What brands can learn from harnessing Snoop Dogg’s OG mindset
Snoop Dogg's understanding of his own image - and his ability to evolve it - has enabled him to work with a vast array of brands, from wineries and disposable lighters to cooking shows and fintech companies. Anthony Swaneveld, Group Creative Director at Marks, says that brands can learn a lot from Snoop's original mindset.
Snoop Dogg is one of the most successful artists to come out of the 1990s West Coast hip-hop scene, bringing his mindset and magic to everything from red wines to children’s shows.
Whether by instinct or design, [Snoop] has written the lyrics to how a modern brand needs to show up.
Much has been made of his canny investment choices, his clever partnerships and his ever-evolving persona. But, from a brand point of view, you’ve got to admire his ability to connect with people across generations, demographics and culture.
Whether by instinct or design, he has written the lyrics to how a modern brand needs to show up. Here are three ways in which brands can listen and learn from Snoop’s OG mindset.
Credits
powered by- Agency MullenLowe/El Segundo
- Production Company Caviar/Los Angeles
- Director Neal Brennan
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Unlock full credits and more with a Source + shots membership.
Credits
powered by- Agency MullenLowe/El Segundo
- Production Company Caviar/Los Angeles
- Director Neal Brennan
- Talent Andy Samberg
- Talent Calvin Broadus Jr (Snoop Dogg)
![](https://d17mj1ha1c2g57.cloudfront.net/v1/2VThBW8NrETOGZXcU0Lni22J-HA/1024x576%23/80/shotsmag/production/clips/bed09abd-8278-456e-89fa-de4fe33c1a38/1681468099329.jpg?v=1&quality=80&format=jpeg)
Credits
powered by- Agency MullenLowe/El Segundo
- Production Company Caviar/Los Angeles
- Director Neal Brennan
- Talent Andy Samberg
- Talent Calvin Broadus Jr (Snoop Dogg)
Above: Snoop has partnered with Corona, among many other brands.
Own your full story
As he famously said with his much quoted, “You’ve got to always go back in time if you want to move forward,” Snoop Dogg owns his whole story. He proudly owns his roots, the ups and downs of his journey, the successes and the mistakes, and he turns them into business gold.
Where weaker brands tend to only focus on what the official narrative is, Snoop embraces the good and the bad. He owns it all, from his criminal past (turning it into tongue-in-cheek partnerships, like Cali Red Wine with 19 Crimes, for example), to the esoteric slang of his youth. He owns Californian laid-back cool, and childlike joy and wonder in equal measure.
Strong brands need to acknowledge the entirety of their brand narrative and show they’re part of the wider cultural conversation.
Like Snoop Dogg, strong brands need to acknowledge the entirety of their brand narrative and show they’re part of the wider cultural conversation. They need to feel more human – nobody is perfect – and not always strive to present a perfectly glossy façade.
That brand narrative shouldn’t be just about what you want to broadcast, all curated and controlled, it also needs to know the meme, the not-so-inside joke, what the internet says and how creators are responding in order to feel truly authentic.
Credits
powered by-
- Production Company Harperville
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Unlock full credits and more with a Source + shots membership.
Credits
powered by- Production Company Harperville
![](https://d17mj1ha1c2g57.cloudfront.net/v1/or0biUDmFJCR0yi0LtfUwh91O2w/1024x576%23/80/shotsmag/production/clips/9071f485-820f-448e-b4a3-aac6457eeafa/1681467968672.jpg?v=1&quality=80&format=jpeg)
Credits
powered by- Production Company Harperville
Above: Snoop's partnership with Cali Red Wine plays on his criminal past.
The delight of the unexpected
“Showin' much flex when it's time to wreck a mic” (Nuthin but a G Thang). Yep, Snoop also knows a thing or two about staying culturally relevant. Again and again he does the opposite of what people associate him with; the kids show, the BIC lighter, the partnership with fintech company Klarna.
Modern brands need to consider the counter-intuitive audiences for their brand.
He knows to surprise and delight – to flex – when it’s time to shake things up. Along the way, he widens his audience and reaches new heights of cultural relevance. His collaboration with Martha Stewart, for example, was the ultimate in opposites attract, helping rappers go mainstream on daytime TV in the process. Snoop doesn’t follow trends, but intentionally aligns with cultural shifts.
Just as Snoop knows to reach beyond his obvious communities, modern brands need to consider not just the subgroups and fandoms that nerd out on their products, but the counter-intuitive audiences for their brand. They need to make cross-cultural connections normal and surprise with the unexpected in knowing and creative ways.
![](https://d17mj1ha1c2g57.cloudfront.net/v1/mP7slRyMZKJQl716-cCnWGGIU90/1280x/80/shotsmag/production/clips/c676ac9b-6cd5-41f4-babc-81afc515c564/gettyimages-680142154.jpg?v=1&quality=70&format=jpeg)
Above: Snoop collaborated with Martha Stewart on a successful TV cooking show.
Stay on the radar
Alongside that flex, Snoop offers a compelling tune on how to approach work. “Like seven dizzles a wizzle” (Suited n Booted), he knows to make an effort, to embrace opportunities wherever they present themselves. “You gotta put that work in,” he told Variety magazine.
When he is approached to collaborate on or feature in a project, he checks his ego at the door and uses the chance to grow his network of fans. He has no fear, no preciousness. He doesn’t say 'no', he says ‘yes, and...’. He sees collaborations through this unwaveringly positive lens, and no sector, cultural event, style or taste-maker is deemed unworthy of his consideration.
If you want to add a bit more OG relevance to your brand, embrace your narrative, serve up the unexpected and be a bit more ‘yes, and...’.
He is always looking ahead, spying the next chance for collaboration or to move his narrative on. As his business partner Ted Chung said in an interview, “Snoop knows what’s happening a few steps before it manifests. He’s a captain of culture, who is just enough ahead of the curve that, by the time things come to fruition, there’s always a lot of success.”
This makes Snoop uniquely inclusive, while boosting his broad appeal. It’s a larger-than-life reminder for brands to stay true to what drives them but allow themselves to adapt that truth to different opportunities. As a brand you can lean into different sectors or cultural moments to connect with wider audiences, but only if you have a strong sense of what you are at heart.
So, if you want to add a bit more OG relevance to your brand, embrace your narrative, serve up the unexpected and be a bit more ‘yes, and...’. In Snoop parlance, fo’ shizzle; for sure, my friends.