Music Review: Snoop Dogg's "Malice N Wonderland"

By our guest blogger, Sanela Djokovic

"Malice N Wonderland," Snoop Dogg’s 10th studio album, includes a pretty list of guests and producers. R&B heavy-weights such as R. Kelly, The Dream, Jazmine Sullivan and Brandy supply their vocals, while Nottz, The Neptunes and The Dream lend their expertise to the production. But, the hope ends with the guest list for this endeavor.

The first single off of "Malice N Wonderland" entitled "Gangsta Luv," which features The Dream, has kind of gotten lost in the shuffle of radio airplay--and deservedly so. There is nothing gansta about the song and not even The Dream could supply enough luv to this track to make it memorable. The Dream was not able to save the other track he appears on, "Luv Drunk," which is a dawdling venture.

One of the two more promising songs, "Different Languages," features Jazmine Sullivan, a commanding source sure to bring life to anything she sings. She provides the song with a strong voice and an infectious chorus, but the rest of it falls flat. The praise song to wifey is hardly touching with unaffecting lyrics such as “All I wanna do is, like, be inside you” and “Jay-Z got Beyonce, I got Shante” fail to inspire despite the rhyming. The other track, "Special," features Brandy and Pharrel, and is produced by The Neptunes. Brandy’s raspy vocals throughout the track are refreshing, but yet again, Snoop gets in the way. The song, about a special woman, becomes super stale when the most you can say is that your lady is “more important than weed.” Character is what draws people to Snoop, but sometimes, the music presents a caricature instead.

The catchiest song on the album, "Pimpin Ain’t EZ," reunites Snoop with another self-proclaimed pimp, R. Kelly. It’s a pretty fun tune, but there isn’t anything new in “pop bottles, champagne.” An old-school sample makes "I Wanna Rock," the latest single off "Malice," a nice surprise. The song samples Rob Base and DJ E-Z’s "It Takes Two" and the chants of “I wanna rock right now,” “Snooooop Dogg” and “Heeeyyy” brings a fly energy and a taste of the past. Snoop incorporates the gansta theme here and there, but with little authority.

Snoop has a mini-movie in the works to supplement "Malice," and it likely will be more entertaining than the album.