Missionary

About

With all due respect to DJ Battlecat, The Neptunes, and the other myriad producers who made key contributions to Snoop Dogg’s vast discography, nothing feels quite so right as when he links with Dr. Dre. From the moment the former N.W.A member’s ostensibly solo debut <i>The Chronic</i> entered the zeitgeist, artists have repeatedly tried—and generally failed—to achieve the level of chemistry and clout generated by their seminal pairing. While they’ve stayed in each other’s orbit over the years, trading beats and bars on albums like Snoop’s 2006 <i>Tha Blue Carpet Treatment</i> and Dre’s 2015 <i>Compton</i>, the auspicious release of <i>Missionary</i> marks their first full-length team-up in more than three decades. Its title a clear nod to the 1993 West Coast masterpiece <i>Doggystyle</i>, this long-hoped-for album changes positions without losing the feeling. Though <i>Missionary</i> largely leaves the microphone duties to Snoop, it doesn’t take too long before he and Dre are sharing verses again, exuding music-mogul energy on “Outta Da Blue.” The good doctor, in turn, busts out the martial drumwork for “Hard Knocks” and puts a subtle spin on G-funk’s inherent groove on hard-hitting closer “The Negotiator.” Demonstrating the extraordinary pull both artists maintain in the industry, “Last Dance With Mary Jane” flips Tom Petty for a trip down Snoop’s own memory lane with some contemporary musings from Jelly Roll. In that same vein, they convene with Sting over “Another Part of Me,” an inventive interpolation of one of The Police’s rock classics. Golden Age peer Method Man comes through for the triumphant “Skyscrapers,” but a family reunion with both 50 Cent and Eminem on the slow and funky “Guns N Smoke” should evoke the strongest nostalgic vibes.

via Apple Music

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