NO DOUBT ILLICIT DRUGS HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE PARTY

No doubt illicit drugs had something to do with the party atmosphere
at last weekend's Snoop Dogg show, but I truly feel the uproar over
it is way over-blown.

The rapport all the artists had with their fans was something
magical. They constantly talked directly to the crowd which responded
with fervour and glee. And the performers, especially Snoop, fed off
their energy and responded in kind. This wasn't typical two-second
rock star banter - the audience was an integral part of the show from
start to finish.

The performers developed a rapport with the crowd much like punk
rockers Anti-Flag did days later, constantly chatting to fans during
their set. That kind of connection doesn't happen all the time.

Many at the Snoop Dogg concert were certainly breaking Canadian drug
laws, but they weren't passing out in the stands after drinking too
many beers before the main act hit the stage, which did occur just
days before at The Tragically Hip concert. They weren't staggering
around in a drunken stupour. They were simply enjoying themselves.
And I was, too, because quite frankly, I'd rather be in the company
of happy, friendly stoners than staggering, obnoxious drunks.

Anybody who has issues with the show should have stayed home or made
sure their kids did.

Lighten up, people. (Note I did not say 'light up'!)

The Snoop show was a veritable lovefest with people - at least what I
saw - totally focused on having fun and doing it in good spirits.

Certain urgings by the rappers is just the same rebellious spirit
that's been exhibited in one way or another since Elvis Presley
started shaking his hips in the 1950s. And the atmosphere at a rap
concert in the Enmax Centre on a January night in 2007 wasn't really
much different than I remember during rock shows at the same venue in 1977.

We can talk about morality all we want but what truly is the
difference between lighting up a joint at a concert and drinking six
beers during a hockey game? One's legal. That's it.

Different names, different music, same stuff going on except
magnified and more blatant. But what isn't these days? It's just the
evolution of popular culture.

As an open-minded, tolerant person, I feel people who complain about
the show - who didn't pay their money to see it - really have no
business judging those who did.

The hip-hop culture is one of people treated like second-class
citizens in their own country rising up against racism, prejudice and
poverty. It's a culture many around the world can relate to,
including here in southern Alberta.

Snoop himself was a former gang member who was directed by his peers
into taking his life in a different direction. His fellow Crips urged
him to leave the gang and drug-dealing scene to develop his artistic skills.

And that's where some young fans who revel in the "gangsta" image of
the music are missing its point - along with an oral record of life,
like any musical expression, hip hop is a way and means to achieve a
better life.

Any wannabe gangstas in our city should take that to heart. They need
to look hard at the success of artists such as Snoop and consider the
artistic path he has taken as a way to a more prosperous future.

Snoop has made something out of his life by developing his talent for
rhyming. That's what kids need to think about.

Snoop knows how to put on a show and give people their money's worth.
And Snoop, in true "Doggy style," gave fans a show they won't soon forget.

Nobody who spent more than $60 on a ticket to watch four hours of
entertainment can complain they didn't get a good bang for the buck
from Snoop, his Dogg Pound, rap pioneer Ice Cube or even Canada's
up-and-coming Belly.

People need to forget about the bad press Snoop - or any artist -
gets for their personal life. The focus should be on the art. What
Snoop and company do on their time is their business, not yours and not mine.

Respect is a two-way street and as Snoop Dogg implored the audience
after a long set, people need to think of two words in life: "peace and love."

Prejudice and intolerance have no place in this world and that
message was made loud and clear.

It's a message that even the smoke can't cloud.