Listen close, nephews: Snoop Dogg x The Roots take the stage at Philadelphia's newly-renovated Festival Pier at Penn's this Saturday May 31st for the Okayplayer's Ball we call Roots Picnic. You'll forgive us if we are a little bit feeling ourselves--geeked up, you might say. Let's be real, Snoop has played with a live band before. The Roots have backed pretty much everybody in hip-hop by this point. But Snoop Dogg x The Roots together, bringing the full fonkadelphia? That is truly a once in a lifetime experience. It's guaranteed to be a night of bug-out moments, whether it's hearing Rahzel vocal-scratch the screwed Rob Bass hook of "I Wanna Rock" or Black Thought supplying the occasional Kurupt or 'Pac verse--or just hearing The Roots stretch out and reinterpret some of the funk classics Snoop has touched over the years. Read on for our Top 14 wishlist of jams we'd actually bark out loud to hear Snoop and The Roots perform live. Because it ain't no fun (it ain't no fun) it ain't no fun...unless the drummer get some.
14. "Doggy Dogg World."
In a word: Taa-Dow.
13. "I Wanna Rock"
Mostly because we want to hear Questlove giggin' on those drums (like dominoes) but see also Rahzel x Rob Bass, and a pier full of Philly kids turfin their shoes off.
12. "Lodi Dodi"
"Threw on my white socks with my all-blue-chucks!" (If you're coming Saturday, maybe throw on one red chuck and one blue, because you know, we're all in the same gang.
11. "Sensual Seduction"
...except the "Sexual Eruption" version. Because: James Poyser on the key-tar!
10. "Gz and Hustlas"
When we said 'hear The Roots stretch out some funk classics' in the intro we were specifically talking about Bernard Wright's "Haboglobotribin'" (12" version!)
9. The Dogg Pound - "Bomb Azz Pussy"
"Now this is some personal shit right here..." but we know that Snoop knows how to sell this concept live. See the House of Blues performance above for proof (NOT SAFE FOR WERK).
8. "Next Episode"
First of all, it's cotdamn "Next Episode." And second of all, you know Questlove made this whole thing happen specifically so he could arrange the Rootisified G-Funk interpolation of David Axelrod's "The Edge." This was the spark or I will eat my wide brimmed, ostritch-feather borsalino and chase it with a pair of crocodile gators.
7. "Two of Amerikaz Most Wanted" f. Tupac Shakur
No we're not trying to resurrect centuries-old East Coast/West Coast beef but we are trying to resurrect...2pac Hologram. If only so he can shout Dave Chappelle while Questlove DJs "I Wrote This Song In '94" in the front row--call it a case of afterlife imitates art imitates life.
6. "Who Am I (What's My Name?)
The original Snoop Dogg picnic anthem, whether you have a pick in your hair or a (water) pistol under your chef's apron, it's a singalong.
5. "Imagine" f. Dr. Dre & D'angelo
Super duty tuff business. No, 'ol Dr. Beats Billionaire is not likely to leave his private island for a Philly cameo...but based on recent sightings, it is at least within the realm of the physically possible that D'angelo could sit in with Snoop and The Roots...imagine?
4. "Gin n' Juice"
Do I really need to contextualize this one? If this song is not the motherfuckin' grand finale of The Roots x Snoop Dogg set, it better be because they are playing the actual song titled "the Motherfuckin Grand Finale" to bring out D.O.C. and the surviving members of N.W.A.
2. "Ain't No Fun"
Not Safe For Werk Singalong, Part Two The Electrofunk Boogaloo (Imagine a pier full of "When I met you last night BABAYYYY..."). This is gonna require either Dice Raw or Tariq Trotter AKA Black Thought to do his best Kurupt impression but that's not the worst thing in the world. Now let's think about who will sing the Nate Dogg part--Raheem DeVaughn? Musiq Soulchild??
2. "Let's Get Blown"
Boom. You weren't looking for this one. You was expecting maybe "Beautiful" or "Drop It Like It's Hot." But that's because you were playing Snoop Dogg checkers and we were playing Snoop Dogg-co-ed-Twister-at-Pharrell's-house-in-Brasilia. And now your mind gets...blooooooooown.
1."Deep Cover"
...aaand the #1 Snoop Dogg song we will pay good money to see him perform live backed by The Roots is: The Number One Snoop Dogg song. Ever. As in inaugural Doggy Dogg. Numero Uno. Tonight's the night we get in some shit! Because we can't wait to hear Questo recreate those unparalleled drums live (wait, which on of The Roots' job is to light the bomb-fuse so Mark Kelley can start playing the bassline?) Of course, Roots Picnic is not the kind of place where anyone does a 1-8-7 on anyone, so we probably shouldn't have picked this one for the top spot. But we diiid, so get in the fucking van.
Honorable Mentions:"Midnight Love" f/ Raphael Saadiq; "Chuuuuch To Da Palace"; "Get The Funk Outta My Face" (shouts to Quincy Jones and The Brothers Johnson); "Big Pimpin"?; "Come Up To My Room"; "Still D.R.E."; "Ghetto Symphony"; "Dre Day" (just the intro); "Beautiful" f. Pharrell.
