Snoop Dogg at Leeds First Direct Arena: Live review as the LA rap icon rolls back the years for good and bad

It was impossible not to get absorbed in the hit-packed set from the lovable rogue, as 30-plus tracks from across his three decade career were breezed through at the stoner icon’s leisurely pace. This was despite parts of the show being scuppered by some outdated lyrics, casual misogyny, the odd dud and bizarre product placement.

There was also some technical issues that saw a large queue at the box office of people trying to replace tickets bought for the show when it was scheduled way back in 2019, before the pandemic hit, that wouldn’t scan.

There was a good deal of joy in the air (among some other things) as fans from across the generations made their way to the dome shaped arena in the sunshine for the first show since the clocks went forward.

The unmistakable, gangly frame of 51-year-old Snoop made its way onto the stage in typically cartoonish fashion, with a pre-recorded video showing him pick out his bandana-designed jump suit, skank down a hallway to ‘O Fortuna' and ask the crowd “is y’all motherf*****s ready for me to come out there and rock this s***?” Judging by the response, they undoubtedly were.

Taking to the stage with a blunt in his mouth and diamond encrusted microphone in hand, the set began with ‘The Next Episode’ and one of the first of many screams of the MC’s varied pseudonyms – The D O double G, Big Boss Dogg and Snoop Doggy Dogg.

Four scantily clad pole-dancers and a Death Row mascot join Snoop intermittently, resulting in the set veering from bafflingly laughable to quite creepy as he gawks at the girls while rapping some of the more grossly sexist verses of his earlier repertoire such as Ain’t No Fun (If The Homies Can’t Have None).

What’s made Snoop such a mainstay though is his effortless sense of fun. His laconic drawl set him apart from the more hard hitting likes of NWA when he became Dr Dre’s new go-to and tracks from that era such as ‘Nuthin’ But A “G” Thang’ and ‘Gin and Juice’ still sound delightfully sun kissed.

Other hits such as his verse on Katy Perry’s ‘California Girls’ make an appearance as songs are played out in rapid succession, meaning the less stellar likes of Sensual Seduction forgivingly don’t stick about for long.

A run-through some of hip hop’s greatest turns the room into a club night, with tracks aired by Tupac, Biggie Smalls, Eazy E and less congruous artists like Next and House Of Pain. But it’s songs produced by Pharrell Williams from the 2000s that really elevate the set, with ‘Signs’, ‘Beautiful’ and ‘Let’s Get Blown’ offering stress free abandon and the masterful ‘Drop It Like It’s Hot’ soaring.

The anthemic ‘What’s My Name?’ has the crowd shouting his name one last time before leaving knowing they’d just witnessed something only one man could’ve pulled off.