When Kendrick Lamar united rival gang members onstage at his Juneteenth The Pop Out – Ken and Friends concert, he was praised by many for creating a special moment for people in LA. Speaking to Complex, LA legends Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre shared their thoughts on the impact that moment had on the city. They also addressed Vince Staples‘ comments that it solely highlighted the fact gangs had already been uniting in the city.
“I’m not sure if that’s true or not,” Dr. Dre said of Vince’s comments. “I think Kendrick was able to bring that together for that moment. Hopefully that moment can move forward.”
He continued, “I’m not sure if that’s going to be possible or not, because it’s going to take more than just one event to get that accomplished. Once it’s done everybody goes home to their home teams and they’re back.”
Snoop jumped in, agreeing with some of Vince’s comments.
“I’ll say this. What Vince is saying is that a lot of neighborhoods have been uniting for a long time behind closed doors, but what Kendrick did was, he united the whole city, based off him being a king … taking this violent situation, which is a rap beef, and creating peace and giving the homies an opportunity to come onstage, to engage in his video, to be a part of his movement and to also move like he moves,” he said.
“It’s a good move for the, you know, West Coast culture as far as rap is concerned,” Snoop continued. “Because violence has always been a lead thing for us on our side. So if you can take a violent rap or a violent song and create peace out of it, he should be commended for that.”
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