Warren G is a rapper, singer, DJ and producer from Long Beach, California. He is associated with G-funk, gangsta rap, hip hop, pop rap, southern hip hop and West Coast hip hop, and releases music through his own G-Funk Entertainment label. He is also linked with G-Funk Music, Warner Chappell USA and Warren G Publishing.

Career

Born Warren Griffin III in 1970, he grows up in Long Beach listening to his parents’ collection of jazz, soul and funk records and spending time in a local record shop. As a teenager, he forms the group 213 with Nate Dogg and Snoop Dogg, taking the name from their area code. After all three have brushes with the law and spend time in jail, they work jobs and continue making music on the side. A record store called V.I.P. gives them space to rehearse and record, and there Snoop Dogg cuts the demo “Super Duper Snooper,” which Warren G plays for Dr. Dre. Dre then brings all three into his studio and later works with Snoop on The Chronic.

Warren G develops his own path outside Dre’s immediate circle and produces for artists including MC Breed and 2Pac. His profile rises after his vocal collaboration with Mista Grimm, “Indo Smoke,” appears on the Poetic Justice soundtrack. He then records his debut album for Death Row Records.

Breakthrough and albums

“Regulate,” a duet with Nate Dogg, appears on the Above the Rim soundtrack and is released as a single. It becomes a major hit, reaching number two on the Billboard chart and lifting the album Regulate...G Funk Era to the same position. The album later goes triple platinum, and “This D.J.” becomes his second Top 10 hit.

He later releases Take a Look Over Your Shoulder, which arrives after nearly three years of work and receives mixed reviews and weak sales. I Want It All follows in 1999, then The Return of the Regulator two years later. In 2005, he signs with Lightyear Entertainment and releases In the Mid-Nite Hour. He has also released a further eight albums on Death Row Records.

Groups and collaborations

Alongside 213, he is associated with G-Funk Era, DPGC and LBC Movement. His work with Nate Dogg is central to his best-known recording, and his early connections with Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre help establish his career in West Coast rap. He is Grammy award nominated.