Bush (album)

Background and title

On August 28, 2014, a video was released of what would be a preview on one of the songs working together between Snoop Dogg and Pharrell Williams. In September 2014, Snoop announced on his Instagram account, his new work together with Pharrell. The LP is the first studio album entirely of hip hop released by Snoop since Doggumentary (2011). Since then, Snoop alongside his good friend and fellow rapper Wiz Khalifa, released the soundtrack Mac & Devin Go to High School. This collaborative album contains the hit single "Young, Wild & Free" (top ten in the Billboard Hot 100). The song was nominated for a Grammy under the category of Best Rap Song. In 2013, Snoop then used his new moniker Snoop Lion, and released his first reggae and twelfth overall album Reincarnated. This album was nominated at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards in the category Best Reggae Album. At the end of 2013, he then used another moniker Snoopzilla, in reference to Bootzilla, and joined with the music producer Dâm-Funk to launch the entirely of funk collaborative album 7 Days of Funk.

In January 2015, Snoop revealed the album's title at the Convention Consumer Electronics Show that occurred in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States.

The track "So Many Pros" was originally a track recorded by Timbaland and featured Pharrell Williams and Justin Timberlake, however, due to Timbaland's album being cancelled Pharrell re-worked the final track, in which Chad Hugo, Charlie Wilson, Pharrell and Rhea Dummett featuring as backing vocals, although Timberlake's vocals can still be heard on the final version of the track, albeit briefly. The video was also shot for "Been It", with amateur footage showing Timberlake recording his portion of the music video whilst on The 20/20 Experience World Tour and Timbaland recording his portion on a beach with skantly clad models. The lyrics to the song seem to have remained unchanged, however the lyric "...so many hoes" has been changed to "...so many pros" which is the title of the track itself.

Production

The album was produced by Pharrell Williams, with additional production by Williams' Neptunes partner Chad Hugo. The duo had worked in partnership with the rapper in these albums; Paid tha Cost to Be da Boss (2002), R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece (2004) and Tha Blue Carpet Treatment (2006). The partnership between these two artists has earned several singles of successes for both Snoop Dogg and for Pharrell, including "From tha Chuuuch to da Palace", "Beautiful" and "Drop It Like It's Hot", among others.

Singles

"Peaches N Cream" was released on March 10, 2015, as the first single from the album. The song features guest vocals from Snoop's longtime collaborator Charlie Wilson. The lyric video was released on the same day. The song peaked at number 16 on Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles.

The album's second single, "So Many Pros" was released April 14, 2015. The music video won an MTV Video Music Award for Best Art Direction, during the ceremony on August 30, 2015.

The album's third single, "California Roll" was released to iTunes on May 5, 2015. The song featuring vocals from American R&B singer Stevie Wonder. The single peaking at number 15 on the Billboard Hot R&B Songs.

Critical reception

Bush received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 69 based on 20 reviews. David Jeffries of AllMusic said, "Accept Bush is a delayed dank disco triumph, and then drop it like it's hot, one more time." Brian Josephs of Consequence of Sound said, "Although it's well-intentioned, you're very aware that the only reason you're at this party is because Snoop invited you." August Brown of the Los Angeles Times said, "There aren't many '90s rappers who could credibly settle into a sound like this, but Snoop is an excellent student of his formative musical era." Kate Hutchinson of The Guardian said, "Bush is a high five of an album, made for hydraulic cars and throbbing dancefloors, delivered, in typical Snoop style, as if from a fur-lined throne overlooking a pool party." Kellan Miller of HipHopDX said, "Snoop and Charlie Wilson play off each other's energy, and the instantly catchy nature of the track justifies the notion that the diminished returns of Bush are the result of an excellent dream deferred by poor execution."

Phil Hebblethwaite of NME said, "Snoop takes a surprising back seat, singing low in the mix and seldom rapping--an odd decision, but it works and when Bush is good, it's an absolute joy." Jonathan Frahm of PopMatters said, "All in all, Bush is another consistent release from Snoop to add to his portfolio, with enough freshness to still be spinning his name in the clubs." Roger Krastz of XXL said, "Overall, Bush is a fun and enjoyable listen from start to finish with the album's retro imagery brought to life by Snoop Dogg and his slick persona." Julian Kimble of Pitchfork said, "While Bush is strong enough musically, you can't help but wonder what would've happened if this crew had followed R&G with a full-length a decade ago, when everyone involved was still in his prime." Brittany Spanos of Rolling Stone said, "From the moment opening track "California Roll" hits its "Drop It Like It's Hot"-ish bass line, Bush is a pleasant stroll down memory lane." Kris Ex of Billboard said, "It's a quick listen, clocking in at less than 45 minutes, and the 10 tracks are laid-back--perhaps too much."

Commercial performance

In the United States, Bush debuted at number 14 on the Billboard 200, with 32,000 album-equivalent units, marking the third highest debut of the week. It was the eighth best-selling album of the week, selling 27,000 copies in its first week. Bush became Snoop's sixth solo album to debut at number one on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The album was also streamed 2.8 million times in the first week. In its second week the album fell to number 44 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 12,000 equivalent album units; it sold 9,000 copies. In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number 25 on the UK Albums Chart. Bush was the tenth Snoop's solo album to debut at top-ten on the UK R&B Chart, reached number two. As of May 2016, the album has sold 250,000 copies worldwide.

Track listing

Notes

Sample Credits