Warren Griffin III (born November 10, 1970) is an American rapper, record producer, and DJ who helped popularize West Coast hip hop during the 1990s. A pioneer of G-funk, he attained mainstream success with his 1994 single "Regulate" (featuring Nate Dogg). He is credited with discovering Snoop Dogg, having introduced the then-unknown rapper to record producer Dr. Dre.

His debut studio album, Regulate... G Funk Era (1994), debuted at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling 176,000 in its first week. The album has since received triple platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), signifying sales of three million copies. "Regulate" spent 18 weeks within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, with three weeks at number two, while its follow-up, "This D.J.", peaked at number nine. At the 37th Annual Grammy Awards, both songs received nominations for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Solo Performance, respectively.

Three songs from his second album, Take a Look Over Your Shoulder (1997), peaked within the top 40, as did his 1998 duet with Nate Dogg, "Nobody Does It Better". Both the album and its follow-up, I Want It All (1999), received gold certifications by the RIAA. His fourth album, The Return of the Regulator (2001), failed to yield his earlier commercial heights. Along with longtime collaborators Snoop Dogg and Nate Dogg, he formed the hip-hop trio 213, named for Long Beach's area code; they released the album The Hard Way (2004) to mild success.

His next two albums, 2005's In the Mid-Nite Hour and then 2009's The G Files, were released independently and self-produced. In 2015, he released Regulate... G Funk Era, Part II, an extended play featuring archived recordings of Nate Dogg, who died in 2011. In 2017, "Regulate", certified platinum in 1994, went multi-platinum, propelled by digital downloads.

Warren Griffin III was born on November 10, 1970, and grew up in Long Beach, California. He had three sisters and was the only son of Warren Griffin Jr., an airplane mechanic, and Ola, a dietician. They divorced when Warren was 4 and he lived with his mother and three sisters in East Long Beach until he was just about to start middle school.

In 1982, Warren went to live with his father in North Long Beach. His new wife, Verna, had three children from a prior marriage, one of whom was Andre Young, the soon-to-become Dr. Dre who in 1984 joined a leading DJ crew, the World Class Wreckin' Cru, which by 1985 doubled as an electro rap group, which in 1987 put out the Los Angeles area's first rap recording under a major label. By then, a Jordan High School student, Warren was playing football and running with friends.

In 1988, age 17, Warren was jailed for gun possession. While incarcerated, he took the nickname Warren G. By this time, Dr. Dre was already beginning to experience success as the writer and record producer for Ruthless Records, as well as being a member of N.W.A with Ruthless Records founder Eazy-E and Ice Cube. N.W.A’s landmark album, Straight Outta Compton, was driving the Los Angeles area's rap scene to swiftly drop electro for gangsta. Once out of jail, Warren worked at the Long Beach shipyardsand began focusing on music after Dr. Dre taught him how to use a drum machine. ...

Source: Article "Warren G" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Warren G, de son vrai nom Warren Griffin III, né le 10 novembre 1970 à Long Beach (Californie), est un rappeur américain. Demi-frère de Dr. Dre et ancien membre du groupe 213, avec Snoop Dogg et Nate Dogg, il publie son premier album solo, Regulate... G Funk Era (1994), qui s'est classé 1er au Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, et 2e au Billboard 200, et a été certifié triple disque de platine par la Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) le 1er août 1995.

Warren G est né le 10 novembre 1970 à Long Beach, dans la banlieue de Los Angeles, en Californie. Il est le frère d'adoption de Andre «Dr. Dre» Romelle Young (le père de Warren épouse la mère de Dr. Dre, Verna Lang). Jeune, il écoute la collection musicale de ses parents, composée de jazz, de soul et de funk.

En 1990, il forme le groupe 213 — en référence à l'ancien indicatif téléphonique de Long Beach — avec Snoop Doggy Dogg et Nate Dogg.Tous trois réalisent quelques titres. Il fait écouter une mixtape du groupe à son demi-frère, Dr Dre, lors d'une fête organisée par le producteur à succès, qui est impressionné par le débit de Snoop Doggy Dogg et la voix de Nate Dogg. Dr Dre fait immédiatement signer Snoop Dogg et Nate Dogg sur son label et celui de Suge Knight, Death Row Records. Warren G travaille sur certains sons de Death Row, notamment sur Doggystyle, le premier album studio de Snoop. Il choisit cependant le label new-yorkais Def Jam. Ainsi, 213 se sépare et ne se reformera qu'en 2004, pour l'album The Hard Way, mais d'autres reformations du groupe avaient déjà vu le jour sur les albums solo des uns et des autres.

En 1994, Warren publie son premier album solo, Regulate... G Funk Era, dont le single, Regulate, en featuring avec Nate Dogg, est aussi présent sur la bande originale du film Above the Rim. Avec ses teintes de G-funk, l'album devient certifié multi-disque de platine. Le titre So Many Ways, quant à lui apparaît sur la bande originale du film Bad Boys. Il lance ensuite le label G-Funk Entertainement, avec, comme artistes, The Dove Shack et The Twinz.

En 1997, Warren G publie son deuxième album Take a Look Over Your Shoulder, sur le label Def Jam. Il contient les tubes Smokin' Me Out (en duo avec Ron Isley), What's Love Got to Do With (avec Adina Howard; présent sur la bande originale du film Police Story 3: Supercop) et une reprise de I Shot the Sheriff de Bob Marley. Ce titre, sorti en single, est certifié disque d'or, tandis que l'album se classe 11e du Billboard 2005, et certifié disque de platine. La même année, Warren G participe à l'album-concept The Rapsody Overture où il interprète Prince Igor, premier single de l'album, en duo avec la chanteuse d'opéra norvégienne Sissel. Il quitte ensuite le label de Russel Simmons pour Restless Records sur lequel il publie I Want It All en 1999. Son single homonyme avec Mack 10, qui reprend des samples de I Like It des DeBarge, est teinté de jazz et de rock et devient disque d'or.

En 2001, l'album The Return of the Regulator sort sur Universal Records, mais ne se vend qu'à peu d'exemplaires, malgré des collaborations prestigieuses: George Clinton, Nate Dogg, Snoop Dogg, WC, Mista Grimm ou encire Soopafly. Il contient le single Lookin' at You (featuring Ms. Toi) produit par Dr. Dre. ...

Source: Article "Warren G" de Wikipédia en français, soumis à la licence CC-BY-SA 3.0.