‘It’s hypocritical’: Izak Rankine controversy shines uncomfortable spotlight on AFL’s Snoop Dogg decision

The Izak Rankine controversy couldn’t have come at a worse time for the AFL, putting league bosses in the line of fire over perceptions of hypocrisy in the week after hiring Snoop Dogg to headline the entertainment for this year’s grand final.

While Crows star Rankine is set to cop a five-week ban for his homophobic slur against a Collingwood player, potentially missing his chance to play in the AFL’s showpiece on the last Saturday of September, taking the stage in the middle of the MCG and earning millions for the pleasure will be an American artist who uses the exact same word that Rankine is being sanctioned for in his world famous lyrics.

At best, it’s an awkward dichotomy. At worst, it’s the definition of stinking hypocrisy, as is now being widely discussed and debated across the footy world.

Izak Rankine faces a five-week ban for using the same derogatory slur that features in Snoop Dogg lyrics. Getty

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Snoop Dogg has attracted criticism throughout his career for his views on the LGBTQ+ community and women, use of derogatory language, and legal issues centring on drug possession and gun possession.

The artist has previously made homophobic statements and used gay slurs in his music, including the use of the highly derogatory “f—-t”, the very word Rankine allegedly targeted his Collingwood opponent with, in his 1998 release ‘Doggz Gonna Get Ya’.

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The slur features in some of Snoop Dog’s less prominent album tracks and freestyles, with offensive language edited out of his more popular, radio-friendly hits to create “clean” versions.

Snoop Dogg has also been criticised for lyrics and music videos that portray and mock other artists in a seemingly homophobic manner.

A 2014 Instagram post from the rapper also included a screenshot of two men in bed with a caption where the slur appeared.

Speaking on Nine’s Footy Classified, premiership Bomber James Hird did not know if it was wrong or right to have Snoop Dogg perform, given Rankine’s situation, but acknowledged that the AFL’s decision was hypocritical.

“It’s ironic … It’s even hypocritical, isn’t it?,” he said.

“That’s what the aim at the AFL is. With what’s happened to Izak Rankine, it’s hypocritical to have Snoop Dogg out on the MCG and be paying him a lot of money.”

Snoop Dogg served as a “special correspondent” for NBC during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Getty

Nine’s chief AFL reporter Tom Morris stated that the clubs shared the same sentiment.

“That’s the view in clubland, among people I’ve spoken to as well,” he said.

In defending the decision, AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon last week declared that there will be “family-friendly” versions of Snoop Dogg’s hit songs performed on grand final day.

“I you’ve actually seen him at the Super Bowl and seen him at the Olympics, he has family-friendly versions of the songs that he sings,” he told 3AW Mornings.

“If you went through the back catalogue of every artist in the world, you would find things you don’t like. You’ve said you’re not a fan, but if you went and looked at what Snoop stands for now, he’s a grandfather and he runs a non-profit youth football league.”

Snoop Dogg’s previous use of derogatory language is considered part of a wider conversation about homophobia in hip-hop culture, with many artists from a similar era critiqued for similar lyrics.