Whether it was Russell’s Crowe’s written character reference, or instead Snoop Dogg’s promise to do charity work with “at risk youths” while he was visiting, it no longer mattered; his visa had finally been approved. It was time to fill Acer Arena with the smell of that sticky icky and get this party started.

The ‘D O double G’ played two Sydney shows last Friday and Saturday night, and at the end of Friday night’s show the fans who’d initially stayed away due to the hefty ticket price in the end walked away satisfied. The second show obviously hadn’t been selling as well as anticipated, and on the way out of the venue on Friday fans were handed flyers advising that tickets for the following night had been cut by more than half to $45! For Snoop along with Daz & Kurupt, Ice Cube with WC and Bone Thugs N Harmony, that’s a bargain in any hip hop head’s language.

Apologies to Bone Thugs fans, but due to circumstances beyond my control I unfortunately couldn’t get to the venue in time to see them but from all accounts, they were an excellent start to the night on both nights. I was already amped about seeing Ice Cube for the very first time, but a glowing review from my flatmate after Friday’s gig had me looking forward to his set even more and he didn’t disappoint. When it comes to hip hop I’m all for a bit of shameless self promotion, and was stoked to see Cube taking it to another level when his set started on Saturday night. As with most Acer Arena concerts two massive video screens flanked the stage, and projected across the entire back wall was the cover of his new album Raw Footage, which is a black and white up close photo of Cube in sunnies and a “don’t wanna fu*k with ‘dis” look on his face. There was even a sign with large letters reading Ice Cube laid flat across the stage so it would only be picked up by the cameras. It made for an impressive stage set up.

When you see sets by artists that have been in the game for this long, you always hope that you get the greatest hits set and not just the new album. That’s exactly what we got from Ice Cube, who played everything we came to hear. You Can Do It (Put Your Back Into It) and It Was a Good Day were obvious crowd favourites. WC helped Cube out on stage for the entire set, most notably during a bangin’ version of the Westside Connection track Bow Down. During the show Cube also paid tribute to his NWA days, holding up a vinyl copy of Straight Outta Compton to the crowd and asking “Who remembers this?” before jumping into a couple of verses from the album, much to the appreciation of the slightly older heads in the crowd. For me the song of his set was he last Gangsta Nation, after which I think I could have left very happy but there was still the ‘D O double Gizzle’ to come. I told you $45 was a bargain.

The bureaucratic red tape had been dealt with, and it was time for Snoop to once again show Sydney why he still commands so much respect from the hip hop community (yes…even after releasing Sexual Seduction). Snoop hit the stage wearing a one-piece jail jumpsuit with convict stripes. Daz Dillinger and Kurupt were also there alongside him from the start of the set. Much like Ice Cube, we got a greatest hits set which is exactly what the crowd wanted but also a couple of tracks I wasn’t expecting like Serial Killer, Deep Cover and a killer version of Lodi Dodi. Having Daz and Kurupt performing alongside him made for great renditions of the songs that they feature heavily on, particularly Doggy Dogg World and Ain’t No Fun which had everyone singing along. One of the funniest moments of the set was during the track he does with Pharell Williams Beautiful; Snoop (or rather his massive bodyguards) opened up the stairs at the side of stage so any girls in the audience that wanted to join him could. Not surprisingly, a lot of girls jumped at the chance to dance with the Dogg, creating some hilariously entertaining viewing as they all competed for Snoop’s attention.

Snoop’s encore included the House of Pain tune Jump Around and Drop It Like It’s Hot which I have a new appreciation for after seeing it live. During Snoop’s goodbye he told us this would definitely not be the last time we see him in the country, and he left us with the poignant words… Peace, Love and Snoop.