I have written before about Long Beach rapper, musician, and all-around local lover Snoop Dogg’s “return home,” that is, his self-reflection in later life that has prompted the creation of things that are seemingly out of the ordinary for a kid who was raised in the epicenter of local gang life during the late 80s and 1990s.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s gone back to church with\u00a0a gospel album<\/a>, he\u2019s\u00a0returned to the LBC stage<\/a>\u00a0after a lengthy and politically influenced hiatus, he\u2019s gone to the kitchen for a television show (and scored an Emmy nomination) with Martha Stewart, and he\u2019s even got\u00a0a stage play coming out<\/a>\u00a0depicting his roller-coaster of a life, and he’s written a cookbook<\/a>.<\/p>\n And surely, while these endeavors and achievements are worthy of praise, his philanthropic work is what perhaps goes most unnoticed in Snoop’s career. When I say Snoop is a lover, I genuinely mean that: Many don’t know of his annual turkey giveaway in Central Long Beach that often took place right outside the former VIP Records shop where his career was founded<\/a>. He has his own youth football league that not only allows kids to play a sport but have a mentor with someone who understands their lives from personal experience.<\/p>\n He can now add music mentor to that list after Snoop, in conjunction with a grant from Levi’s, took on the YMCA Youth Institute in Downtown Long Beach, playing with a fully functioning music studio that was created by Vince Staples and Levi’s back in 2016. <\/a>Bringing in a powerhouse set of producers\u2014the Grammy-winning 1500 Sound Academy<\/a>\u2014and sat down with a handful of budding Long Beach musicians last week to listen to their skills, help them hone those skills, and perhaps most importantly, let them know that their lives have worth.<\/p>\n “We didn\u2019t have a center like the Youth Institute when I was learning to make music,” Snoop Dogg said. “We just had imagination. I\u2019ve always wanted to do something in Long Beach to help the kids that are cut from that same cloth as me. There\u2019s a room full of greatness right there… Long Beach breeds greatness\u2014that\u2019s just what it is.”<\/p>\n