  Snoop Doggy Dogg was born Calvin
Broadus on October 20, 1972 in California. He
acquired his nickname from his mother after
the famous cartoon dog. Snoop's conflicts
with the law began during his late teens when
he was a member of the Crips street gang and
arrested for cocaine possession and spent
some time in jail.
The music world first became
aware of Snoop Doggy Dogg when he appeared on
the soundtrack for Deep
Cover and when Dr. Dre hit it big with
"Nuthin' But A 'G' Thang."
Snoop stood out in Dr. Dre's videos and on his
LP, The
Chronic, with his laid-back appearance
and art for rapping. Snoop's lucky break in
the music industry had been making tapes at
home with his friend, Warren Griffin aka Warren
G, and getting the tapes to Dr. Dre (Warren G's
step-brother).
 # 105
Singles Artist of the Year
As Snoop's star began to rise,
controversies outside the music studio crept
in. Snoop's bodyguard was accused of murder
in a drive-by shooting and Snoop was accused
as his accomplice because he was driving the
vehicle. The two claimed self-defense was the
reason for the shooting. Snoop was later
acquitted of the charges in 1996 with the
help of O.J. Simpson lawyer, Johnny Cochran.
 Snoop Doggy Dogg's debut LP, Doggystyle was released and
became the first debut LP to debut at #1. The
LP contained 2 Top 10 pop hits: "What's My Name?" and "Gin
And Juice." He also had some
moderate success with the tracks "Doggy
Doggy World" and "Lodi Dodi."Rolling
Stone said the LP "...is filled
with verbal and vocal feats that meet its
three-mile-high expectations..." and Entertainment
Weekly stated, "...it's easy to
be impressed one moment and appalled the
next..."
Snoop hit the Top 40 with "What's My Name?"
Snoop hit the Top 10 with "What's My Name?"
Snoop topped the Billboard Hot
Rap Singles chart for 3 weeks with "What's My Name?"
Doggystyle topped the Billboard
200 Pop Albums chart for 3 weeks and the
Billboard Top R&B Albums chart for 5
weeks.
 # 23
Singles Artist of the Year
Snoop hit the Top 40 with "Gin
And Juice."
Snoop was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap
Performance by a Duo or Group ("Nuthin'
But A 'G' Thang" with Dr. Dre).
Snoop hit the Top 10 with "Gin
And Juice."
Snoop topped the Billboard Hot
Dance Music Maxi-Singles Sales chart for 2
weeks and the Hot Rap Singles chart for 2
weeks with "Gin
And Juice."
Snoop won Source Awards for New
Artist of the Year (Solo) and Lyricist of the
Year.
Snoop hit the Top 40 with "Doggy Dogg World."
 Murder
Was The Case was released and was meant to
be a soundtrack to a short film based on the
title track. Snoop contributed the tracks
"Murder Was The Case" (Remix),
"Natural Born Killaz" (with Ice
Cube), "21 Jumpstreet" (with Tray
Dee), and "Who Got Some Gangsta
S***?"
The video for "Doggy Dogg World" won a MTV Video Music
Award for Best Rap Video.
Snoop was named Best Rapper in Rolling
Stone's annual critics poll.
Snoop topped the Billboard
Year-End Charts as the Top Billboard
200 Album Artist - Male, Top R&B Album (Doggystyle), the Top R&B
Album Artist, and the Top R&B Album
Artist - Male.
Snoop won an American Music
Award for Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop
Artist.
Snoop was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance ("Gin
And Juice").
 # 201
Singles Artist of the Year
 Snoop released Tha
Doggfather and continued the hip-hop and
rap sounds with gansta themes. Entertainment
Weekly said of the LP: "...Even
without Dr. Dre behind the board,
Snoop and his studio team concoct an
intoxicating blend of old-school funk and
gangsta cool..." The LP sold well but
the field of male rappers releasing hit LPs
overshadowed his new work.
Snoop hit the Top 40 helping out
Nate Dogg on "Never Leave Me Alone."
Tha
Doggfather topped the Billboard
Top 200 Albums chart and TOp R&B Albums
chart for a week.
Also during the year Snoop
settled out of court in a wrongful death suit
brought against him three years earlier by a
family accusing Snoop of being involved with
the shooting death of 22 year old Phillip
Woldemariam who was shot and killed by
Snoop's bodyguard.
 Snoop toured with the
Lollapalooza tour in the summer.
Snoop Doggy Dogg and Death Row
Records were sued by a Virginia concert
promoter who alleged they tricked her into
transporting packages containing marijuana.
The concert promoter was asked in January to
pick up some packages at a nearby hotel and
to deliver them to a club where Snoop was to
perform. She was then arrested but not
charged. The packages contained seven pounds
of marijuana and the promoter feels she was
conned by Snoop and/or his people. The
lawsuit asked for over $500,000 for such
issues as embarrassment, humiliation, fraud,
and false imprisonment. Snoop was not charged
with anything from the incident because he
did not take possession of the packages.
 # 137
Singles Artist of the Year
Snoop told the Long Beach
Press - Telegram that he was leaving
Death Row Records for fear of his life:
"I definitely feel my life is in danger
if I stay in Death Row Records. That's part
of the reason why I'm leaving.... there's
nothing over there. Suge Knight is in jail,
the president; Dr. Dre left and 2Pac is dead. It's telling
me that I'm either going to be dead or in
jail or I'm going to be nothing... They don't
know how to run business. That's why their
business is gone... and I'm no longer a part
of them."
Snoop could be found trying his
acting in the movies Half-Baked and Ride.
Snoop Doggy Dogg was arrested in
California for alleged marijuana possession.
Snoop was booked with one count of
"misdemeanor marijuana possession"
and then released pending a court appearance.
Snoop received probation for
possession of marijuana. It was uncertain if
the probation requirements would affect his
plans to tour the U.S. Snoop plead no contest
to the charges.
 Snoop Doggy Dogg's LP, Da
Game Is To Be Sold, Not To Be Told, was released and
debuted at #1 selling over 500,000 copies in
its first week of release.
Da
Game Is To Be Sold, Not To Be Told topped the Billboard
200 Albums chart for 2 weeks and the R&B
Albums chart for 3 weeks.
 # 128
Singles Artist of the Year
 Snoop Dogg's next LP, Top
Dogg was released and topped the
Billboard R&B Album chart for a week.
Snoop hit the bookstores with
his autobiography, Tha
Doggfather: The Times, Trials, And Hardcore
Truths Of Snoop Dogg.
MTV: 100
Greatest Videos Ever Made includes "Nuthin'
But A 'G' Thang" (with Dr. Dre) at # 32.
 # 132
Singles Artist of the Year
Snoop was nominated for a Grammy Award for Rap Performance by
a Duo or Group ("Still D.R.E." with
Dr. Dre).
Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Eminem, MC Ren,
and Ice Cube kicked off a
tour together in California.
 Snoop hit the Top 40 helping out
on Mariah
Carey's "Crybaby" and helping out
on Dr. Dre's "The
Next Episode."
Dead
Man Walkin' was released - the LP
contained tracks from Snoop's Death Row
Record years.
 Snoop released Tha
Last Meal.
 # 122
Singles Artist of the Year
Snoop topped the Billboard
R&B/Hip-Hop LP chart with Tha
Last Meal for 4 weeks.
Snoop topped the MTV Video
Countdown with "Snoop Dogg" for a
week.
Snoop's former business
collaborator Suge Knight (the jailed head of
Death Row Records) ran a sarcastic
advertisement toward Snoop leaving Death Row
- "Congratulations Snoop Doggy Dogg From
Suge Knight and Death Row Records for your
recent success with Dead
Man Walkin' and Tha
Last Meal. Death Row knows success for a
Snoop Doggy Dogg album means $$$$ for Suge
Knight. Keep it up, because you know Suge
Knight eats off your next three albums as
well as your previous seven albums!!!"
Snoop was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by
a Duo or Group ("The
Next Episode" with Dr. Dre).
Tha
Last Meal was certified platinum.
Snoop Dogg pleaded no contest to
possession of marijuana charges in Ohio and
was fined $398.30. He will not serve jail
time if he stays out of trouble for 2 years.
Snoop could be found on the
soundtrack for Baby
Boy soundtrack with "Just A Baby
Boy" also featuring Tyrese & Mr.
Tan.
Snoop Dogg, Ja Rule, and Beenie
Man, were charged with indecency
accusations after performing in Jamaica - the
charges stem from indecent language used
during their performances.
Snoop's video for
"Lay Low" was nominated for a MTV Video Music
Award for Best Rap Video.
 Death
Row's Greatest Hits was released.
Snoop was charged with
marijuana possession in Ohio when his tour
bus was stopped for speeding by state
troopers.
Snoop could be seen
starring in the thriller, Bones and the comedy The
Wash.
Dre could be heard on the
soundtrack for The
Wash with the tracks "On The
Blvd." and "The Wash."
Snoop pleaded no guilty
to October's marijuana charges.
 Snoop released Paid
The Cost To Be The Boss.
 # 80
Singles Artist of the Year
Paid
The Cost To Be The Boss was certified gold.
Paid
The Cost To Be The Boss was certified
platinum.
Snoop and his entourage were
shot at while driving in LA. Snoop was
unharmed but one of his security guards was
grazed by a bullet.
Snoop hit the Top 40 with "Beautiful" which also
featured Pharrell & Uncle
Charlie Wilson.
VH1: 50
Greatest Hip Hop Artists includes Snoop at # 25.
 Snoop was back on MTV for 6
shows of his Doggy Fizzle Televizzle
- a variety show.
Snoop won a BET Award for Best
Collaboration (with Pharrell).
Snoop could be heard on the Bad
Boys 2 soundtrack with the
track "Gangsta S****."
 Snoop's video for "Beautiful" was nominated
for a MTV Video Music
Award for Best Hip-Hop Video. Snoop also performed
at the ceremony.
Snoop could be heard on the The
Neptunes Presents... The Clones compilation with the
track "It Blows My Mind."
Snoop hit the Top 40 helping out
Chingy and also featuring Ludacris with
"Holidae In."
 # 69
Singles Artist of the Year
Snoop was nominated for 2 Grammy Awards for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration ("Beautiful" with Pharrell
and Charlie Wilson) and Best
Rap Song (songwriter) ("Beautiful" with Chad Hugo
and Pharrell Williams).
Snoop could be seen in the film
adaptation of the 70s TV series Starsky
& Hutch.
Snoop Dogg hosted Saturday
Night Live.
 Snoop Dogg could be seen in the
film Soul Plane.
The video for "Holidae In" was nominated
for a MTV Video Music
Award including Best Hip-Hop Video.
Snoop joined forces with Warren
G and Nate Dogg to
form 213 and released The
Hard Way.
 Snoop topped the Billboard
R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Sales chart with
"Drop It Like It's Hot."
Snoop topped the Billboard Hot
Rap Tracks chart, R&B/Hip-Hop Singles
Sales chart, Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay
chart, and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles &
Tracks chart for 7 weeks with "Drop It Like It's Hot."
Snoop hit the Top 40 with "Drop It Like It's Hot."
Snoop released R&G
(Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece.
 Snoop topped the Billboard Hot
100 singles chart for 3 weeks and Hot 100
Airplay chart with "Drop It Like It's Hot."
Snoop hit the Top 10 with "Drop It Like It's Hot."
R&G
(Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece was certified
platinum.
# 244 on the Top Pop Artists
of the Past 25 Years chart.
 # 49
Singles Artist of the Year
Snoop Dogg hit the Top 40 with
"Let's Get Blown."
 Snoop hit the Top 40 with "Signs" featuring Charlie
Wilson and Justin
Timberlake.
Snoop was nominated for 2 Grammy Awards for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or
Group
and Best Rap Song
(awarded to the songwriter) ("Drop It Like It's Hot" with Pharrell).
The single "Drop It Li
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