Cordozar Calvin Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (sometimes shortened to Snoop and formerly called Snoop Doggy Dogg and Snoop Lion), is an American rapper and actor from Long Beach, California. His music career began in 1992 when he was discovered by Dr. Dre of N.W.A, and as a result Snoop was featured on Dre’s solo debut, Deep Cover , And after that on Dr.Dre’s solo debut album, The Chronic.

He has since sold over twenty-three million albums in the United States and thirty-five million albums worldwide.

Snoop’s debut album, Doggystyle, produced by Dr.Dre and released in 1993 through Death Row Records, debuting at number one on both the Billboard 200 and BillboardTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Selling almost a million copies in the first week of its release, Doggystyle became certified 4× platinum in 1994 and spawned several hit singles, including “What’s My Name?” and “Gin & Juice”. In 1994 Snoop released a soundtrack on Death Row Records for the short film Murder Was The Case, starring himself. His second album Tha Doggfather (1996), also debuted at number one on both charts with “Snoop’s Upside Ya Head”, as the lead single. The album was certified double platinum in 1997.

In 2012, after a trip to Jamaica, Snoop announced a conversion to the Rastafari movement and a new alias, Snoop Lion. Under the new moniker, he released a reggae album, Reincarnated, and a documentary film of the same name, of his Jamaican experience, in early 2013. His fourteenth solo studio album, Coolaid, was released in July 2016.

Snoop Dogg holds the dubious distinction of having seventeen Grammy nominations without a win. In March 2016, the night before WrestleMania 32 in Arlington, Texas, Snoop was inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame having made several appearances for the company, including as Master of Ceremonies during a match at Wrestlemania XXIV.