N.W.A was an American hip hop group formed in Compton, California. They were among the earliest and most significant popularizers and controversial figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, and the group is widely considered one of the greatest and most influential groups in the history of hip hop music.
O'Shea Jackson Sr., better known as Ice Cube, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor, and film producer. His lyrics on N.W.A's 1988 album Straight Outta Compton contributed to gangsta rap's widespread popularity, and his political rap solo albums AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted (1990), Death Certificate (1991), and The Predator (1992) were all critically and commercially successful. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of N.W.A in 2016.
West Coast hip hop is a regional genre of hip hop music that encompasses any artists or music that originated in the West Coast of the United States. West Coast hip hop began to dominate from a radio play and sales standpoint during the early to-mid 1990s with the birth of G-funk and the emergence of record labels such as Suge Knight and Dr. Dre's Death Row Records, Ice Cube's Lench Mob Records, the continued success of Eazy-E's Ruthless Records, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, and others.
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."
World Class Wreckin' Cru was an American electro group, during the 1980s in the Los Angeles area, that contributed to rap's development. Two of its members, Dr. Dre and DJ Yella, attained greater fame as members of N.W.A, which pioneered gangsta rap. A song by the Cru had also featured R&B singer Michel'le.
Antoine Carraby, known professionally as DJ Yella, is an American DJ, rapper, record producer and film director from Los Angeles.
N.W.A. and the Posse is a compilation album, re-releasing N.W.A and associated groups' underground rap songs from the Los Angeles area's rap scene on November 6, 1987. It is regarded as American rap group N.W.A's first but neglected album; N.W.A's authorized debut studio album, rather, is Straight Outta Compton, released in August 1988. Whereas the Straight album was certified platinum, one million copies sold in July 1989, the Posse album was certified gold, half as many copies sold, in April 1994.
Swing Mob was an R&B/hip hop collective consisting of artists and record labels first discovered by Jodeci member DeVante Swing. The artists on Swing Mob included: Missy Elliott with the group Sista, Timbaland, Magoo, Ginuwine, Static Major and the rest of Playa, Darryl Pearson, Mike "Funky Mike" Jackson, Tweet with the group Sugah, Majik, Jimmy Douglass, Stevie J, Maija Max, Renee Anderson, Bazaar Royale and Chad "Dr. Ceuss" Elliott among others, although all official members had never been confirmed. A list of some known artists in Swing Mob at the time of the group's activity can be found in the liner notes of Jodeci's third studio album, The Show, The After-Party, The Hotel.
Anthony Wheaton, professionally known by his stage name Sir Jinx, is an American hip hop producer and rapper from Los Angeles. He is a cousin of multi-platinum producer Dr. Dre. He began his career as a member of the C.I.A. in the mid-80s with Ice Cube and Kid Disaster. He produced tracks for the likes of Dazzie Dee, Westside Connection, Too Short, Yo-Yo, Tone Loc, Kool G Rap, CeCe Peniston, Xzibit and Kurupt among others, and also remixed songs for Rage Against the Machine, Public Enemy and Toni Braxton.
C.I.A., a name short for Cru' in Action!, replacing the earlier name Stereo Crew, was an American hip hop trio, K-Dee, Sir Jinx, and Ice Cube, on the Los Angeles rap scene in the 1980s. The trio debuted at parties thrown by Sir Jinx's cousin Dr. Dre. Dre was in one of the Los Angeles area's leading DJ crews, the World Class Wreckin' Cru, whose core members, including Dre, doubled as a successful electro rap group. In 1986, the Stereo Crew's single "She's a Skag" arrived on Epic Records, which soon dropped the group for poor sales.
Robert Ross, known professionally as Black Rob, was an American rapper who was signed to Sean "Puffy" Combs' Bad Boy Entertainment. He was best known for his 2000 single "Whoa!", which peaked at number 43 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Michel'le Denise Toussant, also spelled Toussaint, is an American R&B singer known for her songs from 1989 to the early 1990s. Her highest charting song is the top ten US Hot 100 hit "No More Lies". Between 2013 and 2015, Michel'le was one of six members on the TV One reality show R&B Divas: Los Angeles. She is also the subject of the 2016 biopic Surviving Compton: Dre, Suge & Michel'le.
"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.
Gerald Elliot Heller was an American music manager and businessman. He was best known for his management of West Coast rap and gangsta rap pioneers N.W.A and Eazy-E. He rose to prominence in the 1960s and 1970s representing Journey, Marvin Gaye, Van Morrison, War, Eric Burdon, Crosby Stills & Nash, Ike & Tina Turner, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Otis Redding, the Who, REO Speedwagon, Black Sabbath, Humble Pie, Styx, the Grass Roots, and the Standells, among many others.
Roderick Anthony Burton II better known by his stage name Dolla, was an American rapper from Atlanta, Georgia. Burton embarked on his music career in 2003, with hip hop group Da Razkalz Cru, under the pseudonym Bucklyte. The group quickly disbanded, and Burton went on to work as a model for the Sean John clothing line. In 2007, Burton signed to Akon's Konvict Muzik label. Burton released three singles from 2007 to 2009. The first, his commercial debut single "Who the Fuck Is That?", featuring T-Pain and Tay Dizm, charted on the Billboard Hot 100.
Samuel William Christopher Watson, better known by his stage name Krizz Kaliko, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and voice actor. He is a longtime collaborator with fellow hometown native Tech N9ne and was signed to Strange Music from its inception in 1999 up to forming his own label Ear House Inc. in 2021.
Antoinette Lovell Patterson, known simply by the mononym Antoinette, is an American rapper from Bronx, New York, who released two albums, during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Marten Laciny, better known by his stage name Merteria, is a German rapper. He has met with success in Germany and the single "Verstrahlt", featuring Yasha, was included in the video game FIFA 12.
Ces Cru (often stylized as CES Cru) is an American rap duo from Kansas City, Missouri, signed to independent record label Strange Music. The duo currently consists of members Donnie "Godemis" King and Mike "Ubiquitous" Viglione, but has had numerous members throughout the years. Ces Cru released their debut album Capture Enemy Soldiers in 2004. They went on to release Cesphiles, Vol. 1 Codename:irongiant (2008) and The Playground (2009). In 2010, the duo signed to Tech N9ne's record label Strange Music and have released the EP 13 (2012) and Recession Proof (2015). Their first two studio albums on the label are Constant Energy Struggles (2013), and Codename: Ego Stripper (2014). The most recent release from Ces Cru is their sixth studio album Catastrophic Event Specialists, released in February 2017. In 2021, both artists have since departed from the label.
Alonzo Williams is an American DJ and former member and promoter of the World Class Wreckin' Cru. He is credited for playing a major role in the development of West Coast Hip Hop, tracing back to the late 1970s. He is also the former owner of Kru-Cut Records.
