Warren G

Born Warren Griffin III, Warren G burst onto the scene from Long Beach's rising rap community in 1994 via the blockbuster single "Regulate," a duet with longtime friend Nate Dogg, plus the supporting album Regulate...G Funk Era. In Long Beach he absorbed his parents' large holdings of jazz, soul and funk LPs while spending frequent time at the neighborhood V.I.P. record store. During his teenage years he joined Nate Dogg and future superstar Snoop Dogg to create the group 213, named for their area code. The three soon encountered legal troubles that led to jail time, prompting them to seek regular employment while continuing to develop their music privately. The V.I.P. record store later granted the trio access to a back room for rehearsals and taping. There Snoop recorded the demo "Super Duper Snooper," which G played for his half-brother Dr. Dre at a party. Dre brought all three into his studio, ultimately teaming with Snoop on The Chronic; although G contributed several tracks, he chose to build his abilities largely apart from Dre's influence. He sharpened his production craft working with MC Breed and 2Pac. A key opportunity arrived when his vocal feature with Mista Grimm on "Indo Smoke" landed on the Poetic Justice soundtrack. Shortly afterward G cut his first album for Violator. "Regulate" surfaced on the Above the Rim soundtrack and came out as a single, quickly rising to #2 on the Billboard charts and lifting the album to the same peak. The album later earned triple-platinum certification, while "This D.J." became his second Top 10 single. Nearly three years passed before Warren G finished his follow-up, which arrived in spring 1997 as Take A Look Over Your Shoulder and received mixed critical notices along with modest sales. I Want It All appeared in 1999, and The Return of the Regulator followed two years later. In 2005 he joined Lightyear Enterntainment and issued In the Mid-Nite Hour.