The Doggfather dished to ET about his forthcoming gospel LP during a private listening session.
Snoop Dogg is going gospel!
In January, the 46-year-old rap legend formally announced the release of his new gospel album, Bible of Love, a 32-track double LP curated by the Long Beach, California, native, who makes at least two appearances on the project.
Last fall, Snoop held a small listening session for members of the media at his private recording compound near Los Angeles, California, where he previewed roughly a dozen tracks, including the LP’s lead single, “Words Are Few,” featuring singer-songwriter B. Slade.
By the second track, Snoop was wiping away tears, and he hopes that listeners will have a similar reaction to the project's testimonial vibes.
“It’s something about some of these records that flips that switch [and] I get emotional. I can’t control it,” he shared with ET at the time. “That’s what the beauty is about this project. Everybody [has] something to prove to themselves, not to anybody else.”
Bible of Love features gospel icons like The Clark Sisters, as well as Rance Allen, Tye Tribbett, and R&B powerhouse Faith Evans. The project, which was inspired by Snoop's late maternal grandmother, Dorothy Tate, who gave him his first introduction to gospel music as a child, promises “something for everybody,” particularly those who feel like they’re not accepted in church.
“We wanted to put together something that felt good,” he said. “[It] feels like church[goers] have a different perspective of people who don’t go to church every day.”
Bible of Love may be a departure from what his fans are used to hearing, but this isn’t Uncle Snoop’s first time dipping into another music genre. In 2013, he released a reggae album, Reincarnated, under the moniker Snoop Lion.
But as he readies his very first gospel compilation, the host of VH1's Martha & Snoop's Potluck Dinner Party, expects naysayers to question his devotion and his motives.
"The gospel world is coming at me, but they don’t understand I’m sharp with this,” he said while mentioning the support that he receives from his evangelist mother, Beverly Tate.
Snoop was also adamant that he's not looking "to make a dollar" off of the album.
"It’s so much hate in this world right now,” he added before admitting that some of his older music may have been influential for the wrong reasons. “I could easily put a hate record together, but this is something that means more because it’s love."
Bible of Love is currently available for pre-order on iTunes with an expected release date of March 16.
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