Tha Blue Carpet Treatment
Snoop Dogg is indisputably one of hip-hop’s greatest talents. Unfortunately it’s been more than a decade since the heady days when Death Row ruled the West Coast, and in that time Snoop has also proved himself to be one of hip-hop’s most notorious underachievers. The dazzling improvisational brilliance that Snoop displayed on his Death Row releases has never disappeared entirely, but it\'s appeared only in brief flashes on a string of albums undone by lazy production and bloated run times. But on *The Blue Carpet Treatment* Snoop seems reinvigorated in the wake of the massively successful *Rhythm & Gangsta*. If *Rhythm & Gangsta* bought crossover success with its laidback sound and commercial sheen, then *The Blue Carpet Treatment* is Snoop’s chance to show fans that he is still capable of crafting a West Coast classic without making embarrassing concessions to the pop market. The opening swagger of “Think About It” sees Snoop spitting tongue-twisting non sequiturs with a verve and charisma that he hasn’t displayed since *Doggystyle*. The production here is almost universally strong, with producers like West Coast veteran DJ Pooh and relative newcomer Frequency crafting beats that nod towards Snoop’s G-Funk steeped heyday without sounding antiquated or derivative. *The Blue Carpet Treatment* is the Snoop Dogg album that West Coast heads have been anticipating for years. It’s been a long wait, but well worth it.
The West Coast vet-- still buoyant, lazy, mischievous, and sadly misogynistic-- unexpectedly crafts the best of this week's high-profile hip-hop releases.
Snoop Dogg, a pop star with a cartoon dog's name, a teenage girl's velvety high voice, and a gangsta's unwholesome preoccupations (and arrest record), won the hearts of record buyers with his stellar contributions to Dr. Dre's The Chronic and his own Doggystyle. But his increasingly irrelevant subsequent albums did…
AllMusic provides comprehensive music info including reviews and biographies. Get recommendations for new music to listen to, stream or own.