Hip-hop crooner Nate Dogg was memorialized at a funeral service in his native Long Beach on Saturday. The service, which began at 10 a.m., drew a crowd of approxmiately 1,500, many of whom waited to enter in the damp morning weather.
The assemblage comprised family, friends and a select number of fans on hand to see off the singer, whose real name was Nathaniel D. Hale. His longtime friends and collaborators Snoop Dogg, Warren G and The Game were among the prominent attendees.
Hale, 41, died on March 15 due to complications from multiple strokes. He is best known for "Regulate," his 1995 collaboration with Warren G.
At the ceremony, the Game noted that Hale's untimely passing should serve as a wake-up call about the fleeting nature of life.
"The world has lost something and someone special. It's just a sad day and a reminder that we can be here one day and gone the next. A reminder that we all should embrace each day and cherish life," he said, according to the Press-Telegram.
Also read: "Nate Dogg Dead at 41; Crooned on 'Regulate' With Warren G
The funeral service, which was held at the Queen Mary Dome — a former warehouse that was once home to Howard Hughes' famed Spruce Goose plane — was originally intended to be public, but city officials, fearing that the crowd would be too large, nixed the plans. Instead, 1,000 fans were offered tickets to the funeral on Friday on a first-call basis.
A public viewing for the singer was also held on Friday, at the New Hope Baptist Church in Long Beach, where Hale had once sung in the choir. As with the funeral, no cameras were allowed at the viewing.
Also read: "Nate Dogg, Warren G, G-Funk and the Robbery That Wasn't"
A tribute concert for Hale, starring Snoop Dogg, is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Queen Mary Dome. The Press-Telegram at one point on Saturday said the concert had been canceled, but then removed any mention of the cancellation.