N.W.A was an American hip hop group whose members 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.
Lorenzo Jerald Patterson, better known by his stage name 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.
Eric Lynn Wright, known professionally as Eazy-E, was an American rapper who propelled West Coast rap and gangsta rap by leading the group N.W.A and its label, Ruthless Records. He is often referred to as the "Godfather of Gangsta Rap".
Straight Outta Compton is the debut studio album by 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."
Robin Yvette Allen, known professionally as the Lady of Rage, is an American rapper, singer and actress best known for her collaborations with several other Death Row Records artists, including Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg on the seminal albums, The Chronic and Doggystyle. The Lady of Rage has been described as "one of the most skillful female MCs" with a "mastery of flow" and "hard-core lyrics".
Bone Thugs-n-Harmony is an American hip hop group consisting of Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone, Layzie Bone, Krayzie Bone, and Flesh-n-Bone. The group was signed to Ruthless Records in late 1993, when they debuted with their EP Creepin on ah Come Up. The EP included their breakout hit single "Thuggish Ruggish Bone". In 1995, the group released its second album E. 1999 Eternal, which included hits "1st of tha Month" and "East 1999". Their hit song "Tha Crossroads", a tribute to then-recently deceased Eazy-E, won a Grammy Award in 1997.
Antoine Carraby, better known by his stage name DJ Yella, is an American DJ, rapper, record producer and film director from Los Angeles, California.
Death Row Records is an American record label that was founded in 1991 by The D.O.C., Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, and Dick Griffey. The label became a sensation by releasing multi-platinum hip-hop albums by West Coast-based artists such as Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Tha Dogg Pound, and 2Pac during the 1990s. At its peak, Death Row was making over US$100 million a year.
Delmar Drew Arnaud, known professionally as Daz Dillinger, is an American rapper and record producer. In the 1990s at Death Row Records, aided the catapult of West Coast rap and gangsta rap into the mainstream. He is one half of the rap duo tha Dogg Pound, along with Kurupt.
100 Miles and Runnin' is an EP from the American gangsta rap group N.W.A. Released on August 14, 1990, this EP of five tracks reflects an evolution of N.W.A's sound and centers on the single "100 Miles and Runnin'." Two tracks, "100 Miles" and "Real Niggaz," incidentally incited N.W.A's feud with Ice Cube, who had left to start a solo rap career. The porno rap track "Just Don't Bite It," also drew notice. Pushing lyrical boundaries in its day, the EP went gold in November 1990 and platinum in September 1992.
Tha Dogg Pound is an American hip hop duo made up of rappers Kurupt and Daz Dillinger. They were signed to Death Row Records in their early careers and were key to the label's success.
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.
Tracy Lynn Curry, better known by his stage name the D.O.C., is an American rapper. In addition to a solo career, he was a member of the Southern hip hop group Fila Fresh Crew and later collaborated with gangsta rap group N.W.A–where he co-wrote many of their releases–as well as Eazy-E's solo debut album Eazy-Duz-It. He has also worked with Dr. Dre, co-writing his solo debut album, while Dre produced Curry's solo debut album, released by Ruthless Records. He was one of the founders of Death Row Records along with Dr. Dre and Suge Knight.
"Fuck tha Police" is a protest song by American hip hop group N.W.A that appears on the 1988 album Straight Outta Compton as well as on the N.W.A's Greatest Hits compilation. The lyrics protest police brutality and racial profiling and the song was ranked number 425 on Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2021, Rolling Stone re-ranked the song at number 190 in an updated list.
A posse cut is a popular form of song in hip hop music that involves successive verses by four or more rappers.
"Tha Crossroads" is a song written and performed by hip hop group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, released as a single in April 1996. The song is dedicated to the group's mentor, the late gangsta rap icon Eazy-E, and other family members. The song was the highest-debuting rap single when it debuted at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, reaching number one the following week and staying there for eight consecutive weeks. It also reached number one in New Zealand, where it was the most successful single of 1996. In 1997, the song won a Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.
"Fuck Wit Dre Day ", or as a single titled "Dre Day", is a rap song by Los Angeles record producer and rapper Dr. Dre, featuring rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg, and released in May 1993 as the second single from Dre's debut solo album, The Chronic. "Dre Day" was a diss track targeting mainly Dre's former groupmate Eazy-E, who led their onetime rap group N.W.A and who, along with N.W.A's manager Jerry Heller, owned N.W.A's record label, Ruthless Records. In "Dre Day" and in its music video, which accuse Eazy of cheating N.W.A's artists, Dre and Snoop degrade and menace him. Also included are disses retorting earlier disses on songs by Miami rapper Luke Campbell, by New York rapper Tim Dog, and by onetime N.W.A. member Ice Cube, although Dre, while still an N.W.A member, had helped diss Cube first. After "Dre Day," a number of further diss records were exchanged.
Jevon Jones is an American rapper better known by his stage name Tha Realest, and formerly Tenkamenin The Vigilante. His debut album, Witness Tha Realest, was released on July 14, 2009, following numerous delays. Tha Realest is also known, often in a negative light, for his strikingly similar voice to deceased rapper and former label-mate, Tupac Shakur. Tha Realest is also a member of The Regime.
The N.W.A Legacy, Volume 1: 1988–1998 is a two-disc compilation by album released on March 23, 1999 through Priority Records. It is composed of 26 songs recorded from 1988 to 1998 by the American hip hop group N.W.A, including solo material of its members Ice Cube, Eazy-E, Dr. Dre and MC Ren, and their affiliates such as The D.O.C., Above The Law, Da Lench Mob, Snoop Dogg, Penthouse Players Clique, Tha Dogg Pound, Westside Connection and 2Pac. Bryan Turner served as executive producer.
"Foe tha Love of $" is the second single by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, featuring Eazy-E, from their debut EP, Creepin on ah Come Up. The song was produced by DJ Yella and executive produced by Eazy-E. "Foe tha Love of $" was a huge success for the group, making it to #41 on the Billboard Hot 100, #37 on the Rhythmic Top 40 and #4 on the Hot Rap Singles. The music video is notable for being Eazy-E's last appearance in a music video before his death. The song was included in the soundtrack of the video game True Crime: Streets of LA, along with "Thuggish Ruggish Bone". DJ Screw has also remixed it on the 1996 mix "Chapter 24 - 9 Months Later".
