From G-Funk to Psychedelic Trap: How Kendrick Lamar Inherited & Flipped Snoop Dogg’s Funk DNA
By Candy Spencer | Staff Writer | April 29, 2025
🎹🌴🎤 G-Funk Ain’t Dead — It Just Got Smarter, Stranger, and Louder
Most folks think Kendrick Lamar and Snoop Dogg live in two different rap worlds—Snoop with that laid-back Crip walk groove, and Kendrick on some revolutionary, glitchy jazz type steez. But listen close, and you’ll hear it: the same melodic bloodline runnin’ deep in both.
Snoop’s Doggystyle dropped that smooth G-funk flavor with greasy synth leads, whiny Moogs, and talkbox vocals. Fast forward 20+ years, and Kendrick’s To Pimp a Butterfly flipped that same DNA into psychedelic protest funk, soaked in analog warmth and digital chaos.
💿 Then vs Now:
- “Who Am I? (What’s My Name?)” — synths by Dr. Dre, with that Parliament-Funkadelic signature
- “Wesley’s Theory” — produced by Flying Lotus with Thundercat on bass, still funky, but way trippier
🔊 Compare these intros side by side and peep the G-funk ancestry
🎷💽✨ 🎛️ TECHNIQUE SPOTLIGHT — Talkbox, Bass Slides & the Moog Comeback
Let’s talk production evolution, fam. One word: Talkbox. Back in the ’90s, Snoop and Roger Troutman had this locked down—robotic melodies slidin’ over slappin’ 808s. Today? Kendrick and Terrace Martin brought it back but jazzed it up, layered it in live sax, Rhodes keys, and neo-soul voicings.
Production Glow-Up:
- Snoop’s Era: mono-channel bounce, analog filters, rigid sequencing
- Kendrick’s Era: stereo spreads, digital panning, LFO modulation, sidechained textures
🎧 Talkbox Breakdown – “Let Me Ride” vs “King Kunta”
🕵️♀️📼🔥 🎙️ Behind the Booth — The Secret “Alright” Mix That Never Dropped
Real heads know “Alright” is Kendrick’s most iconic track—anthem of hope, coded in jazz and funk. But here’s what they don’t know: there’s an early version of that track that rides a Snoop-style groove, unreleased and raw.
👂🏾 Listen to the rumored “Alright” early mix ft. Talkbox
🚗💨🧃 📍 When Bay Area Energy Hit the Dirty South: The Rise of “Soul Trap”
West Coast didn’t stay in Cali. That bounce migrated, and artists like Larry June, Mozzy, and even Kendrick’s cousin Baby Keem took those same principles across the map.
Larry June linked up with Southern producer Cardo Got Wings and made something new: Soul Trap.
🥶 Breakdown: “Smoothies in 1991” instrumental
🌀🚀🎮 🧬 Kendrick’s Blueprint Lives in Baby Keem & Tyler’s Wild Sonic Universe
Baby Keem’s “South Africa” plays like Kendrick’s “These Walls” on lean. Warped vocals, rhythmic chaos, distorted basslines—it’s like hearing Kendrick’s blueprints in a funhouse mirror.
Tyler’s Call Me If You Get Lost carries Snoop’s storytelling DNA with hyper-digital synths, muffled vocals, and wild drum textures.
🎧 Audio Analysis – Kendrick’s impact on “Family Ties” synth work
🧐📚🔎 Deep Cuts & Uncommon Examples Only True Heads Know
- “Serial Killa” – Snoop’s character delivery predated Kendrick’s DAMN. personas
- “The Message” by Dr. Dre – echoed in Kendrick’s “Mortal Man” pacing
- DJ Quik’s “Quikker Said Than Dunn” – reborn in Kendrick’s “untitled 03”
- Daz Dillinger loops – reborn digitally in Keem’s “Trademark USA”
- Kurupt flows – inspiration for Kendrick’s breathy Section.80 bars
- Warren G pads – gospel-soaked in “PRIDE.”
- 2nd II None vocals – digitally stacked in “Die Hard”
🔮🌐🎶 🗣️ Real Talk — Where’s This Funk Headin’ Next?
The sound’s never static. With AI beats, live instrument plugins, and artists like Doechii, Tierra Whack, and Travis Scott toying with West Coast energy, the question ain’t if the funk’s evolving—it’s how wild it’s gonna get.
Will we get Funk Drill? Lo-fi Cripwave? Gospel G-Funk 3.0?
💬 Drop a comment below and tell us — what’s the next phase of this sound revolution?
💡 Final Thought: What If Snoop Dropped a Whole Album Over Kendrick’s Beats?
Imagine that.
