Fact Check: Snoop Dogg Invested In Reddit Early, Before $6 Billion Dollar IPO Valuation

Recent claims circulating online suggest that Hip-Hop artist Snoop Dogg made an early investment in Reddit, reaping substantial benefits as the company’s valuation soared. While he did invest, the details around his investment are not transparent. Reddit, which is centered around link sharing and a discussion board format, was launched in 2005 by Steve Huffman and Alexis Ohanian (now the husband of Tennis champ Serena Williams); it became a publicly held company in 2024.

After selling the company to Conde Nast in 2006 for $10 million, Ohanian and Huffman returned to the company full time in 2015. Ohanian stepped back from a day-to-day role in 2018 while continuing to serve on the board, CBNC reported.

Snoop Dogg, a longtime tech investor, diversified his portfolio by participating in a $50 million financing round for Reddit. The investment, announced in 2014, positioned Snoop Dogg alongside notable Technology investors such as Marc Andreessen, Peter Thiel, and others. The funding round valued Reddit at approximately $500 million. Sam Altman, president of the start-up incubator Y Combinator, which backed Reddit when it debuted in 2005, led the deal.

“He’s like a Reddit superstar,” Mr. Altman told The New York Times of Snoop Dogg in 2014. “The site loves him.”

According to Altman, when he made the initial offer to Reddit, he asked the company for a wish list of investors. “Snoop was high on the list,”. Altman said. “We asked him to invest, and he said yes.”

Despite Snoop Dogg’s involvement as an investor, the specifics of his investment journey remain somewhat opaque. Reports do not confirm whether he retained his stake leading up to Reddit’s monumental initial public offering (IPO) or if he divested his shares earlier in the process.

Reddit’s IPO, which took place in March 2024, marked a major milestone for the platform. The company’s shares surged by 48 percent upon debut, CNBC reported. Reddit Inc. eyed a valuation of as much as $6.5 billion in its IPO, Bloomberg reported.

In 2020, Ohanian stepped down from the company’s board, and urged the company to fill his seat with a Black candidate.

Reddit logo via website, Reddit.com/Snoop Dogg, photo via Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/p/C6O9BToSm-A/?hl=en