Flavor Flav says as soon as Snoop Dogg emerges in Paris with the Olympic torch in hand on Friday -- no one in the hip hop community will ever forget it ... explaining this week it'll be "a very, very big moment for rap music history."

Flav, of course, will get to see it all go down in person ... as he made the trip to France this month as part of his role as the official sponsor of the USA women's water polo team.

He told Charlie Neff and Towanda Robinson on "The TMZ Podcast" that watching Snoop with the flame is actually the "main thing" he's "really, really" looking forward to in the buildup to the Paris Games -- because he thinks people will be talking about it decades from now.

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Snoop is expected to cruise through the town of Saint-Denis with the fire in a matter of hours ... just before it gets used to officially light the Olympic cauldron at the Opening Ceremony on the River Seine.

Flav said he's only got one piece of advice for his pal as he makes his way through the streets -- "don't drop the torch!"

As for Snoop, he said in an interview leading up to the big moment earlier this week that he's taking it all very seriously ... and is promising to be on his "best behavior."

Flav, meanwhile, said in addition to Snoop -- he's hoping to catch a Team USA basketball game while out in Paris ... as well as meet up with Simone Biles, who he called his "main personal favorite athlete right now."

Check out the full interview with Flav on "The TMZ Podcast," available on all podcast platforms!