andPOP - Pop Culture With Substance

Snoop Dogg has become the latest celebrity to get the Madame Tussauds treatment.

The rapper-turned-reality-star attended the unveiling of his wax replica at the famous Las Vegas museum on Monday, sporting the same outfit as the one worn by his double as he posed for photographs. He also brought along a group of 50 youngsters from his Pomona Steelers football team to the event.

With the $300,000 statue, Snoop becomes the third rap icon to be immortalized at Madame Tussauds. The wax doppelgangers of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls, who received the honour posthumously, can be seen at the museum’s Vegas and New York branches, respectively.

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Last May, K’naan spoke to andPOP about starting a new chapter in his musical career with the U.S. release of “The Dusty Foot Philosopher,” three years after the critically acclaimed debut album was released in Canada.

Now, the Toronto hip-hop artist is gearing up for even more exposure across the border after being tapped to open a string of shows for Snoop Dogg next month.

K’naan will join the rap superstar on the southeast leg of his U.S. tour, starting May 4 in Little Rock, AK and wrapping May 17 in Hilton Head, SC.

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Adam Sandler and his former “Saturday Night Live” co-stars Chris Rock, Rob Schneider and David Spade are planning a comedy flick alongside “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” actor Kevin James.

The film will follow five high school buddies who reunite on a July 4 holiday weekend after 30 years. Sandler co-wrote the comedy that will be directed by “You Don’t Mess With the Zohan” director Dennis Dugan according to Variety.

In other news, rapper Snopp Dogg has sealed a deal with MTV to host a variety show called “Dogg After Dark.” The show will feature celebrity interviews, performances by artists and sketch comedy. “Dogg After Dark” will air for seven Tuesdays consecutively starting February 14, according to E! Online.

Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins and Oscar nominee Josh Brolin are set to join an ensemble cast for Woody Allen’s next movie. The film written by Allen will start filming this summer in London.

Snoop Dogg is looking for cheese in his newest venture: a children’s book series.

The rapper hopes to reach children living in challenging urban environments with the series titled “Where’s the Cheese,” which will feature a rodent named Lil Mouse.

The books are being illustrated by Snoop’s cousin Joe Cool.

A potential “Where’s the Cheese” TV series may also be narrated by Snoop’s eight-year-old daughter, Cori Broadus.

This isn’t Snoop’s first project involving children. He heads a youth football league that caps off every season with – you guessed it – the Snooperbowl.

Word of the children’s book series comes just a month after Snoop announced he was co-producing a new animated show for Comedy Central about his teenage years growing up in Long Beach.

Ever wonder what Snoop Dogg was like at 15? You’ll soon be able to find out – in animated form, no less.

The rapper is getting transformed into a cartoon for a new show based on his teen years growing up in the ’80s in Long Beach, California.

The show’s creators are the same ones behind Andre 3000’s series “Class of 3000.”

The as-yet-untitled series will begin airing on Comedy Central sometime next year.

In other Snoop Dogg news, he has announced he is remixing the theme song for ABC’s soap opera “One Life To Live,” which will air during the show.

He is also scheduled to make a cameo appearance on the episodes airing May 8 and 9. Snoop will appear in several scenes and perform a couple of tracks from his newest album “Ego Trippin’.”

The album, his ninth studio release, hit stores this week.

Snoop Dogg was arrested last night (28.11.06) for possession of drugs and a firearm.

The 35-year-old rapper was stopped by police as he left the NBC studios in Los Angeles where he had been filming a performance for “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.”

Sgt. Kevin Grandalski, spokesman for Burbank Police Department, said: “Authorities executed a search warrant as he and his associates were leaving the NBC studio.

“The search turned up marijuana, cocaine, a firearm and a false compartment in a car.”

Snoop – real name Calvin Broadus – was charged and bail was set at $60,000.

On October 26 Snoop was stopped by police for a traffic violation at the Bob Hope Airport, in Burbank, and an unlicensed gun and a quantity of marijuana were found during a search of his vehicle.

The rapper was charged with possession of a firearm and transportation of a controlled substance and released on $35,000 bail.

Earlier this month, Snoop handed himself into police after a warrant was issued for his arrest for a separate charge of possession of a deadly weapon
dating back to September.

He had been stopped at the John Wayne Airport, in Santa Ana, on September 27 after a 20-inch extendable baton was found in his laptop bag.

Snoop claimed he did not know it was illegal and was going to use it as a prop in his video. The baton was confiscated and the rapper was allowed on his flight to San Francisco.

When he handed himself in he was charged and bail was set at $150,000. The rapper is next due in court on December 4.

Snoop Dogg had a brief run-in with the law on Monday when he showed up a police station to face charges of possessing a deady weapon.

The 35-year-old performer (real name: Calvin Broadus) was wanted on charges of possessing a deadly weapon, reports Reuters. The allegations stem from a September incident, when Broadus tried to carry an illegal baton on to a plane.

“He turned himself in this morning,” said county sheriff spokesman Jim Amormino. “He was booked, fingerprinted, had his photo taken and an arrest report was filled out.”

Broadus then met the $150,000 bond and was set free.

Just last month, the rapper was arrested in another airport-based incident. Police say they found marijuana and a gun in Snoop’s car.

He’ll answer to the older charges at a hearing on December 12.

Rapper-actor Snoop Dogg was arrested on Thursday at the Burbank airport near Los Angeles after police found a gun and marijuana in his car.

The superstar rapper, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, was stopped by police for leaving his car too long in the passenger loading area of the airport, reports Burbank police spokesman Kevin Grandalski.

Snoop, 35, was booked and released on $35,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.

He is also facing another possible charge in Orange County, just south of Los Angeles, for attempting to bring a collapsible police baton on a flight to New York last month. Snoop was stopped by security staff at John Wayne airport about the baton, which the rapper said was a prop for a video he was to make in New York.

Snoop Dogg has a previous conviction for the possession of cocaine.

Not only can Snoop Dogg rap but he can punt too.

Calvin Broadus, known to the world as Snoop Dogg, has taken the Junior All-American Football league by storm with his team, the Rowland Raiders.

Two years ago, Snoop volunteered as a Rowland Raiders coach, and then again last month when he broke from the franchise to start his own conference.

When Snoop began talks of expanding the Snoop Youth Football League beyond its initial eight Southern California chapters, parents and coaches in the old conference accused him and his agents of trying to take over the game.

League Commissioner Bob Barna received “some e-mails from parents, saying, ‘How dare you let somebody like that be with our youth?’” Barna says. “But did he bring anything negative? No. He acted like a dad.”

Snoop is the kind of dad every kid wants to have.

“It was so cool,” remembers Duon Rucker, who came to the Rowland Raiders from Long Beach at the age of 10, last year. “Everybody at school was all over me, ‘Are you about to go with Snoop? Can you get me his autograph?’ Everybody wanted to get a picture of me and him together.”

With a team bus that includes TVs, playing for Snoop is an instant ticket to “Popularville.”

Parents concerns? Other teams are getting ripped off of the good players just because of Snoop?s celebrity.

Although the league allows 15 per cent of a team’s players to come from outside its immediate area and a team can recruit without limit in cities where no team exists, other coaches seem to be left in Snoop?s recruiting dust.

There will be no high strung celebrity court case for rapper Snoop Dogg.

He’s been cleared of those burdens because his accuser has dropped the law suit, before it became too hot. Or so the song goes.

As well, it looks like Snoop also dropped his civil suit against the woman for extortion of about $5 million.

Makeup artist Kylie Bell sued the rapper for allegedly drugging and raping her while she worked backstage at the “Jimmy Kimmel Live” show two years ago.

Bell claimed she was given what she thought was a glass of champagne, but lost control of her body and was raped.

The award winning makeup artist also reported that there were three other men with Snoop Dogg.

Following the incident, he spoke on Larry King Live to defend himself and even offered to take a lie detector test to prove his innocence.

However, a statement released by Bell said the matter has been “resolved amicably.”