*We previously reported that Snoop Dogg rose to fame during the ’90s on Death Row Records, now he has acquired the label from MNRK Music Group, which is controlled by a private equity fund managed by Blackstone, per Variety.
Several albums under Death Row are being removed from streaming services, including Snoop’s “Doggystyle “and Dr. Dre’s “The Chronic,” Vibe reports. Snoop explained in a new interview that money is the reason why fans will not be able to access the Death Row discography on streaming platforms.
“First thing I did was snatch all the music off those platforms traditionally known to people because those platforms don’t pay,” Snoop said in a recent interview with Drink Champs. “And those platforms get millions and millions of streams, and nobody gets paid other than the record labels. So, what I wanted to do is snatch my music off, create a platform similar to Amazon, Netflix, Hulu. It’ll be a Death Row app, and the music, in the meantime, will live in the metaverse.”
READ MORE: Dr. Dre’s Attorney Clarifies Ownership of ‘The Chronic’ After Snoop Dogg Acquires Death Row
Snoop will reportedly have full control over the label’s catalog, with the exception of 2Pac’s “All Eyez On Me” and “The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory,” as well as Dre’s “The Chronic.”
He previously told Tidal that Pac’s albums were returned to his estate in 2021.
In a statement, Snoop Dogg said: “I am thrilled and appreciative of the opportunity to acquire the iconic and culturally significant Death Row Records brand, which has immense untapped future value. It feels good to have ownership of the label I was part of at the beginning of my career and as one of the founding members. This is an extremely meaningful moment for me. I would like to personally thank the teams at Blackstone, MNRK and especially David Kestnbaum, who worked collaboratively with me over several months to make this exciting homecoming a reality. I’m looking forward to building the next chapter of Death Row Records.”
Snoop Dogg has also revealed plans for Death Row to be the first NFT record label.
“Death Row will be an NFT label,” Snoop said on the Clubhouse app on Feb, 15. “We will be putting out artists through the metaverse. Just like we broke the industry when we was the first independent [label] to be major, I want to be the first major [label] in the metaverse.”
With the formation of the Death Row app, Snoop stated, “I want to create an avenue to where I can show people how to not always have to go through the slave trade, but create our own trade where we’re engaging with our own fans that’s buying our music, that’s making money off the music, and then making us money off of the music by it being traded and sold.”
Watch Snoop’s full Drink Champs episode via the YouTube clip above.
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