Snoop Dogg doesn't belong on Sportscenter
ESPN’s Sportscenter, and rapper Snoop Dogg, provided plenty of proof Friday that Snoop should stick to rapping and Sportscenter should stick to sports highlights – just don’t mix the two.
I love Sportscenter. I love Snoop Dogg. However, I will like each one more if I never see them combined ever again. Ever.
Sportscenter is on my TV more than any other show. In fact, here at college, I am unsure of many other network’s channel numbers besides ESPN and ESPN2. Sportscenter does a great job providing me with the sports highlights I enjoy, funny commentary that keeps me entertained, and enough statistics to keep me informed.
Snoop Dogg is a legit rapper. His West Coast style is among rap music’s best. To get in the mood for this post I am currently listening to an old Snoop classic, “Beautiful” among his other hits. I needed to listen to his music to remind myself why exactly it is again that I like Snoop. After all, it was just minutes ago I saw him embarrassing himself on Sportscenter.
Not going to lie, when I heard Snoop introducing Sportscenter by saying “Snoop dizzle for shizzle,” I was entertained. From there it was all down hill.
In case you missed Sportscenter tonight, the show featured a Top 10 with commentary by Snoop Dogg live in studio. Great idea, horrible outcome. Snoop’s commentary was limited to: “Oh what a play, I love it, I love it.” He claimed he “loved” LeBron several times, then referred to him as “baby Kobe,” before finishing the segment by saying LeBron is the league MVP. I cannot do the episode justice in writing, but take my word that his time on air was more slang references and akward pauses than anything else. It was apparent that neither Stan Verrett nor Neil Everett, both great anchors, knew quite what to say in the presence of Snoop Dogg.
However, the blame for this mismatched combo does not fall on Snoop Dogg. He was simply being himself. Throwing up his twisted fingers and talking sports is just what ESPN asked him to do. It’s not his fault he could use about 1,000-2,000 reps of practice before he gets put on the air. I mean what could ESPN expect?
ESPN is always trying new things to attract viewers. Case in point: Lil Wayne in studio
Sportscenter and ESPN in general continually try to stay on the cutting edge of what is cool and new. Who else in sports broadcasting would bring on Lil Wayne to one of their shows? (I’d love to see comments as to who everyone thinks was better – Snoop or Weezy? I’d say Weezy…barely). And while it takes guts for ESPN to try such bold moves, those moves do not always turn out well.
But in the end ESPN accomplished its goal. They got viewers to watch. Snoop Dogg’s performance was a disaster beginning with number 10 in the Top 10 countdown, yet I could not stop watching because it was so amusing. So while I don’t blame ESPN for trying to be “hip,” I don’t suggest they try it again. As for Snoop: keep making hits, and let the Sportscenter dudes do the highlights.
-MG
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