Game shows have made a comeback, and they’ve gotten A-list hosts like Jamie Foxx doing Beat Shazam and Method Man on Drop the Mic. Now TBS has Snoop Dogg hosting Joker’s Wild. Snoop made a surprise appearance with Turner executive Kevin Reilly in front of the Television Critics Association to talk about his passion for television.
“It was great television shows that I grew up watching: Good Times, What’s Happening?, The Jeffersons,” Snoop said. “I watched TV heavily. I watched What’s Happening?, Good Times, Diff’rent Strokes and then I watched a lot of game shows because game shows was very popular when I was a kid: Price is Right, Joker’s Wild, Family Feud, Love Connection etc., etc.”
Joker’s Wild had personal significance for Snoop. “Me and my grandmother used to watch it, and I just loved the way that the show used to flow,” Snoop said. “I loved that you could win money. You know what I’m saying? They would count the money out, and there was a chance that you could get to a high level and get as much money as you could. It was just one of those shows that was, like, I love making money, and I love trying to get money. So it was one of those shows that was enticing to me.”
Cut to 2017, a Grammy winning platinum record music career and success in feature film, and the time is right for Snoop to host Joker’s Wild.
“I’m just watching television nowadays, and I’m seeing all these great game shows come back to life,” Snoop said. “I’m watching all these great hosts put a different spirit and a different twist on game shows that I grew up watching, and I just felt like I could do it. I felt that this was the right game, this was the right network, it’s the right scenario, it’s the right time in my career to take the lead and to be a game show host, because I’m fun, I’m exciting, and I’m engaging. That’s what game show hosts do.”
Joker’s Wild won’t change Snoop Dogg though. “Oh, man, I’m going to do my ‘thing’ thing, you understand what I’m saying?” Snoop said. “One thing about my script, it’s not scripted. You understand me? So it is what it is. I mean, I’m going to look the part. I’m going to be sharp. You know, I’m gonna look the part, baby. You gotta understand we gonna look the par, we gonna play the part, and it’s gonna feel good. Joker’s Wild on TBS, comin’ soon, you dig?”
It won’t be a competition with other game show hosts either. Snoop feels there’s room for everyone.
“They’re doing a great job,” Snoop said. “The shows are amazing and it’s like it’s their natural calling. Something about being a game show host, it has to be in you. It has to be something that you love to do. It’s a part of your getdown. It’s you engaging with the contestant, you holding the crowd, you running the show the way it’s supposed to be ran. As far as me, this is what I do anyway as a rapper. I control the crowd. I do that anyway. So now you got money involved where you could possibly be a contestant and get you some money, some extra chips in your pocket because you was on Snoop Dogg’s Joker’s Wild.
Look for Joker’s Wild on TBS coming soon.
