Warren G

Music Hall of Williamsburg; Fri 6
Bowery Ballroom; Tue 10

Photograph: Henry Bagramayan

So what is there to know about Warren G beyond his 1994 megahit “Regulate”? That G is Dr. Dre’s stepbrother? That he started out in a little group called 213 with Snoop Dogg and Nate Dogg, and helped to define West Coast hip-hop in the ’90s? How about the fact that, years after his 4.5 million–selling Regulate album, G teamed up with a Norwegian soprano, Sissel Kyrkjebo, for a rap-opera crossover album called The Rapsody Overture? (It apparently hit big in Europe.) There’s even an officially sanctioned Warren G Week, introduced by the mayor of Long Beach, California, in 2005.

So yeah, there’s a lot to know beyond “Regulate.” Whether or not it means anything to you—in the way that schoolkids would sit around learning the words to “Regulate” in G’s heyday—is another question. G’s new album, The G Files, features Snoop and Nate Dogg, Travis Barker and Raekwon. It’s not all great, but the poppy single “Crush” (featuring Ray J) has a lovely swath of synths, and demonstrates that G’s oh-so-casual flow, the vocal equivalent of a shrug, is as delicious as ever. Expect a serious party at the Bowery on Tuesday—it’s his birthday.—Sophie Harris

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