Snoop Dogg on his unexpected love for a comedy icon

He’s not the obvious Benny Hill fanboy, but Snoop Dogg has been waxing lyrical about his love of the old-school British comic, despite him long falling out of fashion.

The rapper is visiting London, where he last week performed with Dr Dre at a party – their first joint performance in the capital in 30 years – where they were also joined by Eminem.

And in an interview with the city’s Evening Standard newspaper, Snoop revealed one of the things that first drew him to the UK.

‘You know what was an attraction of mine, to London, as a kid?,’ he said. ‘It was to meet Benny Hill, right? Because Benny Hill was a bad motherfucker in California. 

‘He was funny as fucker, too! And we loved him. Like, I don’t even think y’all know how much he meant to the African-American community. He meant the fucking world to us. The shit he was doing on TV, they would never do in America.’

Even Dre agreed, telling interviewed David Ellison: ‘Benny was the tip.’

It’s not the first time Snoop has spoken of his love of Hill, telling The Observer back in 2011 that he’d love to play the comic in a biopic – and that he’d even paint his face white to do so.

‘The way Benny did it, he was just amazing. Just seeing how he put songs together and comedy and the timing and the sketches. He was way ahead of his time,’ he said back then.

What would it be like if the pair of them had ever collaborated? Thankfully, someone on the internet dared to dream:

Snoop will also be carrying the Olympic torch on one of its final legs through Paris on Friday.

Published: 24 Jul 2024