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Madd Dogg

Madd Dogg is a West Coast gangsta rapper from Los Angeles, California. A big hit in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Madd Dogg was best-known for his relationship with the R&B/hip-hop singer Rochell'le, his hit albums Hustlin' Like Gangstaz and Still Madd, and his suicide attempt in 1992.

Biography[]

Madd Dogg was born in the poor Inglewood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, and he grew up in the crime-ridden Jordan Downs housing project. Madd Dogg became a gangsta rapper during his youth, as he made music about the crime that he grew up experiencing. His 1988 performance at the Los Angeles Forum earned him the attention of producer Jimmy Silverman and Blastin' Fools Records, and his childhood friend Alan Crawford became his manager. He built a trademark mansion in the Hollywood Hills after becoming very wealthy from his hit songs, but it would not be until 1990 that he released his hit debut album, Hustlin' Like Gangstaz. He also began a relationship with R&B/hip-hop singer Rochell'le, and he recorded a 1991 duet with her called "A Dogg's Bitch" for her album Leg$.

Depression and comeback[]

Forty Dogg

Madd Dogg's 1993 comeback album, Forty Dogg.

In 1992, Madd Dogg fell into a deep depression after his rhyme book was stolen by OG Loc and his manager Alan Crawford was killed after his car flew off a pier in Venice Beach, and he began to abuse drugs. Soon, he was forced to sell his mansion to the Vagos drug dealer "Big Poppa", and his suffering from alcoholism and egomania led to him missing an important concert in Las Vegas. He moved into the Royale Casino of Las Vegas, having fallen into debt and ended his relationship with Rochell'le. Madd Dogg decided to attempt suicide from his hotel room, but Carl Johnson drove a pickup truck filled with boxes under him; he was injured in his fall, but he survived. He was then taken to a hospital and sent to rehab, and CJ helped him in retaking his mansion from the Vagos. Madd Dogg returned home, and he let CJ and his friends use his 19 spare bedrooms.

In early 1993, Madd Dogg released the album Forty Dogg, but he was forced to retire due to the failure of his 1994 album Never Leave a Dogg Behind (N.L.A.D.B.), which was less-than-stellar. He worked as a ghostwriter for other rappers during the 2000s, but he had a comeback album called Tha Maddhouse, released in 2013, which returned him to the charts.

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