Snoop Dogg reveals he joined Nation of Islam

American rapper Snoop Dogg made an appearance at the Nation of Islam's annual Saviors Day convention and revealing he is a member of the movement, according to press reports Monday.

Snoop, a Grammy Award-nominated musician, was one of several hip-hop stars who attended the movement's annual commemoration of the birth of the movement's founder, Wallace D. Fard Muhammad, Sunday in a Chicago suburb.

Wearing sunglasses, a dark suit and a tie, Snoop spoke briefly in front of a crowd of thousands and praised the movement's leader Minister Louis Farrakhan, who has long had relationships with famous rappers and hip-hop artists.

Snoop, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, gave a $1,000 donation to the Nation, which espouses black nationalism and fights for black self-reliance and power.

When asked by the BBC if he planned to convert and become a member of the Chicago-based Nation of Islam, Snoop indicated he had already taken the plunge.

"I'm already in the Nation, that's why I'm here," he said. "I'm an advocate for peace. I've been in the peace movement ever since I've been making music."

"My whole thing is not about really trying to push my thing on you. It's just about the way I live, and I live how I'm supposed to live as far as doing what's right and representing what's right."

Snoop did not specify when he had joined the Nation of Islam.

I'm already in the Nation, that's why I'm here

Snoop Dogg

The rapper called himself the "leader of the hip-hop community" and said it was his first Saviors Day event. He told followers that he would share the information he gathered with other musicians.

"When you get a speech from Minister Farrakhan it's about a mirror, it's about looking at yourself," the BBC reported the rapper as saying.

"It's about seeing yourself and what you can do to better the situation ... We're doing a lot of wrongs among ourselves that need correcting."

He credited Farrakhan with helping bring peace to the hip-hop community after the 1997 murder of rapper Notorious B.I.G.

It's about seeing yourself and what you can do to better the situation

Snoop Dogg