Dogg Food Explained

Dogg Food
Type:studio
Artist:Tha Dogg Pound
Cover:DoggPoundDoggFood.jpg
Recorded:December 1994 – April 1995
Next Title:Dillinger & Young Gotti
Next Year:2001

Dogg Food is the debut studio album by American hip hop duo Tha Dogg Pound, released on October 31, 1995, by Death Row Records, Interscope Records and Priority Records.[1] [2] The album features guest appearances from Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg, Michel'le, The Lady of Rage, Tray Deee, and Mr. Malik. Two singles were released from the album: "Let's Play House" (featuring Michel'le and Nate Dogg) and "New York, New York" (featuring Snoop Doggy Dogg).

It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart on November 18, 1995.[3] The album sold 278,000 copies in its first week.[4] It is one of the last high-selling and critically acclaimed releases from the label, preceding only Tha Doggfather and Tupac's releases as an anticipated album, and is the last to be "officially" produced under the G-funk era of hip-hop, with Death Row Records' future releases diverging from the style. Though Dr. Dre was Death Row's top producer, the album was mostly produced by Daz Dillinger, while Dre mixed the album. Dogg Food led the way for Daz to become the top in-house producer for Death Row until his departure in the late 1990s.

The video for the first single, "New York, New York", caused some controversy when Snoop appeared in it kicking down buildings throughout New York. The trailer of Tha Dogg Pound was shot at during the process of making the "New York, New York" video although no one was injured. The song is one of three tracks on the album not produced by Daz, as DJ Pooh provided the beat.[5]

Background

Its controversial lyrics were the subject of shareholder protest. The album was supposed to be released in August 1995, but as a result of the controversy from Time Warner, the release was delayed by two months.[6]

Critical reception

The Encyclopedia of Popular Music wrote that the album "revealed a comparative deftness of touch and a penchant for self-parody largely lacking in [the group's] more esteemed colleagues." The Washington Post opined that Tha Dogg Pound's "variation on what has become a stale formula is less sample-driven than most gangsta funk; instead, it focuses on the formidable verbal flow and rhyme skills of Daz and Kurupt."[7] The Baltimore Sun wrote that "the music here sounds wonderfully fresh, from the growling synth-bass of 'Smooth' to the dreamy, slightly tropical pulse of 'Big Pimpin' 2'."[8] Trouser Press called the album "a low-key, unambitious and only mildly imaginative replay of Doggystyle, rolling over familiar G-funk terrain with the same minimum of venom and violence."[9]

Commercial performance

Dogg Food debuted at number one on both the US Billboard 200 and the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts, selling 278,000 copies in its first week (the week ending on November 5, 1995).[4] The album was certified 2× platinum on January 5, 1996.

Track listing

Notes

Sample credits

Charts

Year-end charts

Chart (1995)Position
US Billboard 200[11] 154
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[12] 44
Chart (1996)Position
US Billboard 200[13] 49
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[14] 16

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Tha Dogg Pound | Biography & History. AllMusic.
  2. News: CRITIC'S NOTEBOOK;Rappers Making Notoriety Pay Off (Published 1995). Jon. Pareles. The New York Times . October 31, 1995. NYTimes.com.
  3. Tha Dogg Pound. Billboard.
  4. Web site: 'Dogg Food' Fights To Chart Top. 13 November 1995 . March 12, 2022.
  5. Web site: Sidney Madden. Today in Hip-Hop: Tha Dogg Pound Drop ‘Dogg Food’ Album. XXL. October 31, 2016. December 11, 2023.
  6. Web site: Chuck Philips. Gangsta Rappers Daz and Kurupt Are Striking Out on Their Own With a Controversial Debut Album, but Will Time Warner and Critics Be Able to . . . : Corral the Dogg Pound?. Los Angeles Times. July 11, 1995. March 7, 2024.
  7. Web site: DOGG FOOD': MUCH BARK, SAME OLD BITE. Richard. Harrington. November 1, 1995. www.washingtonpost.com.
  8. Web site: Bark is worse than the bite Review: Tha Dogg Pound's new release was expected by some to be the nastiest gangsta rap album ever. But it's surprisingly well done.. J. D.. Considine. baltimoresun.com. 31 October 1995 .
  9. Web site: Tha Dogg Pound . Trouser Press . 2 February 2021.
  10. 85.
  11. Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1995. Billboard. January 27, 2021.
  12. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1995. Billboard. January 27, 2021.
  13. Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1996. Billboard. January 27, 2021.
  14. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1996. Billboard. January 27, 2021.

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