West Coast rap legend Snoop Dogg has come a long way since being discovered by Dr. Dre in the early 1990. As impressive as he was when guesting on Dre’s The Chronic in 1992, few could have guessed he’d go on to global fame, tens of millions of record sales, and a career in movies and TV. And that’s only part of the story, from battles with the law to reinvention as a reggae artist. Now, he’s just released his 17th studio album, I Wanna Thank Me.

He was born Cordozar Calvin Broadus Jr. in Long Beach, California, on October 20, 1971. His “Snoop Dogg” nickname came from his mother because she thought he looked like Snoopy from the Peanuts cartoon. He played piano and sang at his local Baptist church, before starting rap in sixth grade. After graduating high school, Snoop was arrested several times for drug possession and spent time in prison. He was also associated with the Rollin’ 20 Crips Gang. He started making music as a way out of his troubles and recorded early demos with his cousin Nate Dogg and friend Warren G as 213. A track on one of these came to the attention of Dr. Dre who invited Snoop — then rapping under the name Snoop Doggy Dogg — to audition. From there they collaborated on a song called “Deep Cover” for the soundtrack of the film for the same name; and Snoop became the key rapper on Dre’s hugely successful first solo album, The Chronic, in 1992.