Look, we’re all for cross-genre musical experimentation. Some of the best moments and music in metal have come from artists stepping outside their comfort zones.
But here’s the thing – sometimes, cross-pollination just does not work. And this was one of those ill-fated times.
The year was 2003, and MTV had a special televised tribute show called Icon where they honored important artists with a ceremony in which musical friends and peers covered classics from their catalog.
It was Metallica’s turn to be celebrated, and celebrated they were. As a true sign of the times, many of the performances were from musicians who were of the cultural zeitgeist of the moment.
So, instead of venerable metal icons like Slayer, MTV brought in the likes of Puddle of Mudd, Staind, and yes, Snoop Dogg, to pay homage to Metallica as the band themselves sat in the audience to bear witness.
With nu metal reigning supreme on the MTV airwaves at the time, Limp Bizkit and Korn also took their own unique shots at Metallica classics, with Metallica members speaking to their musical legacy and career thus far in between songs.
Thankfully, to cleanse the palette of weird covers that happened throughout the entire evening, Metallica themselves belted out a few hits, too.
Bug back to Snoop Dogg, who erm, “stole,” the show that night with a version of “Sad But True” where he half rap’d, half crooned over the musical instrumental of the track.
Respect is still due to the Snoop double o g for showing respect to the metal messiahs, but in this case, the execution was a bit, well, yikes.
Don’t take our word for it though. Watch Snoop Dogg covering “Sad but True” below and decide for yourselves.