric "I'm not Xzibit, you can't pull my hoe card." The two rappers squashed their issues shortly after, and appeared together on the song "California Vacation" on The Game's second album, Doctor's Advocate. In October 2019, the two rappers received a platinum plaque for their song "Bitch Please" which they celebrated on Instagram.
In early-to-mid 2002, Kurupt had re-signed with Death Row, which Snoop Dogg and Daz Dillinger viewed as betrayal. Snoop responded to this with the lyric "Your rappers and artists, tell 'em to shut it up / 'Cause I'll fuck every last one of 'em up, especially Kurupt." Snoop did, however, refer to Kurupt as his "homie" in the very next bar. Snoop expanded on this in an interview with Contrabandit: "He’s still my homeboy, though. So I can’t really throw no lashes at Kurupt. I just wanted to check him and let him know. The song is called “Pimp Slap” and it is there for a reason cause everybody who I spoke on needed to get slapped. It ain’t that I don’t love ‘em, it’s just that niggas needed to get checked."
The lyric "Cause you the biggest star on your label / And them other niggas just crumbs off my table" was seen as an attack on the artists currently signed to Death Row at the time, one of whom was Crooked I. Crooked took the diss personally, and responded with 3 tracks: "Fa Shizzle Killer," "Slap Back" and "Quit Snitching." Snoop and Crooked squashed their issues years later, and Snoop went on to appear on a special episode of Crooked I's podcast, Crook's Corner.
Music video
editThe music video was directed by Pook Brown and features Snoop Dogg smoking marijuana with a group of Crips.[7][10][11] It also features a cameo by Daz Dillinger.
Accolades
editMusic magazine Complex chose the song as the number 41 best diss in music history.[12]
References
edit- ^ Bush, John. "Snoop Dogg: Paid Tha Cost To Be Da Bo$$" at AllMusic. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
- ^ "The Death Row Records Launch Party in 1992 Was Off the Chain". LA Weekly. 2012-11-21. Retrieved 2021-06-01.
- ^ Savidge, S. Leigh; Scheftel, Jeff (2001-09-25), Welcome to Death Row (Documentary, Music), Frank Alexander, Sam Gideon Anson, William J. Bennett, Lamont Blumfield, Xenon Pictures, Oliver Entertainment, KDA Productions, retrieved 2021-06-01
- ^ Rollin' with Dre: The Unauthorized Account: An Insider's Tale of the Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of West Coast Hip Hop (Williams/Alexander, 2008), retrieved 2021-06-01
- ^ Archive-Joe-DAngelo. "Suge Knight Hit With Legal Doggie Mama Drama". MTV News. Archived from the original on November 30, 2015. Retrieved 2021-06-01.
- ^ "Snoop Talks Beef With Suge". HipHopDX. 2006-11-30. Retrieved 2021-06-01.
- ^ a b "In the new issue of Rolling Stone Snoop Dogg explains how it was death threats that fueled the beef with him and Suge". hiphopdx.com. November 30, 2006. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
- ^ a b c Snoop Dogg – Pimp Slapp'd, retrieved 2021-06-02
- ^ "Suge Knight Hit With Legal Doggie Mama Drama". mtv.com. December 12, 2003. Archived from the original on November 30, 2015. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Snoop Dogg - Pimp Slapp'd (Suge Knight Diss)". YouTube.
- ^ Snoop Dogg - "Pimp Slapp'd" (Suge Knight Diss), retrieved 2021-06-01
- ^ "#41. Snoop Dogg "Pimp Slapp'd" (2002)". Complex. Retrieved November 26, 2015.