Snoop Dogg

Snoop Dogg

Ego Trippin’

(Doggystyle/Geffen)

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Ego Trippin’ is a fitting title for Snoop Dogg’s “sleek but noticeably insecure record,” said Nate Chinen in The New York Times. It’s been 16 years since Snoop slid onto the scene with his laid-back, laconic flow on Dr. Dre’s The Chronic. His ninth album falls somewhere between a “defiant boast” and a “dispassionate disclaimer.” Now approaching his late 30s, the cool, cocky West Coast rapper seems to be suffering from an identity crisis. He spends Ego-Trippin’ trying to “burnish his credentials as a party-ready high roller, a street-toughened gangster, an insatiable lothario, and a nurturing husband and father.” He can’t differentiate his multiple personalities and he doesn’t seem to want to, said Gavin Edwards in Rolling Stone. Each song contradicts the next. “Those Gurlz,” an ode to his countless groupies, is followed by Dr. Phil–style advice on “One Chance (Make It Good).” He dedicates “Been Around tha World” to his wife, but not before “Sexual Eruption” and “Deez Hollywood Nights” recount evenings obviously not spent at home. His “apparent inability” to find a middle ground makes Ego Trippin’ “at once fascinating and disturbing,” said Elysa Gardner in USA Today. This ranks as one of Snoop’s best, but hopefully he’ll find a little self-awareness before his next album.