Snoop Dogg And Others On 'Oz' Soundtrack

10/10/2000 7:00 AM, Yahoo! Music
Craig Rosen

(10/10/00,7 a.m. ET) - HBO's gritty prison drama Oz will now have its own multi-artist soundtrack, due out on January 9 to coincide with the premiere of the controversial drama's new season. The Avatar Records compilation features all-new tracks by Snoop Dogg, Cypress Hill, Method Man, Master P., Kurupt, Nate Dogg, Goodie Mobb, and Three 6 Mafia.

Larry Robinson, president of Avatar Records, told LAUNCH that as a fan of Oz, he thought a hip-hop soundtrack would be a perfect fit, but it took some convincing.

"It came about through about a year and a half of assiduous pursuit by us to Paramount Pictures," explains Robinson. "Warner Bros. had the Sex And The City deal, and Sony had The Sopranos locked up. We just went after it with proposals, marketing plans, budgets, and other presentations. There is no other show on television that lends itself to a crazy rap soundtrack like Oz because the show is so violent, ill, nihilistic, and real. And this show has a devoted fanbase."

Robinson adds that featured artists Method Man and Master P will also be featured as actors in upcoming episodes of Oz.

Appropriate to the soundtrack's theme, a percentage of proceeds from the album will benefit the Innocence Project, which helps to free wrongly convicted death row inmates through DNA testing.

-- Janine Coveney, Los Angeles

Got news tips, comments, or questions? Send them to newstips@launch.com.