Snoop Dogg’s Viral “Give Up Smoke” Ad Leads To CEO Firing

Snoop Dogg’s viral “Give Up Smoke” advertisement for Solo Stove has led to the firing of the company’s CEO, John Merris. The company says that it saw no “substantial revenue increase,” despite the cost and virality of the marketing campaign. Christopher Metz is now stepping in as Solo Stove’s president, chief executive officer, and director of the board.

Interim CFO Andrea Tarbox explained the company’s decision in a statement caught by Uproxx. “While our unique marketing campaigns raised brand awareness of Solo Stove to an expanded and new audience of consumers, it did not lead to the sales lift that we had planned, which, combined with the increased marketing investments, negatively impacted our EBITDA,” she said. “We believe there is a significant opportunity for us to build awareness and that these new campaigns will expand our reach and benefit our brands over the long term.”

Read More: Snoop Dogg Pokes Fun At Weed-Quitting Hoax With Iconic “Friday” Reference

Snoop Dogg Performs During “The High Road Tour”

AUSTIN, TX – AUGUST 21: Rapper Snoop Dogg performs onstage during ‘The High Road Tour’ at Austin360 Amphitheater on August 21, 2016 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Rick Kern/WireImage)

The advisement campaign quickly went viral when Snoop Dogg posted on social media: “Announcement: I’m giving up smoke.” After fans went into a panic, he expanded in a further post: “I know what you thinking — ‘Snoop, smoking’s kind of your whole thing.’ But I’m done with it. Done with the coughing and my clothes smelling all sticky-icky. I’m going smokeless.” Despite tricking a number of fans and catching the attention of many publications, Snoop’s advertisement appears to have been in vain.

Snoop recently popped up in headlines when Drake shared a photo dump from 2023 to celebrate the new year on Instagram. In one of the pics, the Toronto rapper revealed that Snoop hand-rolled a blunt for him. “July 27th, 2023. Blunt rolled by Snoop Dogg. Death Row Records,” a handwritten note from the rapper read. Be on the lookout for further updates on Snoop Dogg on HotNewHipHop.

Read More: Snoop Dogg Reveals He’s Not Actually Giving Up Smoking: Fans React

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Snoop Dogg Fans Feel Both Betrayed And Impressed After His Viral ‘Give Up Smoke’ Post Turned Out To Not Be About Weed

Snoop Dogg Solo Stove
Solo Stove

Snoop Dogg quit smoking weed… at least that’s what he had the world believing last week with a viral social media post that read, “After much consideration & conversation with my family, I’ve decided to give up smoke. Please respect my privacy at this time.” The post had some fooled, while others figured his specific use of the term “give up smoke” indicated this was actually just a lead-in for some sort of smoke-free product marketing campaign.

It turns out that’s just what it was: Today (November 20), Snoop revealed the whole viral situation was just a teaser for an ad, for Solo Stove, a smokeless fire pit company. Now that the dust (eh, smoke) has settled, people are sharing reactions online (as of this post, Snoop is the No. 1 trending topic on X, aka Twitter), and they have so far fallen into a couple different genres.

There are those who can’t believe they were fooled/those reflecting on the people who were fooled. Lil Duval chimed in, tweeting, “Snoop had all yall talking about ‘im about to stop smoking too’”; Rappers like Meek Mill and Coi Leray discussed quitting weed after Snoop’s post.

Then there are those who have to give it up for Snoop and Solo Stove and their uber-successful marketing campaign. Ice T even weighed in, tweeting, For all you MFs that hit me up saying ‘Ice! You heard about Snoop?!! He stopped!’ And I said….’Wait for it.’ Lol. Snoop is too cold. I love it.”

Learn more about Snoop and Solo Stove’s partnership here.

Snoop Dogg Revealed What His Viral ‘Give Up Smoke’ Post Was Really About And Of Course It Wasn’t Quitting Weed

Snoop Dogg Solo Stove
Solo Stove

Last week, Snoop Dogg shocked the world with an announcement he shared on social media, writing, “After much consideration & conversation with my family, I’ve decided to give up smoke. Please respect my privacy at this time.” The logical first leap to be made there is that the post was Snoop declaring he was giving up weed. After thinking about it for a second, though, it felt more like Snoop was setting up some sort of product rollout or brand partnership (edibles, perhaps?).

Now, we know for certain that it was the latter (albeit not edibles): Today (November 20), Snoop shared an ad for Solo Stove, a smokeless fire pit company. On Instagram, he wrote, “I’m done with smoke. I’m going smokeless with @solostove. #ad.”

The video he shared is a close-up of Snoop that slowly zooms out to reveal he’s sitting in front of a Solo Stove. Meanwhile, he says, “I have an announcement: I’m giving up smoke. I know what you thinkin’: ‘Snoop, smoke is kind of your whole thing!’ But I’m done with it. I’m done with the coughing and my clothes smelling all sticky-icky. I’m going smokeless. Solo Stove fixed fire. They took out the smoke: Clever.”

Per a press release, Snoop, the company’s official “smokesman,” said, “I love a good fire outside, but the smoke was too much. Solo Stove fixed fire and took out the smoke. They changed the game and now I’m excited to spread the love and stay warm with my friends and family.”

Snoop is teaming up with the brand to design a signature line of Snoop Dogg x Solo Stove products. First (and available now for $420, here) is a limited edition bundle that includes a Bonfire Fire Pit designed by Snoop, a fire pit stand, a Snoop bucket hat, and a Snoop x Solo sticker pack.

It remains to be seen if the rappers Snoop Dogg inspired will follow through with giving up weed.