LouFest patrons packed the area surrounding the Bud Light Stage on Saturday, eager to see the headliner, Snoop Dogg, round out the first day of the festival. LouFest received a record turnout this year, and most of those at the stage were anticipating Snoop’s setlist to be jam-packed with his biggest hits, delivered with the coolness so essential to his brand. Although the show started almost 30 minutes behind schedule, Snoop did not disappoint.

Accompanied by a full band and several dancers, the rapper ran through all of his biggest hits, starting with “I Wanna Rock” and sprinkling “The Next Episode”, “Drop It Like It’s Hot”, “Who Am I (What’s My Name)” and “Gin & Juice” throughout. He featured contributed verses
as well, including his parts in Akon’s “I Wanna Love U” and 50 Cent’s “P.I.M.P”. He even performed portions of Katy Perry’s “California Girls”, calling on the women in the crowd to sing the chorus for him. He flowed effortlessly from one track into the next, allowing the crowd little time to anticipate what would come next.

Gallery • 10 Photos

Predictably, the audience was far more lively during his biggest hits than they were during some of his lesser-known tracks. Songs off of his 2017 album, “Neva Left”paled in comparison to his classics in the eyes of the crowd, no matter how exciting the onstage spectacles appeared to be. Some of his most dedicated fans may have been disappointed with the lack of variety shown in the set list, with only two tracks off of his new album (“Trash Bags”and the title track, “Neva Left”) receiving a feature.
Regardless, the onstage action kept the excitement going throughout the whole show. The dynamic lighting and the contributions of the dancers made for an enthralling performance, despite Snoop’s own underwhelming stage presence. It doesn’t take much to get a crowd moving
to “Jump Around”, and featured artist, Kurupt (as well as the presence of Snoop’s signature dog mascot), kept the show from slowing down. Snoop brought the energy even higher with his nod to DJ Khaled’s “All I Do Is Win”, this time calling on the entire crowd
to sing the chorus with him and throw their hands up after he rapped his own verse on the song.

In addition to his own hits, Snoop Dogg covered several hip-hop hits to pay tribute to the
icons of the genre, the most emotional being that of Tupac Shakur. During his performance of “Ain’t Nothing But A Gangsta Party”, he lead the audience in chants of “We miss you!” and “We love you!” in order to pay his respects to the rap legend. He also rapped snippets
of “Boys N Da Hood” and “Hypnotise”, sending love to Easy-E and Notorious B.I.G. In addition to adding an emotional element to the show, the tributes helped to add variety to a set that’s tone rarely strayed from bombastic.

This more subdued portion of Snoop’s set did not last long and was soon overshadowed by the final song, a soulful rendition of “Young, Wild, and Free”. The crowd that remained after the 45-minute set regained their energy and sang along to the song, which was easily the most energetic of the night.

Overall, it was clear that Snoop’s performance was intentionally made palatable for those
who only knew a few of his hits. The setlist did everything in it’s power to please the less dedicated fans in the audience, and in the grand scheme, this strategy was successful. Snoop Dogg provided an entertaining end to a full day of great artists, and it would not be entirely surprising if he was asked to return to LouFest in years to come.