Warren G recently got candid during his new interview with Drink Champs. The rapper discussed a plethora of things, including how he saved Snoop Dogg. Warren G claims that Snoop had plans to join 2Pac in Vegas right before his fatal shooting in 1996. However, thanks to him, he was able to avoid it. “The cold sh*t about it is, I had called Snoop,” he began. “At that time, I was single … I had a house to myself. I was like, ‘Shi*t, I’m a bachelor. What’s up, Snoop? Come over! I’m here watching the fight, I’ma invite a gang of people over, we gonna barbecue.’”
The rapper continued: “He was like, ‘Fuck that sh*t, I’m going to Vegas with 2Pac and them for the fight.’ So I was like, ‘Damn, n*gga! You don’t never kick it with me, sh*t.’” He added, “So a couple of hours went by, I’m in the house, getting everything ready. I heard a horn honking in front of my house.” Warren G said the two had a great time riding around in Snoop’s whip.
“He Pulled Up [And] He Surprised Me,” Warren G Says
However, their fun moment wouldn’t last. After news broke about the shooting, the two immediately rushed to Vegas to check on their Death Row labelmate. “We could hear the sh*t, and then he started getting calls and they was telling him that 2Pac got shot. So I kicked everybody out and [Snoop] took off — that’s when he went to Vegas to go see what was going on and go to the hospital,” he said. He continued: “If I wouldn’t have talked to him and got him to come over to my house, he probably would’ve been right there in the car with them and got shot as well.”
Last May, Snoop Dogg also opened up about the aftermath of 2Pac’s death and its impact on him. The West Coast OG claims he nearly fainted when he saw him in the hospital. “He got tubes in him and it’s like, when I walked in, I could just feel like he wasn’t even there, and I fainted,” he shared. “Then, his [mother Afeni Shakur] got me up and walked me in the bathroom and had a conversation with me about being strong,” he told Jake Paul on his Impaulsive podcast.
Warren G’s story is a musical odyssey that began on the sun-kissed streets of Long Beach, California. Immersed in a community teeming with musical creativity, he found his voice and calling in hip-hop. Partnering with icons like Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, his early collaborations set the stage for a career that would influence a generation. The path to a net worth of $8 million in 2023, as reported by WealthyGorilla, had been laid. However, it would be filled with twists and turns.
Regulating The Charts: Hits, Collaborations & Milestones
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 10: Warren G performs during the V101.1 Holiday Jam. At Golden 1 Center on December 10, 2022 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images)
The name Warren G is synonymous with the G-Funk era, a distinctive sound that blended melodic hooks with hard-hitting beats. His debut album, Regulate… G Funk Era, became a defining work, with the single “Regulate” reaching legendary status. Collaborations with artists like Nate Dogg only enhanced his reputation as a musical innovator. Yet, Warren G’s creativity didn’t stop there; his evolution as an artist and producer continued to shape the hip-hop landscape, cementing his place in musical history.
Behind The Mic: Personal Struggles & Triumphs
Josh Groban, Snoop Dogg, Bobby Brown and Warren G during 32nd Annual American Music Awards. Backstage and Audience at Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California, United States. ***Exclusive*** (Photo by KMazur/WireImage)
Warren G’s rise to fame was not without its challenges. The pressures of the music industry, personal struggles, and hip-hop’s ever-changing landscape led to periods of introspection and self-discovery. Yet, Warren G’s passion for his craft never waned through it all. His resilience and commitment to his artistic vision have been instrumental in forging a career that remains relevant and respected.
Beats & Business: Entrepreneurial Moves
LOS ANGELES, CA – APRIL 21: Warren G performs during warm ups prior to the game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Los Angeles Kings in Game Three. Of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena on April 21, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Juan Ocampo/NHLI via Getty Images)
Warren G’s talents aren’t confined to the recording studio. His business acumen has seen him venture into various entrepreneurial endeavors, contributing to his financial success. From his own record label to investments in technology and entertainment, his ability to spot opportunities has been key to building his wealth. These ventures reveal a mind attuned not just to the beats of music but to the rhythms of business.
Further, Warren G’s connection to his community runs deep, and his philanthropic efforts are a testament to his commitment to giving back. Supporting education, youth programs, and various community initiatives, he has used his platform to make a positive impact. This aspect of his life reflects a sense of responsibility and a desire to contribute to the well-being of others, underlining his multifaceted persona.
The G-Funk Legacy: A Career Wrapped In Rhythm
Nate Dogg and Warren G during People’s Liberation Launch Party Hosted by Eve – Arrivals in Los Angeles, California, United States. (Photo by J.Sciulli/WireImage)
Warren G’s contributions to hip-hop have left an indelible mark on the genre. With a net worth of $8 million in 2023, as confirmed by WealthyGorilla, his financial success reflects his enduring influence. A pioneer, a collaborator, a businessman, and a community advocate, Warren G’s legacy is one of creativity, resilience, and an unwavering belief in the power of music.
After the BET Awards’ 2023 Hip-Hop 50 tribute covered some of rap’s foundational hits, including Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight,” MC Lyte’s “Cha Cha Cha,” and DJ D-Nice’s “Call Me D-Nice,” the second performance took a trip out west. The second performance of the night tapped Long Beach’s Warren G, who performed his and Nate Dogg’s seminal hit, “Regulate,” Yo-Yo, who rocked her signature song “You Can’t Play With My Yo-Yo,” Compton’s Tyga, who took the show to “Rack City,” and the Bay Area favorite E-40, who played his late-career breakout “Tell Me When To Go.”
While the show clearly dedicated plenty of space to the celebration of hip-hop’s 50th birthday, it also made sure to highlight some of today’s hottest artists, as well. The show opened with Lil Uzi Vert, who performed an unreleased song along with their rumbling Jersey club hit “Just Wanna Rock,” and Latto, who told her foes once again to “Put It On Da Floor,” and Coco Jones, who also won Best New Artist and sang “ICU.”
More artists expected to perform tonight include six-time nominee GloRilla, Doechii, and more Hip-Hop 50 pioneers like Ja Rule, Remy Ma, Trina, and more. Stay tuned for more of UPROXX’s coverage of the 2023 BET Awards.
Somehow, Warren G has fallen under the radar when hip-hop heads discuss the hallmark rap pioneers. Of course, you have the likes of Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, 2 Pac, Eazy-E, E-40, and Snoop Dogg. However, hybrid rapper-producer Warren G doesn’t get his flowers for pioneering the sub-genre of G-Funk. Warren introduced Dr. Dre to Snoop Dogg in the early ’90s, playing an instrumental role in curating The Chronic. Regarding his lack of attention in the modern-day, he told Billboard, “I’m not saying I’m the one who did everything over here because I’m not, I just want people to know who I am and what I contributed to hip-hop. That’s it.” That contribution reached stardom with Warren G’s Regulate…G Funk Era.
Oddly enough, Warren G’s hip-hop career took off at a Dr. Dre-hosted bachelor party. With stacks of cassette tapes missing, the party was threatened not to exist at all. With Dre’s sound usually driving the dance floor, it’s hard to imagine G-Funk pioneering in a ballroom. However, that’s precisely what happened. Warren, the relatively unknown stepbrother of Dr. Dre, was asked if he had any music in his car. Tossing a friend his car keys, Warren instructed him to dig through the messy ride for his demo tape. With the cassette player booming in the adjacent room, Dr. Dre was immediately caught off guard by the sound.
Warren G’s Career Took Off At A Bachelor Party
Warren’s demo tape appeared in the right place at the right time. In years prior, Dr. Dre had shot down attempts from Warren to get his music noticed. However, things were changing by the early ’90s. New Yorkers were no longer wearing Raiders hats, as N.W.A.’s influence was drying out. The pervasive Compton rap didn’t quite contain its potent sting of the late ’80s. As a result, Andre had opened his perspective to a potential new wave of hip-hop, one he would discover in Warren G. It was ideal timing for the understated pioneer of G-Funk, who’d been working day jobs at McDonald’s and El Pollo Loco while scraping for appearances in local shows at night.
It wouldn’t be much longer before the trio of Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Warren G grafted in the studio to fully fledge out the new sound. As Warren G explained to Pitchfork, Dr. Dre was their business tycoon and icon. He said, “We knew that if we could make Dre more successful, then we’d make it ourselves. There was a lot of drink, a lot of smoke, beautiful women, chicken breasts from Popeyes. Anything that came to our minds, we wrote about. We poured our hearts out.” Each with struggling backgrounds in the streets of Los Angeles, their chemistry was immediately apparent in “Gangstas Life.” Dr. Dre’s The Chronic did exactly what Warren G predicted, propelling him to mainstream stardom.
Regulate…G Funk Era Was Distinctive From Snoop Or Dre
CANNES, FRANCE – JULY 18: (EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE) Warren G, Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre attend the Beats By Dre Party at Gotha Club on July 18, 2011 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Toni Anne Barson/WireImage)
By 1994, Warren G’s debut studio album was long overdue. The rhythmic ballad “Regulate,” the lead single for Regulate…G Funk Era, remains one of the biggest breakout rap songs to this day. With lifelong friends Warren G and Nate Dogg trading bars about the endless violence of their hometown, the Grammy-nominated “Regulate” would later become the film soundtrack for Above The Rim starring Tupac Shakur. In many ways, Regulate…G Funk Era is synonymous with West Coast rap. From violent bars, lush instrumentation, and rapid exchange of bars, it had everything fans sought.
The hit single was just the beginning. During this time 29 years ago, Regulate…G Funk Era became the sound of the summer. The Death Row release was a smooth trilogy to The Chronic and Doggystyle. Warren G had officially arrived and finished as the year’s fourth most popular album. Even more impressive? He did it without Dr. Dre or Snoop Dogg. Even if he was latching onto Dr. Dre to make it big, Regulate…G Funk Era proved that Warren G could be a hit without his older brother standing over him. In addition, his sound stood out from his fellow G-Funk contemporaries. Warren was the softest of the bunch, employing a softer sampling of ’70s soul icons such as Gil Scott-Heron. “Do You See” finds Warren frustrated at the reality of aging, finding him on a looping nostalgia trip. On the other hand, the commercially successful “This D.J.” is a coming-of-age Long Beach groove.
G-Funk Doesn’t Exist Without Warren G
LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 17: Warren G attends VH1 Hip Hop Honors: The 90s Game Changers at Paramount Studios on September 17, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John Sciulli/Getty Images for VH1/Viacom)
Warren G delivered his own take of G-Funk on Regulate…G Funk Era. More personal and smooth in comparison to Snoop or Dre, G-Funk arguably doesn’t exist without his presence. From a bachelor party to the fourth most popular album of 1994, his hit success behind “Regulate” highlights Dr. Dre’s ability to discover new talent. Warren G’s rightful place is amongst the greatest West Coast MCs of all time, a title which doesn’t seem to be associated with the 52-year-old enough.
Sending a 21 gun soldier salute Rest In Peace one of Hip Hop’s favorite crooners
There were many who tried, but nobody put R&B into Hip Hop the way it was supposed to sound better than the late, great Nate Dogg of the legendary Dogg Pound. The Source Magazine would like to send him a posthumous shout in recognition of his contributions to the game.
Besides his obvious links to Snoop Dogg and the original Death Row Family, Nathaniel Hale, born on this date in Clarksdale, Mississippi in 1969, Nate appeared alongside several iconic artists in the game including 2Pac, 50 Cent, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Jay-Z. The world lost a talented singer, actor and musician when Nate succumbed to multiple strokes on March 15, 2011. He was 41 years old.
Condolences go out to Warren G, Dr. Dre, Snoop and the entire 213 on the day an entire community lost a Hip Hop legend.
Wiz Khalifa is living the dream. He grew up listening to Snoop Dogg, then manifested a friendship with his hero that culminated in their 2011 collaboration “Young, Wild And Free” and the movie that it appeared on the soundtrack for, Mac & Devin Go To High School. Now, they’re going on tour together.
The High School Reunion Tour — get it? — will kick off in July, spanning 33 cities alongside Berner, Too Short, and Warren G, with special guest DJ Drama. Tickets will go on sale on Friday, March 10 and you can find more information on Ticketmaster.com.
7/7 –- Vancouver, B.C. @ Rogers Arena
7/8 -– Ridgefield, Wash. @ RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater
7/9 –- Auburn, Wash. @ White River Amphitheatre
7/11 -– Salt Lake City @ USANA Amphitheatre
7/12 -– Denver @ Ball Arena
7/15 -– Rogers, Ark. @ Walmart AMP
7/16 -– St. Louis – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre @ St. Louis
7/18 -– Burgettstown, Pa. @ The Pavilion at Star Lake
7/20 -– Noblesville, Ind. @ Ruoff Music Center
7/21 –- Tinley Park, Ill. @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre – Chicago
7/23 -– Clarkston @ Pine Knob Music Theatre
7/26 –- Toronto @ Budweiser Stage
7/28 –- Mansfield, Mass. @ Xfinity Center
7/29 -– Hartford, Conn. @ XFINITY Theatre
7/30 -– Camden, N.J. @ Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
8/1 -– Bristow, Va. @ Jiffy Lube Live
8/2 -– Holmdel, N.J. @ PNC Bank Arts Center
8/4 -– Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Barclays Center
8/5 -– Virginia Beach, Va. @ Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach
8/6 -– Raleigh, N.C. @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
8/8 -– Charlotte @ PNC Music Pavilion
8/9 –- Atlanta @ Lakewood Amphitheatre
8/11 –- West Palm Beach, Fla. @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
8/12 -– Tampa @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
8/15 –- New Orleans @ Smoothie King Center
8/18 -– Austin @ Germania Insurance Amphitheater
8/19 -– Houston @ The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
8/20 -– Dallas – Dos Equis Pavilion
8/22 –- Albuquerque, N.M. @ Isleta Amphitheater
8/23 -– Phoenix @ Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
8/25 -– Sacramento, Calif.@– Golden 1 Center
8/26 -– Concord, Calif. @ Concord Pavilion
8/27 –- Irvine, Calif. @ FivePoint Amphitheatre
On this date in 1992, Dr. Dre released his debut solo album The Chronic on his own Death Row Records imprint, which was distributed by Priority Records. This album introduced the world to the Death Row experience, G-Funk infused Hip Hop and the one and only Snoop Doggy Dogg.
Recorded in Death Row Studios in L.A., The Chronic album was created under the influence of some of the most powerful marijuana in the United States during that time, hence, the title. It was also fueled by Dre’s relentless passion to show his former crewmates from N.W.A. that he could make it on his own as well as prove to the world that he could do more than just make dope beats.
Timeless tracks where Dre shined on the lyrical side include “Let Me Ride”, “Nuthin’ But A “G” Thang” along with Snoop, and “The Day The Niggaz Took Over”, where Daz, Dre, and RBX went in about racial tensions during the 1992 L.A. riots.
Even with its conceptual perfection and trailblazing sound, which left an open market for artists like The Dogg Pound, 213, and Warren G., The Chronic is still Dre’s second best-selling album behind The Chronic: 2001, which went sextuple platinum.
Salute to everyone at Death Row Records who contributed to this gangsta rap classic! Cali love!!
West Coast/G-Funk legend Warren G sat down with Talib Kweli for his ‘Peoples Party’ podcast, where the production pioneer talked about being affiliated with Death Row Records, but not actually signing to the label.
Warren explained how things got heated when Suge found out that Warren warned the label’s premiere artist Snoop Dogg not to sign the Death Row contract without getting it reviewed by an attorney.
He said, “I told Snoop ‘No, don’t sign that. You don’t know what you’re signing. You gotta get a lawyer to look at that stuff.’ And I was a young buck saying this!”
Warren said when Suge came for him, “He was like, ‘Aye, blood! Where Warren G at?!’ And I was like, ‘Sh*t, what’s up?’ He said, ‘Aye, blood. You told them not to sign that contract?!’ I took off! But the only way you could get down was the elevator, so I’m at the elevator like [hurriedly pressing the button]. He grabbed me and pushed me up against the wall and was like, ‘You told them not to sign that contract, blood?!’”
