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The Billion-Dollar Journey: Who Owns Death Row Records Now, And What Happened To The Masters?

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As of December 2025, the iconic Death Row Records is owned by the legendary rapper and mogul, Calvin "Snoop Dogg" Broadus Jr. The West Coast icon finalized the acquisition of the brand from MNRK Music Group, an entity controlled by the investment firm Blackstone, in February 2022. This monumental moment marked a historic "homecoming" for Snoop Dogg, who rose to fame on the label with his debut album, *Doggystyle*, in 1993. The full story of Death Row’s ownership is a turbulent, decades-long saga involving bankruptcy, major corporate acquisitions, and a controversial split of one of hip-hop’s most valuable music catalogs. The current ownership under Snoop Dogg is not a simple transfer of all assets; it is a strategic maneuver focused on the label’s future as a pioneering NFT-focused music platform, even as some of its most famous recordings remain in the hands of corporate finance giants.

The Current Owner: Snoop Dogg's Historic Acquisition and Vision

The current chapter of Death Row Records is defined by the return of its most famous living artist, Snoop Dogg. The acquisition in February 2022 was widely celebrated in the hip-hop community, symbolizing a reclamation of cultural heritage from a series of corporate owners. The deal was executed with MNRK Music Group, which was formerly known as eOne Music and is primarily controlled by the global investment firm Blackstone. While the exact purchase price was not publicly disclosed, some reports estimate the value of the brand and recording catalog to be around $50 million.

Snoop Dogg's Biography and Role at Death Row

  • Full Name: Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr.
  • Born: October 20, 1971 (Age 54 as of 2025)
  • Birthplace: Long Beach, California, U.S.
  • Role at Death Row (1992-1998): Rapper, flagship artist, released *Doggystyle* and *Tha Doggfather*.
  • Role at Death Row (2022-Present): Owner, CEO, and visionary for the label's future.
  • Key Albums on Death Row: *Doggystyle* (1993), *Tha Doggfather* (1996).
  • Current Strategy: Transforming Death Row into the first major music label focused on the NFT and Metaverse space.

The Crucial Catalog Exclusion: A $100 Million Question

A critical and often misunderstood detail of the 2022 acquisition is that Snoop Dogg did *not* acquire the masters for all of Death Row’s most iconic albums. The sale of the brand and his own masters was a significant win, but the crown jewels of the catalog were excluded.

The following masters were reportedly not included in Snoop Dogg’s acquisition:

  • Dr. Dre's *The Chronic* (1992): Widely considered one of the most influential albums in music history, the masters were reportedly retained by the previous owners or sold in a separate deal.
  • 2Pac's *All Eyez on Me* (1996) and *The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory* (1996): The rights to Tupac Shakur's Death Row albums were also not part of the deal, remaining with the previous corporate owners or his estate.
Snoop Dogg has publicly stated his desire to eventually acquire the 2Pac masters, but as of late 2025, they remain outside of his ownership. The catalog he *did* acquire includes his own classic albums, *Doggystyle* and *Tha Doggfather*, along with other recordings by artists like Tha Dogg Pound.

The Turbulent Timeline: A History of Corporate Hands

The journey of Death Row Records from a pioneering hip-hop powerhouse to a corporate asset is one of the most dramatic stories in music business history. The label changed hands multiple times between its founder's downfall and Snoop Dogg's homecoming.

1. The Suge Knight Era (1991–2006)

Death Row Records was founded in 1991 by Marion "Suge" Knight and Dr. Dre (Andre Young). The label quickly became the dominant force in West Coast hip-hop, releasing classics like *The Chronic*, *Doggystyle*, and *All Eyez on Me*. However, the label’s success was marred by violence, legal troubles, and the eventual imprisonment of Suge Knight.

  • 1991: Label founded.
  • 1996: Star artist 2Pac is murdered; Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg depart the label shortly thereafter.
  • 2006: Suge Knight files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after a civil judgment against him for $107 million. A federal judge orders a bankruptcy trustee to take control of the company's assets.

2. The WIDEawake and eOne Eras (2009–2021)

Following the 2006 bankruptcy, the label's assets, including the masters, were put up for auction. This period represents the era where the label was treated purely as a financial asset, passing through a series of corporate owners.

  • 2009: The label is auctioned off to WIDEawake Entertainment Group for a mere $18 million.
  • 2012–2013: WIDEawake files for bankruptcy. The label is subsequently sold to Entertainment One (eOne), a major media conglomerate.
  • 2019: The toy and board game giant Hasbro acquires eOne, briefly making Death Row Records a subsidiary of the company known for Monopoly and My Little Pony.
  • 2021: Hasbro sells eOne Music to entities controlled by the private equity giant Blackstone for $385 million. eOne Music is then rebranded as MNRK Music Group.

The Future: Death Row as an NFT and Web3 Pioneer

Snoop Dogg's vision for the new Death Row Records is to completely redefine the relationship between artists, fans, and music ownership. He has made it clear that the label will be a forward-looking entity, embracing new technologies rather than simply relying on its legacy.

The NFT Music Label Strategy

The most significant shift is the plan to transform Death Row into "an NFT music label." This strategy involves releasing music in the form of Non-Fungible Tokens, which grant fans unique ownership rights and access to content.

  • *B.O.D.R.* (Bacc On Death Row): Snoop Dogg’s 2022 album, released on the same day as the acquisition, was distributed as an NFT in collaboration with Gala Music, a Web3 platform.
  • Metaverse Focus: The label aims to put its new artists "through the metaverse and through a whole other chain of music," bypassing traditional streaming models where artists often receive minimal royalties.

The Reservoir Media Publishing Deal

In a major business move that solidifies the label's current structure, Snoop Dogg and Death Row Records signed a domestic publishing administration deal with Reservoir Media. This deal covers the publishing rights for Snoop Dogg’s entire catalog and the recordings catalog he acquired from Death Row. This partnership ensures professional management of the compositions and further commercial exploitation of the music assets under the new ownership.

The journey of Death Row Records is a perfect microcosm of the music industry itself—a story of cultural creation, financial collapse, corporate control, and finally, cultural reclamation. While the fight for the Dr. Dre and 2Pac masters continues, Snoop Dogg's ownership ensures the brand's legacy is now guided by an artist who lived its history and is determined to shape its future in the digital age.

The Billion-Dollar Journey: Who Owns Death Row Records Now, And What Happened To The Masters?
who owns death row records
who owns death row records

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