Snoop Dogg has been talking about making a gospel album for awhile now, but as of today, it’s officially something we can start looking forward to. Bible of Love is set to drop on March 16, and it can be pre-ordered now on iTunes, according to Rolling Stone. It’s set to be a massive double album with 32 tracks featuring artists like Tye Tribbett, the Clark Sisters, Faith Evans, Rance Allen, and others.
In anticipation for the album’s release, Snoop headlined the 19th annual Super Bowl Gospel Celebration near Minneapolis on Thursday night. There, he played tracks off his new album, and today, he's announced the album release date and some new tracks, along with a video.
Snoop's four new songs include: "Blessed & Highly Favored" featuring the Clark Sisters, "Blessing Me Again" featuring Rance Allen, "You" featuring Tye Tribbett, and "Saved" featuring Faith Evans and 3rd Generation. Snoop also released visuals for the album’s seven-and-a-half minute closing track, “Words Are Few.” This song has been out since September, but the video showcases B Slade and Snoop performing the song in a church.
"The record's all about love from start to finish," he said at the event. "That's the way you change the world, by putting love in it."
The show’s founder, Melanie Few, addressed concerns that the rapper didn’t vibe with the show’s themes of Christianity. According to Bethel Clarion, some even intimated that allowing Snoop to perform would send everyone involved with the organization of the event to “hell.” Few noted that Snoop was the first “secular” artist who had been invited to perform, but that was a welcome change.
“I know people that sing about Christ, talk about Christ every day and don’t do anything for God’s children,” Few said. “And that’s what kinda convinced me to say, ‘You know what? I’m open. I’m not perfect either.’”
"It's always been on my heart,” Snoop said of making a gospel album during an interview on Dr. Dre’s The Pharmacy last May. “I just never got around to it because I always be doing gangsta business or doing this or doing that. I just felt like it's been on my heart too long. I need to do it now."
