In the ears and minds of many Rap fans, Snoop Dogg’s 1993 debut may always be his album to beat. A keystone in the G-Funk movement, Dr. Dre and Doggy Dogg made a masterpiece while with Death Row Records. Doggystyle showed Snoop’s Rap peers some new moves on how to keep Hip-Hop funky and gangsta. However, it certainly was just the beginning of the legendary run of incredible music the Long Beach, California MC created.

Snoop followed his debut with a series of thematic albums. He professed his innocence regarding a murder trial and took a sigh of relief when a jury did the same. Snoop traded Death Row’s red-carpeted offices for a bountiful seat within Master P’s No Limit tank. Calvin Broadus reunited with mentor Dr. Dre, announced when executives ate their “last meal” on his dime, and found new rhythms alongside Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo.

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Snoop’s resiliency though really showed itself though during the early-to-mid-2000s. His post-No Limit run set the stage for a bunch of hit records beginning under Priority/EMI and at full speed when Tha Dogg Pound’s Doggfather signed with Geffen. His eighth solo studio album, 2006’s Tha Blue Carpet Treatment would relay the long journey of style and label changes and showcase all of Snoop’s best traits approaching the 15-year mark since the menacing “Deep Cover” introduction.

While singles like “Vato” and “That’s That” got top billing, the album’s fourth and final single “Boss’ Life” would perhaps ultimately best stand the test of time. Over the previous decade, Snoop had made the transition of a street hustler to label star to entrepreneur. He paralleled these moves in his music, partially, because significant events showed Snoop that the illegitimate life wasn’t for him. He very nearly landed behind bars for a crime he maintains he did not commit. Snoop lost friend Tupac Shakur to gunfire and former boss/manager Suge Knight to prison. “Boss’ Life” was the pinnacle of owning his newfound persona and birthed two versions of the song, both receiving critical acclaim. Snoop was running his biz, his way.

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Snoop enlisted Dr. Dre to produce the single. Akon is on the album version. However, the singer was replaced by Nate Dogg for the video. Notably, “Boss’ Life” samples “If Tomorrow Never Comes” by The Controllers and is a smooth testament to Snoop Dogg’s life as a top dog with this stretch of lyrics summing it up: “You know how the Dogg roll, don’t get it twisted / ‘Cause he bang out the East, just in case you wanna visit / A touch of the exquisite, mixed with somethin’ pimpish / And it’s comin’ from the Beach where them ni**as is a beast / But I just listen, all that sh*t is in my past / I’m connected to the purse first, n***a, the ass last / From Long Beach to Venice is the premise / Want the green like spinach and I’m strong to the finish.”

Snoop Dogg boss’d up on Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, which stands as one of his best albums, and he’s made plenty of power-moves since.

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#BonusBeat: The Akon-assisted version of “Boss Life”: