Gin and Juice

"Gin and Juice" is a song by American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was released on January 18, 1994, as the second single from his debut album, Doggystyle (1993). The song was produced by Dr. Dre and contains an interpolation from Slave's "Watching You" in its chorus and a sample from George McCrae. Tony Green created its bassline; additional vocalists on the song include Dat Nigga Daz, Jewell, Heney Loc, and Sean "Barney" Thomas. "Gin and Juice" peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. It earned a gold certification from the RIAA and sold 700,000 copies.

"Gin and Juice" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 37th Annual Grammy Awards. It was listed as number eight on VH1's "100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs".

Critical reception
Stephen Dalton from NME wrote, "The Snoopster slopes back with a slinky low-rider of a groove and a spliffed-up wibbly-wobbly rap about smooching down the boulevard sipping happy juice in the sunshine. Slow, low beats and cheesy disco synth effects give a Parliament-style space-funk vibe, and Mr Dogg is obviously a cool drink of water on a hot afternoon, but his chilled-out musings are hardly a patch on Ice Cube's ultra-laid-back gangsta anthem 'It Was a Good Day'."

Lyrics
The lyrics depict a party filled with sex, marijuana, and alcohol continuing into the small hours of the morning. The iconic chorus, sung by David Ruffin Jr (D-Ruff), the son of former Temptation David Ruffin is:

Rollin' down the street smokin' indo Sippin' on gin and juice Laid back (with my mind on my money and my money on my mind).

One critic describes the chorus as representative of "the G-funk tableau" emphasizing cruising culture, consumption of depressants, and materialism. The last line is an example of antimetabole, a figure of speech in which two or more clauses are related to each other through a reversal of structures. The focus on money is shared throughout hip hop, including It's All About the Benjamins, Money Makes the World Go Round, Get Money, and Foe tha Love of $.

Music video
The song's music video features a teenaged Snoop Dogg throwing a wild house party after his parents leave. His parents return home angry and evict the partygoers to confront Snoop Dogg. Ricky Harris plays Snoop's father, and Dr. Dre, Warren G, Nate Dogg and Daz Dillinger make cameo appearances. Six-year-old rapper Lil Bow Wow plays Snoop's little brother who is jumping on the couch in the intro. "I was in the 'Gin and Juice' video," comedian Eddie Griffin recalled. "I pop out of this little Volkswagen full of weed smoke with my hair standing on end."

The small-budget idea was later re-purposed in videos such as J-Kwon's "Tipsy" and Oowee's "Why Cry", which features Snoop and is a shot-by-shot remake of the "Gin and Juice" video. The music video was parodied in the video for "DPG/K", where Snoop, carried on the front of a bicycle by Daz, gets hit by a car driven by B.G. Knocc Out and Dresta, two of Eazy-E's protégés with whom Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre had feuds at the time.

Live performances
Snoop performed the song live at the American Music Awards of 1994 on February 7, 1994, and on Saturday Night Live on March 19, 1994.

Track listing

 * 12-inch single
 * 1) "Gin and Juice" (radio version—no indo)
 * 2) "Gin and Juice" (radio version)
 * 3) "Gin and Juice" (Laid Back remix)
 * 4) "Gin and Juice" (Laid Back radio mix)

Merchandising, retail, and promotions
In February 2024, Snoop and Dr. Dre created a line of drinks called Gin & Juice. The first four flavors were apricot, citrus, melon, and passionfruit. Southern Glazer's Wine and Spirits handled distribution.