In Brief

Snoop spends so much time championing the Crips gang on his second album with his offshoot group (due Tuesday) that he seems to be running for its board of directors. Eastsidaz Tray Dee and Goldie Loc also pledge allegiance to their respective Crip affiliations throughout the funk-drenched, 20-cut collection, which features Nate Dogg, Mobb Deep, Kurupt and others. Producers such as Fredwreck and Hi-Tek keep the music lively, with a decidedly gangster bent.

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Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two (fair), three (good) and four (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.