Gangsta rapper to grandfather: The Olympic gold rebranding of Snoop Dogg

The 52-year-old rapper's transformation – from superstar on trial for murder in the 1990s to Martha Stewart bestie on 'grandpa's duties' at the Olympics – has been so slow and shrewd.

Had Snoop Dogg pretended to take a toke from the Olympic torch he helped carry to open the 2024 games, few people would have been surprised.

But the now cannabis entrepreneur and elder statesman of hip-hop is in his respectable era – he’s a little older, a little wiser and a whole lot more lovable.

The 52-year-old rapper’s transformation – from superstar on trial for murder in the 1990s to Martha Stewart bestie on “grandpa’s duties” at the Olympics – has been so slow and shrewd that it’s very natural to ask: How did we get here?

P. Frank Williams covered Snopp Dogg’s murder trial for the Los Angeles Times and co-wrote the book “Chosen by Fate: My Life Inside Death Row Records” with the musician’s co-defendant McKinley Lee Jr.

Williams told CNN the answer is actually quite simple.

“He worked hard and loves what he does,” said Williams, who most recently directed Hulu’s “Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told” documentary. “Snoop has this likability and charm that you can’t buy.”

Not to mention an arc that’s a testament to the power of reinvention.