On November 19, hundreds of USC Marshall students were treated to a guest like none other: Snoop Dogg. The world-famous musician, actor, producer, and media personality joined Albert Napoli, senior lecturer of clinical entrepreneurship, for a discussion titled, “The Entrepreneur as a Brand” in the Tutor Campus Center Ballroom.
“We feel so privileged to have Snoop Dogg as a speaker for our Greif Center students. In sharing his knowledge and wide-ranging experience as a founder across so many industries — including music, food, beverage, sports, and entertainment — he inspires and motivates others to believe in themselves and pursue their entrepreneurial dreams,” said Elissa Grossman, Orfalea Director’s Chair in Entrepreneurship and director of the Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies.
The event was part of Napoli’s course BAEP 452: Feasibility Analysis, in which students develop, analyze, and validate entrepreneurial concepts. The discussion included questions from Napoli himself and his students, culminating in a performance by the USC Trojan Marching Band and the presentation of the Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies Entrepreneur of the Year Award by the Center’s founder Lloyd Greif.
“Snoop Dogg is the ‘Dogg-father of Cool,’” Napoli said. “He’s also a passionate and highly successful entrepreneur with a recognizable brand that speaks to a diverse range of demographics. We are so excited to welcome him to speak to BAEP 452 students about the importance of brand, resilience, and authentic relationships.”
The class kicked off with a discussion between Napoli and Get Engaged Media executives Cam Fordham (partner/co-founder), Ben Hiott (partner/co-founder), and Jason Zerden (CSO), who discussed their company’s creation and growth, plus their work at the intersection between branding and entertainment. Thereafter, Snoop joined the conversation.
Snoop is a prolific and highly successful entrepreneur, owning companies in film (Death Row Pictures Films), alcohol (Gin & Juice, Death Row x Happy Dad, 19 Crimes), music (Death Row Records), food (Dr. Bombay ice cream), and numerous other industries. Snoop also carefully aligns himself with leaders in other sectors including the online gambling platform Roobet and through his recent work with T-Mobile and Skechers. During his discussion with Napoli, Snoop offered advice to students on growing brands, choosing investments, and nurturing relationships.
“A lot of these branding deals is about relationships … How are we going to start this relationship and how we want to end this relationship? Do we start it with a bang, or do we end this in court? Do we end this mad or frustrated or do we end this saying ‘I never thought this business could be this big,’” Snoop said. “Relationships are the most important key to this business, the relationship that you have with people.”
Students submitted questions for Snoop, with topics ranging from entrepreneurial mindset to brand control. One asked him to name the most important quality in an entrepreneur; Snoop’s answer addressed resilience in the face of rejection.
“I would say the ability to accept ‘no’ for an answer because you’ll receive more nos than yeses. You have the ability to accept that ‘no’ as an answer and use it to go get that answer turned into a yes,” Snoop said. “A ‘no’ is not that bad, especially if you know why they said ‘no.’ Then you can go fix that and tweak that and come back and get that answer flipped into your favor.”
Snoop emphasized to students the significance of having power over one’s career.
“My brand is probably the most important thing to me right now because I control it,” Snoop said.
As the “commissioner” of his own life, Snoop is forging entrepreneurial paths, of which there are many. Snoop’s portfolio is diverse with wide-ranging investments in cannabis, jewelry, entertainment, food, and more.
He’s also been featured in dozens of advertising campaigns with top brands such as T-Mobile and Skechers. Snoop shared lessons in personal brand ownership, saying that each partnership is a deliberate decision based not solely on finances, but also on relationships, strategy, and authenticity.
“The money is not the key,” Snoop said. “The brands that I’m associated with right now, I feel good about because they understand me, and they allow me to put my spin and my twist on things … I’m able to have my creative team take an idea and make it more ‘Snoop-oriented.’”
As an entrepreneur, Snoop also spoke to the importance of partnership deal structures.