Andre Romell Young, known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American record producer and rapper. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and was the president of Death Row Records. Young began his career as a member of the World Class Wreckin' Cru in 1985 and later found fame with the gangsta rap group N.W.A. The group popularized explicit lyrics in hip hop to detail the violence of street life. During the early 1990s, Young was credited as a key figure in the crafting and popularization of West Coast G-funk, a subgenre of hip hop characterized by a synthesizer foundation and slow, heavy beats.
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.
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 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.
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.
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.
Eazy-Duz-It is the debut studio album by American rapper Eazy-E. It was released on November 22, 1988, by Ruthless Records and Priority Records. The album charted on two different charts and went 2× Platinum in the United States despite very little promotion by radio and television. Three singles were released from the album, each charting in the US. The remastered version contains tracks from the extended play (EP), 5150: Home 4 tha Sick (1992). The 25th anniversary (2013) contains two bonus tracks which are 12" remixes of "We Want Eazy" and "Still Talkin.'"
C.I.A., a name short for Cru' in Action!, replacing the earlier name Stereo Crew, was a rap 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.
Andre Manuel, a disc jockey and record producer called The Unknown DJ or DJ Unknown, was a pioneer in the Los Angeles area's 1980s music scene, moving from electro funk and electro rap to gangsta rap. Now a legend of West Coast rap, he worked with rapper Ice-T in the early 1980s, then with Alonzo "Grandmaster Lonzo" Williams, and with MC Eiht's group Compton's Most Wanted in the early 1990s.
No One Can Do It Better is the debut studio album by The D.O.C., released on August 1, 1989, by Ruthless Records and Atlantic Records. It reached no. 1 on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart for two weeks, while peaking in the Top 20 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA three months after it was released, and Platinum on April 21, 1994. This was the only solo album The D.O.C. was able to record before a car accident resulted in crushing his larynx and permanently changing his voice. In recent years, however, he has been undergoing vocal surgery. He would not release another album until 7 years later, with Helter Skelter (1996), also released by Warner Music Group, but on Giant Records rather than Atlantic. "The Formula" has been seen as the song that invented G-funk.
"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.
"Boyz-n-the-Hood" is the debut single by Eazy-E, then leader of a new rap group, N.W.A. Released in March 1987, the single was a local hit, reissued, by year's end on the unauthorized compilation album N.W.A. and the Posse.
Death Row Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album and second double album released by Death Row Records. Released on November 26, 1996, the thirty-three song compilation contains hits by former and then-current Death Row artists as well as previously unreleased tracks and remixes. The album peaked at number 35 on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum on August 12, 1999.
World Class is the first studio album by American Los Angeles-based electro-hop group World Class Wreckin' Cru. It was released in 1985 under the Kru-Cut record label. Songs on the album included "Juice" and "Surgery", which were popular singles on the underground West Coast scene.
Rapped in Romance is the second and final studio album by American Los Angeles-based electro-hop group the World Class Wreckin' Cru. It was released in 1986 on Epic. Cli-N-Tel left the group during the fall of 1985 which led to Lonzo recruiting Shakespeare to join the group.
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.
Tony Alvarez, known as DJ Tony A. Da Wizard is an American DJ/producer and film director. He is best known for creating The Roadium Mixtapes with Dr. Dre and Steve Yano at the Roadium Swap Meet in Gardena, California. He’s also known for producing and DJing for the rapper Hi-C featuring Tony A. on the album titled Skanless.
