50 Cent formed a bond with the legendary California rapper and collaborated on multiple tracks, but the man behind "In Da Club" might not have fully accepted Snoop Dogg's transformation into Snoop Lion just yet.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter promoting his upcoming film, Freelancers, 50 Cent questioned Snoop's transformation from dog to lion.
“It’s interesting,” 50 told THR. “Of course, there will be some people who connect to it and there will be some people that run from it – I don’t know how his little league team’s parents will feel about his new persona. But again, it’s a persona – these are the choices he’s created for himself creatively. And, you know, I think it will work.”
Snoop has three children and showcased his role as a rap daddy in the reality show, "Snoop Dogg's Father Hood."
50 admits that Snoop has the cred to back up his recent change. He has been promoting the marijuana-toking lifestyle since he got into the game.
“Snoop’s always been that,” he told THR. “In the very beginning, that was his consistent theme – he had the weed, and everything else was there. [But] for hip-hop culture, it will work, because there’s enough of that going on; Wiz Khalifa, his entire theme is that. I’ve consistently seen artists sell 500,000 copies with that as a theme: Redman, Method Man, Styles P.
Snoop officially announced his new "Lion" moniker at the end of July, explaining that the change spawns from time spent in Jamaica, where claims to have discovered his inner Rastafarian.
His new album, Reincarnated, honors the metamorphosis with reggae music. He is even promoting a much more peaceful energy and Snoop's new album is one that "kids and grandparents can listen to." One song on the album is even titled "No Guns Allowed."
Snoop does not feel the need to explain himself.
"Rap is not a challenge to me," Snoop told journalists at a gathering in New York City. "With no disrespect to other rappers, but they can't f--k with me in rap ... I've won every accolade you can get in rap, they call me 'Uncle Snoop' in rap. When you're an uncle, it's time to find something new ... I want to feel like a kid again."
50 Cent is not the only rapper to have questioned Snoop's name change.
"He would see me come to rehearsals with all of my Rastafari, my gear, my hair, my look. He was just peeping me out, and I let him know I was doing a reggae project and working on the album and whatnot, but he didn't really understand it until 'La La La' came out," Snoop told MTV News about Dre questioning his Lion persona. "La La La" is the first single off the new album.
"Now he understands that I'm fully with it and I'm all in it to win it," he told MTV News. "So he gets it, and I got his support. He just didn't understand it because I didn't explain it to him. I wasn't tryna keep it a secret; it just wasn't time to unveil until now."
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