The Truth Behind Martha & Snoop's Potluck Dinner Party
At first glance, Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg's friendship might seem like French fries and ice cream — both are fantastic on their own, but they're not something you'd necessarily think to put together. That being said, once you've dipped your Wendy's fries in a Frosty, you realize it's actually a pretty amazing combination.
In 2016, the stockbroker-turned-homemaking tycoon and famous 420 enthusiast/rap mogul teamed up to co-host VH1s "Martha & Snoop's Potluck Dinner Party." Running for three seasons, the unconventional duo charmed audiences with their easy chemistry and copious cannabis references. The show drew a diverse roster of celebrity guests, including Wiz Khalifa, Seth Rogen, Don Cheadle, Kathy Griffin, Queen Latifah, Margaret Cho, and Rick Ross, as well as musical performances from Anderson.Paak, Dreezy, DRAM, and Remy Ma.
It's not uncommon for reality show stars to put on a facade of friendship, frenemy-ship, or even rivalries, but Stewart and Snoop's friendship is the real deal — and it goes back further than you might think. Here's how it all got started.
Breaking barriers with mashed potatoes
Like so many good things in life, Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg's friendship began over a bowl of mashed potatoes. In 2008, Stewart invited Snoop onto "The Martha Stewart Show." As Stewart showed Snoop how to make Big Martha's mashed potatoes with cream cheese (using real butter, not Parkay, much to Snoop's surprise), Snoop shared plans for his upcoming Christmas album, "Snoop Dogg Presents Christmas in tha Dogg House." Snoop also introduced Stewart to his unique style of speaking, offering five essential words/terms to know: fo'shizzle, what's crack-a-lackin, chuuuch, all hood, and ball til you fall.
All that being said, their easy rapport was more than just entertaining. In Snoop's eyes, Stewart's invitation was a pivotal moment. "Martha kind of pioneered this, as far as like, letting rappers become a part of daytime television. Because we were not actually accepted," he said in an interview with NBC's Harry Smith.
Snoop returned to "The Martha Stewart Show" in 2009, joining Stewart in baking brownies. While their batch didn't include any of Snoop's favorite seasoning, they did get a little dusting of green — sprinkles, that is.
Friends from afar
Over the next few years, it seemed like the dynamic duo might have started to grow apart as their lives got busier and they took on new projects. Martha Stewart's television show transitioned to the Hallmark Channel, where it aired for two seasons before getting cancelled in 2012. That same year, she debuted "Martha Stewart's Cooking School" on PBS, and also appeared on "Law & Order: SVU" as a private school headmistress. Meanwhile, Snoop collaborated with Katy Perry on her hit single "California Gurls," in addition to releasing his own album, "Doggumentary," in 2011.
However, although the two were hard at work advancing their own careers, it was clear that they wanted to stay in touch. Snoop tweeted at Stewart a couple of times: once to ask for brownies for Prince William's bachelor party in 2010, and again in 2013 with a cheekily Photoshopped picture of the two of them baking brownies.
While participating in a Reddit AMA in 2014, Stewart admitted she wished she and Snoop were closer. She also edited her main post to ask "Where's Snoop? I have brownies FOR YOU!"
Roasted and toasted
Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart remained friendly over the years, but their connection really blossomed during the Comedy Central "Roast of Justin Bieber." Snoop told NBC's Harry Smith he was impressed with Stewart's ribald and racy roast. "She sat next to me, and she stole the show. She was the funniest 'roaster' that night," Snoop said. "In that moment, I knew I wanted to be alongside this lady for the rest of my life."
While Stewart saved her best jabs for the guest of honor, she took aim at several of the guests, including her buddy Snoop. "It's nice to see Snoop again. One of the highest-rated episodes on my show, 'Martha Stewart Living,' was when Snoop and I made brownies together. I've used his recipe ever since. As a matter of fact, I ate three of them right before they called and asked me to do this roast," she quipped.
While Stewart didn't actually scarf down any "special" brownies, Snoop has hinted that Stewart's roast may have been influenced by secondhand smoke — something she confirmed during an appearance on "Late Night with Seth Meyers." "I got high just sitting there," she said. "We had to sit on the stage for four hours. It took four hours to film that roast. And the secondary smoke is just as powerful as primary smoke. So I was totally high by the time I got up to that microphone."
Planning a potluck
Around the same time that Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg reunited at Justin Bieber's roast, "Jersey Shore" creator SallyAnn Salsano pitched a celebrity-themed cooking show to VH1, MTV, and Logo president Chris McCarthy. Speaking with USA Today, Salsano said she felt the cooking shows on the air at the time were repetitive, and wanted to shake things up by incorporating a celebrity element.
While the concept was quickly green-lit, it wasn't until a few weeks later that Snoop and Stewart's names were floated. Once they were, there was no turning back. Snoop expressed his enthusiasm for the project in a statement announcing their collaboration. "My homegirl, Martha and I have a special bond that goes back. We're gonna be cooking, drinking, and having a good time with our exclusive friends. Can't wait for you to see how we roll together!" he said (via Deadline).
Despite the fact that "there was so much hate, so much BS," that Salsano heard surrounding the show, she described the impact of showing up to the set for the first time. "Martha's side is decorated like, you know, Martha and Snoop's side has the front grill of a '64 Impala coming out of it," she said. "And I found it super interesting because you have two people who, on paper and visually, are complete and utter opposites yet they are exactly alike."
Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg's joint project became a hit
Would a show co-hosted by a grandmotherly domestic doyenne and perpetually stoned gangsta rapper succeed? Would it even make sense? The modern-day odd couple charmed audiences and critics, driving the show to success. Garnering 3 million viewers upon its debut, per Variety, "Martha & Snoop's Potluck Dinner Party" scored high advertising ratings in the lucrative 18 to 49 demographic. The show even snagged an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program.
The rapport between Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg was undeniable, natural, and enjoyable. Speaking to Rolling Stone, Snoop called their friendship "a natural combination of love, peace and harmony."
It helps that the show is also funny. Viewers saw Stewart — whose television persona was always the pinnacle of calm and measured domesticity — don a blinged-out cheese grater and a grill, shotgun a beer, sip a 40 of malt liquor, and feed rapper Rick Ross lobster while drinking out of a pimp cup decorated with her initials, per The Washington Post. Although a rotating roster of celebrity guests, including Ice Cube, DJ Khaled, Jamie Foxx, Patti LaBelle, and RuPaul, joined the duo each week for a dinner party, it's clear the hosts were always the stars.
Martha & Snoop's Potluck Party got revamped
The show's third season pitted Martha Stewart against Snoop Dogg in a friendly competition. Revamped as a cooking competition show, "Martha & Snoop's Potluck Party Challenge" paired the co-hosts with a celebrity guest as they competed for the coveted Potluck Party Platter award.
Using their signature flavor and flair to promote the tweaked series, Snoop and Stewart shot a promo parodying "Titanic." In a spoof of the iconic scene between Leonardo DiCaprio's Jack and Kate Winslet's Rose on the bow of the behemoth ship, the pair stands at a kitchen island as Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" plays. As wind billows through the kitchen windows, Stewart takes DiCaprio's supporting stance and asks Snoop to "open [his] eyes." "I'm frying! Martha, I'm frying!" Snoop exclaims as he dips a basket of French fries into a vat of hot oil.
Celebrity co-contestants on Team Martha included Matthew McConaughey, Octavia Spencer, Tiffany Haddish, Nick Jonas, and Michael Strahan, while Snoop teamed up with Method Man, Jimmy Kimmel, Joe Jonas, and Michael Rapaport, among others. Guest judges, responsible for declaring a winner each episode, included Isla Fisher, Loni Love, Laurie Hernandez, and William Shatner.
Learning from each other
Their backgrounds are about as different as can be, so there's obviously a lot that the self-proclaimed "King of Cush" and "Queen of Cuisine" can learn from each other.
Although Snoop hasn't convinced Stewart to "smoke weed every day" (or ever!), he has turned her onto the benefits of cannabidiol, or CBD. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Martha Stewart recalled the day Snoop Dogg gave her CBD ointment after a large rock landed on her toe. "I must tell you, my toe got better within two days. The nail never even turned black or fell off. I think it all had to do with this fantastic ointment that he gave me," she said.
Although Snoop already knew a thing or two about cooking before teaming up with Stewart, he learned his fair share of new recipes and techniques. "She's taught me how to ... have better food etiquette, how to be more professional in the kitchen," he told The Washington Post.
They're both quick to heap praise on each other, too. While Snoop gushed to the Los Angeles Times about Stewart's steak au poivre, Stewart raved about Snoop's Cornish game hens, an entree on the show's Christmas episode. While normally not a fan of game hens, she loved the dish — Snoop's mother's recipe. And while Snoop's no slouch in the kitchen, he's taken one very important lesson through the years of collaborating with Stewart: "Do what Martha says, that's the rule in the kitchen," he told Entertainment Weekly.
Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg support each other's successes
Over the years, Snoop Dogg has built an impressive resume: rapper, producer, songwriter, actor, businessman. In 2018, he added published author to his list of accomplishments. "From Crook to Cook: Platinum Recipes from Tha Boss Dogg's Kitchen", features 50 original recipes with Snoop's unique flavor, including Biscuits with Tha Thickness Gravy, Bossin' Up Shrimp Cocktail, Baby Got Back Ribs, and, of course, Gin and Juice.
It also features a foreword written by Martha Stewart. In her foreword, Stewart wrote about the special bond she and Snoop share, referencing their first TV appearance 10 years prior. "Working with Snoop has been a remarkable learning experience for me. Not only has he taught me new lingo and cultural references, he surprised me with his unique cooking techniques and recipes. I can't wait for him to share them with the world in this fun, one of a kind cookbook!"
Even though Snoop might sometimes be baked when he bakes, none of the recipes in "From Crook to Cook" include marijuana.
Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg are still going strong
While, as of this writing, Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg's dinner party show is on hold, their friendship certainly isn't. In August 2020, Stewart FaceTimed with Snoop during her HGTV show "Martha Knows Best," per USA Today, where she shared gardening advice with Snoop, guiding him through the process of potting his tomato plant. In December 2020, they teamed up at a Salesforce event to bake and decorate Christmas cookies. Designs included Christmas trees, dog bones, and, of course, marijuana leaves.
They kicked off 2021 by co-hosting the Puppy Bowl, throwing a tailgate party that included game day snacks and salty dog cocktails. They also made a virtual appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" in April 2021, where they showed off their closeness by taking part in the Best Friends Challenge.
After more than a decade of friendship, these two have only the kindest things to say about each other. "She lets me do me and accepts me for who I am. She doesn't try to change me," Snoop told People. "Martha will always be a friend."
"I like his laid-back energy, I like his outspokenness, I like his sense of timing. And, I really like to watch him cook," Stewart said in an interview with NBC. Snoop responded by calling Stewart "the big sister [he] never had."