By Daily Mail Reporter 16th March 2011
American singer Nate Dogg, real name Nathaniel Dwayne Hale, has died at the age of 41.
Snoop Dogg paid tribute to his close friend and long-time collaborator via Twitter, describing him as a ‘true legend of hip-hop and R&B.’
He added: ‘[Nate] was one of my best friends and a brother to me since 1986 when I was a sophomore at Poly High [Long Beach Polytechnic High School] where we met.
Hip-hop legend: American rapper Nate Dogg, real name Nathaniel Dwayne Hale, has died at the age of 41
‘I love you buddy. You will always be with me forever and a day. You put the ‘G’ in ‘G funk’, you put the ‘1’ in ‘213’ and you put your stamp on everybody you ever did it with.
‘I miss you because I am so sad but so happy I got to grow up with you, and I will see you again in heaven, because you know the slogan ‘all dogs go to heaven’.’
The cause of death has not yet been confirmed but in December 2007 the singer was left paralysed on one side of his body after a massive stroke and was struck by a second one in September 2008.
Nate Dogg started his career with Snoop and Warren G in the early 1990s as a rap trio in Long Beach called 213.
As well as Snoop, Nate Dogg also collaborated with musicians Eminem, Ludacris and Tupac Shakur.
Friends for life: Snoop Dogg, Warren G, and Nate Dogg, seen here in 2004,
Twitter tributes: Snoop Dogg and fans of Nate Dogg took to the social networking site to pay their respects
Warren G tweeted on Sunday: ‘For those that don’t know, a while back Nate had two strokes. He is in therapy. Thanks again for your support.’
After hearing of his death, singer Erykah Badu also tweeted: ‘Nate Dogg… freshness period. Rest in beats’.
While comedian Dave Chappelle wrote: ‘Moment of silence for a hip-hop legend; RIP Nate Dogg. You will be missed, G Funk Era forever. #natedogg.’
Nate Dogg first found fame on Dr Dre’s album The Chronic, on which he was a guest and his hit Regulate with Warren G reached No 5 in the charts in 1994.
He then released three solo albums, the first in 1998 titled G-Funk Classics, Vol 1 & 2, Music And Me in 2001 and a self-titled LP in 2004.
WARREN G FEATURING NATE DOGG REGULATE
