Lorenzo Jerald Patterson, known professionally as MC Ren, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer from Compton, California. He is the founder and owner of the record label Villain Entertainment.
G-funk, short for gangsta funk, is a sub-genre of gangsta rap that emerged from the West Coast scene in the early 1990s. The genre was heavily influenced by the synthesizer-heavy 1970s funk sound of Parliament-Funkadelic, often incorporated through samples or re-recordings. It was represented by commercially successful albums such as Dr. Dre's The Chronic (1992) and Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle (1993).
Straight Outta Compton is the debut studio album by American gangsta rap group N.W.A, which, led by Eazy-E, formed in Los Angeles County's City of Compton in early 1987. Released by his label, Ruthless Records, on August 8, 1988, the album was produced by N.W.A members Dr. Dre, DJ Yella, and Arabian Prince, with lyrics written by N.W.A members Ice Cube and MC Ren along with Ruthless rapper The D.O.C. Not merely depicting Compton's street violence, the lyrics repeatedly threaten to lead it by attacking peers and even police. The track "Fuck tha Police" drew an FBI agent's warning letter, which aided N.W.A's notoriety, with N.W.A calling itself "the world's most dangerous group."
Antoine Carraby, known professionally as DJ Yella, is an American DJ, rapper, record producer and film director from Los Angeles.
Aaron Bernard Tyler, better known by his stage name MC Eiht, is an American rapper. Many of his songs are based on his life in Compton. His stage name was partly inspired by the numeral in KRS-One's name. He chose Eiht for its links to "hood culture", including Olde English 800 and .38 caliber firearms. He is the de facto leader of West Coast hip hop group Compton's Most Wanted, which also included fellow Compton-based rappers Boom Bam, The Unknown DJ, Tha Chill, DJ Mike T, DJ Slip and Ant Capone. He is also known for his role as A-Wax in the 1993 film Menace II Society, as well as playing the character Ryder in the 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Compton's Most Wanted (C.M.W.) is an American gangsta rap group and part of the early West Coast hip hop scene. The leaders of the group are MC Eiht and Tha Chill.
"Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" is a song by American rapper Dr. Dre, featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Dogg, on Dre's debut solo album, The Chronic (1992). As the album's first single it reached number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 on March 20, 1993, behind "Informer" by Snow, outperformed The Chronic's other singles, "Fuck wit Dre Day ", which peaked at number 8, and "Let Me Ride", which peaked at number 34. The single also reached number 1 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, and was a number 31 hit in the UK. Its music video was directed by Dr. Dre himself.
"Real Muthaphuckkin G's," or "Real Compton City G's" in its radio edit, is a diss track released as a single in August 1993 by American rapper Eazy-E with guest rappers Gangsta Dresta and B.G. Knocc Out. Peaking at #42 on Billboard's Hot 100, and the most successful of Eazy's singles as a solo artist, it led an EP, also his most successful, It's On 187um Killa. This diss track answers Eazy's former N.W.A bandmate Dr. Dre and his debuting, guest rapper Snoop Dogg, who had dissed Eazy on Dre's first solo album, The Chronic.
So So Gangsta is the eighth solo studio album by American rapper Daz Dillinger. It was released on September 12, 2006 via So So Def/Virgin Records simultaneously with an instrumental album entitled So So Gangsta - The Album Sampler. Recording sessions took place at Studio Atlantis and at the Crippin Kitchen in Los Angeles, at the Hit Factory Criteria and at Poe Boy Studios in Miami, and at SouthSide Studios in Atlanta. Production was handled by Jermaine Dupri, No I.D., Scott Storch and Daz himself, with LRoc, Ivan Johnson and Soopafly serving as co-producers. It features guest appearances from Avery Storm, Ice Cube, Jagged Edge, Johntá Austin, Kurupt, Rick Ross, Snoop Dogg, Soopafly and The Kid Slim. The album debuted at number 35 on the Billboard 200 with just over 23,000 albums sold its first week. It has reached 150,000 moved units according to SoundScan on October 10, 2007.
We Come Strapped is the debut studio album by American rapper MC Eiht. It was released on July 19, 1994, through Epic Street. Recording sessions took place at X-Factor Studios in Long Beach, California. Production was handled primarily by Compton's Most Wanted members MC Eiht and DJ Slip, except for one song, "Compton Bomb", produced by Ric Roc. It features contributions from William "Willie Z" Zimmerman on the keyboards, Josh Achziger on guitar, Carla Evans on vocals, and guest appearances from rappers Redman and Spice 1.
Music to Driveby is the third studio album by American gangsta rap group Compton's Most Wanted. It was released on September 29, 1992 through Orpheus/Epic Records. Recording sessions took place at Big Beat Soundlabs in Los Angeles and at Slips X Factor Studios in Inglewood from May 18 to June 9, 1992. Production was handled by members DJ Slip, MC Eiht and DJ Mike T, as well as The Unknown DJ and Ric Roc. It features contributions from William "Willie Z" Zimmerman on background vocals, keyboards, saxophone and harmonica, EMmage on backing vocals, and guest appearance by Scarface of Geto Boys.
'N Gatz We Truss is the second studio album by American rap group South Central Cartel. It was released on May 10, 1994, via South G.W.K. Records and Rush Associated Labels. Recording sessions took place at Kitchen Sync Studio in Hollywood, California with producers Prodeje and Havikk the Rhime Son, co-producers DJ Gripp, L.V. and DJ Kaos, and executive producer Cary "Havoc" Calvin. The album features guest performances by 2Pac, 3-2, Big Mike, Ice-T, MC Eiht and Spice 1, and also introduced a new member to the group, Patrick "Young Prodeje" Pitts.
Straight Checkn 'Em is the second studio album by American gangsta rap group Compton's Most Wanted. It was released on July 16, 1991 through Orpheus Records and Epic Records. Recording sessions took place at Big Beat Soundlabs in Los Angeles from April 2 to April 19, 1991, except for the song "Growin' Up in the Hood" recorded and mixed at Trax Recording Studio in Hollywood on March 31, 1991. Production was handled entirely by DJ Slip and the Unknown DJ.
When We Wuz Bangin' 1989–1999: The Hitz is the first greatest hits album by American hip hop group Compton's Most Wanted including solo material recorded by the group's frontman MC Eiht. It was released on January 23, 2001, via The Right Stuff/Capitol Records. Composed of thirteen tracks, it contains songs from the first three Compton's Most Wanted albums—It's a Compton Thang, Straight Checkn 'Em and Music to Driveby—, its A-side and B-sides, Menace II Society , MC Eiht featuring CMW album We Come Strapped, Spice 1's album 1990-Sick, and MC Eiht's solo album Section 8. Production was handled by DJ Slip, The Unknown DJ, Blackjack, Fredwreck and MC Eiht, with Tom Cartwright serving as executive producer. It features guest appearances from Scarface and Spice 1.
"Hood Took Me Under" is a song by American West Coast hip hop group Compton's Most Wanted, released as a single from their third studio album Music to Driveby. Its lyrics were written and performed by MC Eiht. It was recorded at Big Beat Soundlabs in Los Angeles, produced by DJ Mike T, and released via Orpheus Records/Epic Records. The song samples Isaac Hayes' version of "Walk On By". The single peaked at #5 on the Hot Rap Songs and at #63 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Sales in the United States.
Vernon Johnson, professionally known by his stage name Tha Chill, is an American rapper and record producer. He embarked on his music career in the early 1990s, as a co-founder of the Compton-based West Coast hip hop/gangsta rap group Compton's Most Wanted, along with frontman Aaron "MC Eiht" Tyler. During his childhood, Johnson dropped out of high school and hooked up with neighbourhood friend MC Eiht, to form the group.
Raw Footage is the eighth studio album by American rapper Ice Cube. It was released on August 19, 2008, by his record label Lench Mob Records and EMI. The album features guest appearances from The Game, Butch Cassidy, Musiq Soulchild, Young Jeezy and WC. The album is his most political effort, since over a decade earlier with the release of his album The Predator (1992).
Oxymoron is the third studio album by American rapper Schoolboy Q. It was released on February 25, 2014, through Top Dawg Entertainment and distributed by Interscope Records. Oxymoron was his first album released under a major record label to music retailers, whereas his previous albums were released independently to digital retailers only.
My Krazy Life is the debut studio album by American rapper YG. It was released on March 18, 2014, through CTE World and Pushaz Ink, and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. The album features guest appearances from Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj, Rich Homie Quan, Ty Dolla Sign, Schoolboy Q, Meek Mill, Jay Rock, Tory Lanez, Jeezy, TeeFlii and RJ, while the production was primarily handled by frequent collaborator DJ Mustard, along with production from Ty Dolla Sign and Terrace Martin.
"Left, Right" is a song by American rapper YG, released on December 10, 2013 as the second single from his debut studio album My Krazy Life (2014). The song was produced by and features vocals from frequent collaborator DJ Mustard. It received positive reviews from critics. "Left, Right" peaked at number 44 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. A music video for the single, directed by Alex Nazari and YG, features a house party in Compton that's filled with cameos from Los Angeles rappers.
