Stephen A. Smith is a New York Times Bestselling Author, Executive Producer, host of ESPN's First Take, and co-host of NBA Countdown. Stephen A. discusses Snoop and Dr. Dre's careers and the newly launched business venture Still G.I.N. The gin is beyond a white-label product. It was thoroughly uniquely curated by the two hip-hop icons, from its citrus tangerine dominant flavor with complimentary hits of jasmine and coriander, to its glass diamond shaped dented bottle pattern.
Let's talk a little business for a second here, because still Jin Dre and Snoop talk about this for a second. What this project is, how y'all collaborated on this. Talk about this and what you want to go about.
It's your world, doctor Dre, because you the one basically what this process is. When it comes to this gin ship. Doctor Dre is the psychologist, the fucking scientist, the drinker, the tester. I'm the marketing, the branding, the push and promote. But he's the one that got that taste in the look.
Yeah, I got this. It's like Jimmy can step back, Snoop and step back. I got this.
I know what it's supposed to taste like. I know what it's supposed to feel like. So yeah, oh ship, you know what?
Excuse me? Can I have a glass? Let me.
You don't smoke, but you drink.
You already mixed it.
I'm gonna touch it. I'm gonna touch a little bit, touch a little bit. I ain't that wrong.
Drunk. I just want my shit on ice.
She gave me a doctor Drake glass.
There you go. I've been to the laboratory.
We developed this ship from ground up, so it has our official taste and this is just us.
So that's our gen. This is us, so that's our gin. That's not a gen that we ball from.
Magnificent group of people that's around and these scientists and all these taste tests and all of that.
And so you put on that white jacket and the gloves and the hat and all that, all of that.
Where was I at?
I was getting ready of question, that's my next question.
This nigga was probably somewhere smoking.
Listen, you're gonna show up when it's time show, no question about it.
You're not just a musician. You're not just an artist. Both of you are businessman.
But Dre, obviously when people talk about you, we see this. We see because we see him so much everywhere that the man is trying to take my job.
I'm a hermit, man. I like staying at home, right. I came outside for you, man.
I appreciate that.
Thank you so much, surprising and make you do the interview in his living And I would have come if.
That's what you if that's what it took to get this into you.
Absolutely, but doctor dra got to say something, what's up? I ain't getting any pockets.
It's your business. I do know this beat by Dre.
Everybody got one.
Everybody got one.
You collaborated with Apple to launch the streaming service Apple Music.
That's Apple, Bro.
I just want you to know that I looked at that market cat.
You know, people like ESPN and Warner Brothers and Fox, and you collaborate them.
They worth a few hundred billion.
I looked at Apple.
The market cap was like at three trillion. That's a lot of money, Dre. And the way I look at it is that there ain't no.
Way they could be that successful if it were not for you.
Could you talk to us about how I was Steven, I'm not going there.
I'm just saying.
Just say life is good and I'm very comfortable right now. It's very comfortable.
But could you elaborate on the entrepreneurial spirit and how all of this came about?
Well, it came about.
I have to give Jimmy Ivan and a lot of other people credit for that. It's just like, I'm just a creative man, you know, just to create. I'm a creative person. I'm a creative person. I'm yeah, I'm an innovator and all of that. And I get in and I play my position. I say what I have to say to make things move around, and everybody else does their thing and we collaborate. And to be honest with you, man, there's nothing that I've ever done in my entire life that wasn't a collaboration.
You know.
I love collaborating. As a matter of fact, I don't even want to do anything alone. Wow, that sounds boring as fuck. I think it's I think it's a big collaboration. With everything that I've done, from you know, beats by Dre, from the music, the films and everything.
Everything is a collaboration.
I remember you acting a little bit and trained to day in a couple of other spots.
Well, I want to talk about that.
I'm just I'm just asking.
I mean, you know that's not that's that's not my proudest moment. I'm acting. You know, I tried it.
I'll try, you know, I'll try.
I don't want to be.
Anything. I was all right, but I'd rather be on the other side of the camp. I feel you.
But when you think about who you are and what you've.
Done, particularly from an entrepreneurial position, what advice would you give to the youngsters out there who have similar aspirations, because you know everybody looking.
At it's about collaboration.
Casting is important, And what I mean about casting is finding the right people to collaborate with, finding a partner, finding your Snoop Dogg, you know what I mean, Finding your eminem, finding your Jimmy Ivan, finding somebody that's really great to collaborate with.
How do you do it?
Well, I'm not being you, I'm saying, how do you know when is right?
Well, it's just as difficult as anything else, you know, finding the right person to collaborate with, finding the right business venture or whatever, you know, finding that person that is like minded that you can collaborate with.
That.
You guys are thinking the same and you're on the same mission. That's what it is, which is a really difficult thing to find because you will find a friend, somebody that may be yanky or something like that, that may be greedy or narcissistic or whatever the fuck. It's really important to find the right people to collaborate with.
How how the hell have you done it?
You collaborate with everybody?
H real, it's rare. No, I'm I'm the people's chap.
You are with everybody like That's why It's so easy for me to do it because I just fuck with everybody. And it's like, if you of my spirit and you my life, and I get down, like you get down, I give it a try, Like I don't have no problem with trying shit.
I don't mind living on the edge.
But when you do that again, I'll ask you the same question I just ask Doctor Dre finding the right mix, finding the right person to collabor with. How do you determine what is right and what is wrong for you?
The spirit gotta be right first and foremost. Our spirit's gotta match, Like we gotta damn to be the same people. Like when I work with for real, where's Khalifa? Whoever I work with other than doctor Dre's the spirit thing. It's like we brothers, we friends, we family. It's not just an opportunity to work with each other. It's like I get a chance to embody you and your team and your spirit, and you get a chance to do the same thing with me. So when we collaborate, it feel like it's family rather than just a moment.
Let me tell you something. People tell you who they are. You just have to listen.
Everybody tells you exactly if you supposed to be fucking with them.
They tell you.
Just have to listen their body language, their body language, certain ship that they say, they let you know, they let you know, listen, don't fuck with me.
I'm bad for you.
Wow.
You just have to listen to that ship.
And you have to nigga say, hey, steven A, don't fuck with.
Me, don't fuck with me, I'm bad for you.
Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you didn't listen?
And absolutely, times, absolutely, and every time. What you do is you give people the benefit of the doubt. You try to believe that they're going to be a good person, and you try to believe that this motherfucker has your best interest at heart.
And then it fails.
Every time they tell you off top, they tell you with the body language or with their words or whatever the fuck if you should fuck with them or not. And it's your fault if you keep pushing with that certain motherfucker.
Is the definition of somebody who's not like that, somebody that's got your write, somebody that you think is the right person to collab with, simply or as simple as somebody who's rooting for your success as much as they're rooting for their own.
That that is a key component. It has to be somebody that genuinely loves you. You don't want to work with nobody who hates on you behind closed doors, like you want somebody that champions you, that speaks on you, that really represents you. So that way, when you're together, you know, it's the same feeling when you're not together.
That's it. You ask the question, how do you know?
They tell you you just have to pay attention to what they're saying and what they're doing.
They let you know if you should fuck with them or not.
Do you know more now at the age of fifty nine fifty two, I know so much they need to.
Go to That goes to.
Listen.
If it goes back to that whole generic fucking saying like I wish I knew then what I know now, I mean, I wish whatever the fuck I wish I knew than what I know now is it's that same thing. You have to pay attention to the signs. That's all it is. People like I said, they tell you exactly if you should be fucking with them or not. They tell you they speak it or they move it.
That's all it is, Snoop.
Let me dissect you a little bit here outside of your music. I mean, let me bring up I mean, now you're on the.
Voice, the Voice. I mean, it doesn't stop with you, man, it doesn't stop. I'm just saying, do you ever find they're gonna start.
Calling you shack?
You know that, right They're gonna start calling you shock. It'll be like, can somebody else have a job? I mean, you're doing it all, brother, You're doing it. I'm telling you right now, Dre, this brother can walk into sports commentary now now. And I'm not just talking about this box off. I'm talking about talking sports, breaking that ship down. This brother is better than most right now, right now, I'm looking at you like that.
It doesn't start with you. It really really doesn't.
Talk to me about the Voice right now and that and and that new project that you are you are a part of right now.
I took that deal with the Voice and didn't know what I was getting into, but I'm glad I did because it gives me a chance to coach a lot of artists that are young, just like I was rough around the edges. So again I give them information to lich knowledge and then At the same time, it's a fun experience for me because I get a chance to just sit back and be a real person rather than be a superstar, and get on the one on one with these artists and inspire them. So it's a great look for me and it's a great feeling. I didn't know what would feel like that, But I'm having a great time with the whole cast over there.
What about the Olympics. You did the Olympics too.
I mean, I don't know if we'll ever get over listening to you call boxing.
Paul A Lord does.
Not like listen this commentation. It's why, but it's big time.
I'm like this.
He's right, he's right, and he says ship that a lot of us willsh We could say, but we don't have we can't say it on certain platforms.
So that that's what you bring to the table.
And I don't know if you if you realize this, Snooper's actually opened up opportunities for people who are already in.
The sports world before him, because they.
Let you know you do what you do, like this, Marshawan Lane.
Getting yeah, joke, But I'm loving it because you know, listen, it's gotta be upon there there got to be somebody that says the stage to help it.
But it was people that it was, people that I was aspired to be. So it's not I'm not the pioneer. I'm just the one to take the flagship to run with it when somebody passed the batime to me, so naturally I got a pass it to somebody else, you know what I'm saying. So it's about when you get that opportunity, what do you do with it? Are you professional? Snoop dogg? Are you gonna be high on set? Are your line's gonna be dragging? Or you're gonna know what you're talking about? Every opportunity that I get, I always outwork the contract, always make sure the study to be on deck, to make sure that I know information wise what I'm supposed to be talking about. So if anything comes to me, I have an answer for it. If and I don't have an answer, I can freestyle my way up out of it. But it sounds professional enough to know that he's qualified for the job.
Is that why you feel you've ultimately not only have been exceptional to what you're doing, but you've evolved to be in that mentor kind of individuals that the kind of advice that you give to a lot of cats on to come up who look to you wanting you to espouse your words to them.
Is that what youre telling me?
It's crazy, Stephen, that they look at me as Uncle Snoop and as somebody to get information from. When I was just a young, wild individual that had none of this wisdom, and now that I have it, I love giving it a way. I love talking to athletes, entertainers. I love when it's an issue in the hip hop industry or any industry where someone needs me to step in and be the resolution to it or I feel like that's my mission, that's my journey.
That's part of the carrying the torch.
When they gave me that torch, that lady said, the only people that get to touch this torch are peace bearers, people who are peace messengers, and you are a peace messenger.
And that's what makes Snoop dogg undeniable and forever.
People say that.
About you too, those Drey. A lot of people that talk, I'm telling.
You, people who talk about you speak on it.
They love you, they revere you, They talk about how you give them words of wisdoms, how you espouse a lot of the same stuff that Snoops that Snoop has told.
Me this on many occasions.
I'm just letting him tell it to my audience, but he's told me this personally, the kind of information that he just finished articulating, and he always talked about how you say the same exact things. He's open about it, though you're not why.
I am open about it. It's just you know, they know, right, we know you know what I mean. It's just like it's not for the cameras and all this shit. You know.
My thing is they know what it is with me. They know what love is. And my definition of love is so much deeper than most. And why do you say that, I don't boa. My definition of love is just like it's it's family, it's it's so you know, it's.
I don't know, I can fuck with you, but anybody else try that, it's gonna be.
It's it's a really deep definition for me.
It's Doctor Drey, don't mind sharing the ball.
Like you know, you've got a lot of people that like the hot dog and just keep shooting and keep trying to score. Doctor Dre want to make sure everybody get the ball.
I want to make sure everybody's eating everybody's hat.
He makes sure everybody get the ball.
That's one thing I don't, Yeah, we don't.
We never talk about money, We never talk about credits, none of that ship.
You know, it's just all love and respect. That's how we operate.
How do you react if you see somebody that you love, that's a brother that you knows hearts in the right place, but they're getting in their own way?
What's that?
Like?
What's a conversation?
That's that's when the big brother ship comes out. You know, I'm gonna talk. You know, I'm gonna say what I'm gonna say. What the fuck I have to say? Like, Nigga, you fucking up? You know what I'm saying It just like that to nigga, you fucking up?
We need to pull back. What what the fuck are you doing?
I'm laughing, but I'm serious this nigga. They talked to you like you want to punch you like it be that serious.
But my face, Like, Nigga, what the fuck is wrong with.
Wrong?
What the are you doing?
Especially if you're in his living room, you feel cornered when he starts saying that kind of ship you like.
Because, like, Nigga, what the fuck is wrong with you?
Because you're mad about them getting in their own way?
He went when he went to his high voice, Nigga, what that's a problem.
Nigga went to his high voice.
Yeah was motherfucker.
What could possibly get in your way at this stage and point in time in your career?
Only me. The only thing that can get in my way is making.
A great fucking as That was a great fucking ass And how.
Does that feel?
And I'm asking about that could never happen. I stayed in my I'm a fucking hermit man. I stayed to myself. I stay in my house. I don't even like leaving my house. Like I said, I came out here to do this shit with you, and stupid, that's it. I want to you know, I like staying at home. Everything that I need is in my house. I like staying at home, and I'm comfortable and I enjoyed my solitude.
But what I was asking was to.
Know that the only to reach a point in time.
In life where you know that the only thing that can get in your way is you.
Nobody else can fuck with your life.
But you.
That is a level of freedom most human beings on this planet that.
Don't feel they have.
That's exactly what it is. A certain level of freedom that I have. It's freedom and it's bliss.
That's the level that every woman and man should try to get to in life. That's called mastering yourself. When you master yourself, you understand you don't require nobody but yourself, and it's only you that can make it better or make it worse.
People talk about the power of music and the influence it breeds, and I'm thinking about you, Jimmy Ivan, what you're doing at USC and the millions y'all gave the aspiring students. I want you to talk about that for a quick second. I want you to talk about some of the stuff youre doing. I'm gonna get in.
That flag football joint as well.
Yeah, but I want you to talk about what you and Jimmy Ivan doing over at ull See and how that's been panning out.
Of all that.
The USC thing, it's like the education system has been just the same curriculum year after year after year after year.
And but I.
Feel and what we feel they're doing is training kids to be employees instead of leaders. You know, that's the same curriculum that's been happening year after year after year. You're training kids to be employees, you know, so why not train kids to be leaders?
You know, That's what our academy is.
Doing at USC and everything that we're doing with these high schools that we're trying to build change the way that the education systems operating for these kids.
How's that coming along?
It's coming along great. We're at the beginning stages of it and it's it's going great. You know, we have kids coming out of our academy that you know, Google the hiring an Apple They're they're hiring as well.
It's like kids that are brilliant that are leaders, you know.
The ed Like I said, the education system for this time, from the beginning of the education system, has been training kids to be employees.
Right, am.
Guilty, That's all it's about.
I'm guilty of that.
I should I ain't step out and try to be an entrepreneur. Tell my fifties, I'm late as hell to the party.
Because you have to get up at you have to be at school at eight.
Or nine o'clock and you get out at four, three or four o'clock.
It's like you're training kids to be employees Snoop.
What about you?
I'm looking at Snoop Youth go ahead. Ain't nobody stopping them. I know I already got a contact.
Highs some good though.
I mean with everything that you've been doing, your Snoop Youth football league, right flag football, And obviously this album's gonna take off. You know I'm gonna be talking about it. It's just gonna elevate your impact, right. How does that make you feel? How much differently do you feel about yourself when you think and imagine the impact that you're gonna have moving forward, Because it's only growing. I don't know if you know if you've noticed this or not, but the Snoop impact has only grown, it hasn't lessened.
I like that.
I like the fact that the demographic of it all like it's little babies all the way up to senior citizens. Shay, when we was on your show today, she was telling me about how her daughter listens to my music Doggieland then we was at another function other night and somebody was telling me and Dre how they listened to my kid music, Doggland. This is music that I made for my grandkids. That's becoming a big hit for me on the low and it's not publicized because I don't want to publicized. It's something that I'm doing for the kids to give them education. Like Dre said, to change the system, Like I'm not changing the curriculum, but I'm changing that toddler age from toddler's to five. What type of music are you listening to? What inspiration are you getting before you start learning about education in school? So that's the things that I'm most proud of. Then I got to Snoop you Special Stars. But we deal with kids with autism and special needs and that's been going on for like six seven years, and we show parents how to take those kids that they've been hiding and bring them out and have a good time. We've been doing great functions with them, Like these are the moments that mean the most to me. Like that's my accolade to be able to give back to a kid that has no opportunity because I was that same kid.
Dre was that same kid.
We had to make the most of whatever we had, but now that we have so much, it's only right to give back so they can work with more than we had.
And how do you feel both of y'all where y'all come from, Kelly.
We feel good man, content and Loan.
I'm just looking at.
That's your thing when you consider to me, it's the road travel. It's not where you at, it's what you had to go through to get there.
That council man, we made our cities proud.
We made our cities worldwide, like Compton is loved and respected around the whole glow, just like Long Beach is. And it's a beautiful thing that we could take something that you looked at in a negative manner and we can make something positive out of it. And now it's an honor to be from those cities.
Imagine what we've been able to accomplish. You know, Compton is only nine square miles. It sounds big as fuck, right, you know, it's yeah, it's Imagine what we've been able to accomplish over the last thirty years, what we've been able to build, you know, us as a duo, all the things that fall with us and under us, and what we've been able to accomplish, and not only that, how many people and kids and families we've been able to help.
And how much gang violence that we stopped from coming together. That's the ultimate like and before me and Dre got together, Compton and Loan Beach didn't see how to eye. So when we got together, we forced the issue because our music was so good and they connected both of us to where we realized, man, what we're tripping with them for men in my homeboys, And it established a relationship to where gang violence dropped between those two cities. And that's something that I'm proud of because I know so many people that was gang bangers became rappers.
Look at what we've been able to do, what we've.
Been able to accomplish, and how many people we've been able to touch in a positive way.
That's what people need to look at, you know,