Snoop Dogg shocked fans last week when he declared he was ‘giving up smoke’ which many took as him giving up his love of cannabis – but it turns out it might have just been a marketing ploy.

On Monday, the hip-hop legend unveiled a new ad where he says he’s giving up smoke – by way of endorsing Solo Stove, a smokeless fire pit brand.

Snoop offered greater clarification that his earlier comment was in regards to his love for sitting by a fire pit without “coughing and his clothes smelling all sticky icky.” 

The rapper did not initially specify whether or not was giving up marijuana and his reps did not respond for comment- with the hitmaker asking fans to ‘respect his privacy.’

However, his fans flooded his social media page claiming to have been ‘fooled’ by the announcement, with others calling it a ‘genius marketing ploy.’ 

In a press release via the brand, Snoop said: ‘I love a good fire outside but the smoke was too much. Solo Stove fixed fire and took out the smoke. They changed the game and now I’m excited to spread the love and stay warm with my friends and family.’ 

Snoop Dogg ‘quitting’ smoking appears to be a marketing ploy for the rapper to sell a smokeless FIRE PIT instead of giving up marijuana – as fans react: ‘Genius marketing!’

The brand has confirmed Snoop as their new spokesman and will be releasing a collaboration on Monday at 4:20 p.m. EDT. 

4:20 is cannabis culture slang for marijuana and hashish consumption. 

In one of the press shots, Snoop can be seen blowing out some smoke of his mouth, hinting he’s not really done with smoking himself. 

Fans had been initially unconvinced by the admission he was giving up smoke, with some rightly wondering if it was just a publicity stunt last week.

‘I’m giving up smoke,’ the rapper mysteriously claimed in his original post, which included a fuller statement reading: ‘After much consideration with my family, I’ve decided to give up smoke.’ 

The 52-year-old added before signing off the message, ‘Please respect my privacy at this time.’ 

Marketing ploy? Snoop Dogg claimed last week that he was QUITTING smoking – after it was once claimed the cannabis-loving rapper had 75-150 joints rolled for him every 24 hours

Surprise, surprise: The brand has confirmed Snoop as their new spokesman and will be releasing a collaboration on Monday at 4:20 p.m. EDT

Still smoking! Snoop Dogg blows out some smoke hinting he’s not really done with smoking himself 

Now fans have been commenting with joy over the apparent stunt, with one saying: ‘You had people reevaluating their entire lives over a smokeless stove. Genius’ 

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‘Snoop ain’t turning down a check,’ one fan wrote, while another said: ‘You had me praying for you.’

It initially came as a shock to fans of the veteran rapper due to his open appreciation for the drug, which has extended to numerous business ventures, among them edibles, weed strains and a digital media business devoted to marijuana related news. 

It was once claimed that the rapper – born Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr – had someone rolling 75-150 joints for him per day, which he would later dispute and dismiss. 

Renegade Piranha, who had claimed to be Snoop’s ‘personal blunt roller’ (PBR) said last year: ‘On average, I do about half a pound a day, which seems excessive. So that’s roughly like 75 to 150 units per day. I calculate it at over 450,000 blunts.’

However, in March this year he admitted he had moderated his weed intake after becoming a grandfather. 

Up in smoke? Snoop Dogg is pictured smoking a blunt while performing at The O2 Arena on March 21 this year in the UK

Big business: The veteran rapper has an open appreciation for the drug, which has extended to numerous business ventures, among them edibles and a digital media business

Speaking to DailyMail.com in March, Snoop said his personal use was scrutinized after eldest child Cordé became a father to son Zion in 2015. 

‘Being a grandfather has changed me in multiple ways,’ he said. 

 ‘The main way is being concerned with how I live, how I move, the kind of people I’m associated with, because I want to see my grandkids grow old.

‘The only way I can do that is to take precautionary steps as far as how I move, who I hang out with, where I go out, my intake, what am I intaking? 

‘The end of an era’: Fans quickly took to Twitter in shock at the news 

‘Am I doing extra-curricular or am I just doing what I’m supposed to be doing?’

The father-of-four is a parent to Cordé, 28, Cordell, 26, and Cori, 23, from his 25-year marriage to Shante Broadus, and son Julian, 25 from a former relationship with Laurie Holmond. 

Snoop is no stranger to weed and revealed in a 2013 Twitter Q&A that he smokes up to 81 blunts per day, which is consistent with the estimate of his personal joint roller. 

In 2015, the rap artist launched his own platform called Merry Jane, a lifestyle media site that serves as an information hub for everyone interested in weed geared towards the occasional to the daily smoker.