The Doggfather’s guide to looking the shizzle.

Can it really be 26 years since Californian rapper Snoop Dogg first broke into the world of hip-hop? His debut was on “Deep Cover”, the first ever solo track by Dr Dre (then known for his producer role in N.W.A, the pioneering gangsta rap group from Compton in Los Angeles). The song was taken from a soundtrack to a little-remembered film of the same name. At the end of 1992, Dr Dre released his debut solo album, The Chronic, which features Snoop Dogg on 11 of the 16 songs, and the album sold almost six million copies in the US. A year later, Snoop “Doggy” Dogg released his own debut album, Doggystyle. On the strength of tunes like “Gin And Juice” and “What’s My Name?”, the album sold more than 10 million copies and Snoop has been a star ever since. With a new album on the way later this month, the gospel-inspired Bible Of Love, MR PORTER is today taking a moment to appreciate a different kind of doggy style. Here are five lessons in fashion from the inimitable rapper.

In the early 1990s, the plaid shirt was another element of classic American workwear favoured by LA’s gangsta rappers. Generally speaking, the favourite style was the lightweight ombré version, but in this shot Snoop is wearing what appears to be a heavy-weight shirt underneath his windcheater. Anyone doubting Snoop’s gangster credentials need only look at how he wears his blue bandana to know that he’s both fearless, and affiliated with the Long Beach Crips.

An advocate for “athleisure” long before the term was coined, Snoop is captured on here on stage in a striking blue sweatshirt. The cut is loose, without being baggy, the slightly raised neckline is very contemporary and the colour is almost an International Klein Blue. Snoop’s genius, however, is to wear it with white jeans, because no other colour of trousers would work as well.

In the early 1990s, Los Angeles’ gangsta rap scene didn’t just sound different (thanks to Dr Dre’s extraordinary production), it also looked different. Freshly pressed workwear was the order of the day, with an emphasis on brands like Carhartt, Dickies and Ben Davis. In this shot, Snoop offers a master class in layering, wearing a vest over a T-shirt over a hoodie.

Snoop has worked with a large number of record labels over the years, and in the late 1990s, he signed with producer Master P’s No Limit Records. In this shot, Snoop’s jacket, a version of the classic US Army field jacket, has a No Limit patch on the left sleeve. The field jacket went through three significant iterations, the M-43, M-51 and M-65, and Snoop’s jacket combines elements of both the M-43 (the buttons) and the M-65 (the hood).

In this shot, Snoop appears to be returning to the roots of this style with a dark navy overshirt that swamps his slim frame. It’s hard to tell if the decoration on the cuffs and collar is a paisley pattern, perhaps inspired by his blue bandanas, or something more complicated. Either way, the dark blue trousers are reminiscent of the workwear pants he wore in the early days of his career.

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