JAY-Z’s name has been thrown into the hypothetical Verzuz ring by a few potential competitors. The latest to step up to the plate is Snoop Dogg, who says if he’s going to virtually battle anybody, it should be the Brooklyn-born star.
“Biggie passed away, and then Nas had it for a minute, and then JAY-Z took it and ran with it for a numerous amount of years. And then 50 Cent came and ran with it for a numerous amount of years,” Snoop explained his reasoning during a chat with Fat Joe on Monday (May 11).
“This is me looking in from the outside, looking at New York rap,” he continued. “So, to me, it would be either a Snoop or a JAY-Z because he’s been the king of New York around the time I was the king of the west.”
Snoop and JAY-Z did both dominate their respective states around the same time. Snoop’s career began on Dr. Dre’s 1992 solo debut “Deep Cover.” He was also featured on Dre’s solo debut album, The Chronic. The Long Beach native’s quadruple platinum and Dre-produced debut album Doggystyle arrived in 1993, hosting hits like “What’s My Name?” and “Gin & Juice.”
Meanwhile, JAY-Z dropped his critically acclaimed debut album Reasonable Doubt in 1996. Since then, he’s released 12 other studio albums — compared to Snoop’s 17 — and has become one of the best-selling musical acts in history. JAY-Z has also won 22 Grammy Awards, the most out of any rapper.
Regardless of who would win, fans agreed that a potential battle between the two coastal legends would be epic. Most recently, Erykah Badu and Jill Scott went face-to-face for the first female Verzuz edition on Saturday (May 9), soon to be followed by Nelly vs. Ludacris this coming weekend.
See some fan reactions on Twitter to Snoop’s challenge below.
This would be a fun one. I feel like Snoop doesn't really get his due. He's not the lyricist that Jay is, but he's still got a catalog of hits.
— Big Pony Tujols (@Pony_T_Glongo31) May 11, 2020
Snoop may only have one classic album but his hits better than Jay 😤👌🏾 https://t.co/GMgzw5qahb
— Ke-Ke The D.O.N 🐎 (@Polo_DON98) May 12, 2020
