Word of rap's most notorious group getting back together made me recall an interview I saw years ago on the Oprah Winfrey show with West Coast gangsta rap godfather Ice-T. The focus of the talk show was the lyrical content of rap music, and the effect it was having on the youth of America. I remember worrying that Ice-T might be out of his league; he was definitely in the lion's den and the crowd was hostile. This was not an audience of his peers--not an audience of rap fans--this was an audience of middle age white parents...mostly female. The only rap artist they knew was The Fresh Prince. And even his song "Parents Just Don't Understand" was probably borderline cause for concern for this crowd. With surgical precision, Oprah politely tried to dissect Ice-T and expose him as nothing more than an entertainer using shock value to profit off the rebellious nature of youth. Ah, but Amerikkka was in for a surprise I.Q. test. Can't account for the tough lessons that only life can teach and Ice was one of its finest graduate students. He smelled the setup and proceeded to flip the script on his would-be attackers by exposing the real issue, one nobody wanted to talk about, even today. Calmly, Ice-T pointed out that he'd been in the rap game for years prior to his appearance on the show, prior to Mrs. Tipper Gore's founding of the PMRC, and he thought it was interesting if not disturbing that no one had said a word or made any effort to censor his lyrics when he was being listened to by a predominately black audience. Ice calmly pointed to white audience member after white audience member saying as he did so, "My music wasn't a problem until it was in your home and your home." He went on: "No one had a problem with my lyrics until Jane, Billy and Jonathan started bringing it home and listening to it." And if they thought Ice-T was bad, they were in for a huge surprise. The pied pipers of gansta rap--N.W.A.--were yet to come and after them rap music would never be the same.

In 1986 Eric Wright, a small-time hustler and drug dealer in Compton, California who went by the nickname "Eazy-E" on the streets, got aphone call from a neighborhood friend. That friend was none other than Andre ("Dr. Dre") Young. He was in jail over some outstanding traffic violations and needed bail money. Dre had already called World Class Wreckin' Kru bandmate Alonzo Williams but he declined the opportunity to give Dre more money since Dre was already up to his ears in debt to Alonzo. Eric said yes to his friend but he had one condition: Dre would have to repay the $900 loan by producing music for Eric's upcoming record label. With no other alternative in sight, Dre said yes and began working off his debt like an indentured servant. In the studio with Eazy, Dre found he had almost complete musical creative control, something he didn't have with the World Class Wreckin' Kru. A partnership was soon formed between Eazy and Dre and they quickly began looking for a group to produce. Dre found an unknown East Coast rap group called HBO, whom he quickly introduced to partner Eazy-E. After just one listen to their demo tape Eazy agreed to finance their record; all Dre needed now was a lyricist. He put in a call to an old friend he knew from his early days in a group called CIA, his name O'Shea ("Ice Cube") Jackson. He agreed to the deal and the pair hit the studio. Within days the pair had put together a track called "Boyz-N-Tha Hood," but after hearing the song and reading the lyrics HBO walked out of the studio claiming the song was too West Coast sounding for them; they would not return.

The clock was ticking, studio time was already paid for, Dre had to do something and fast. He got an idea, one that would pay off big. He convinced Eazy to record the song and the rest, as they say, is history. Out of this ill-fated recording session N.W.A. would be born and West Coast gangsta rap would soon be the next shot heard 'round the world. The bad boys of rock and roll would almost overnight find themselves sharing the spotlight and then eventually being replaced by the street kids from Compton. One moment you're seeing hair bands like Ratt, Poison and Bon Jovi in high rotation on MTV, the next minute you're seeing N.W.A., BDP and Public Enemy. The fresh, edgier sound of the streets was quickly replacing the drunken wailing, spandex and hairspray of rock music as the new angry rebellious voice of youth.

The single "Boyz-N-Tha Hood" was first sold on the streets out of the trunk of a car. After selling somewhere in the neighborhood of 5,000 copies, Macola Records, a small-time do-it-yourself record pressing plant stepped forward and asked to be the band's distributor. A brief tour followed after which the group released their first LP entitled N.W.A. and The Posse in 1987. Of the eleven tracks on this album, only three were listed as being performed by N.W.A. They were "8 Ball," "Panic Zone," and "Dope Man." Of these my favorite is "Dope Man" which I feel best represented the potential greatness of the band. "Dope Man" gave early fans a glimpse of Ice Cube's amazing ability to describe life on the gang-ruled streets of Compton. His uncanny ability to give you an insider's perspective made him in my opinion one of the greatest rap music lyricists of all time. This in combination with Dr. Dre's hard-driving West Coast funk-oriented beats would prove to be the perfect combination to elevate the genre of gangsta rap to a national/platinum level.

By now the band's lineup had been solidified. You had Dre creating the music and working the mixing board, DJ Yella (Antoine Carraby) providing drum beats, Ice Cube as the primary lyricist and lead vocalist, MC Ren (Lorenzo Patterson) as a backup writer and vocalist, and finally Eazy who provided the money and character of the group. After finishing Eazy's album Eazy-Duz-It, N.W.A. hit the studio and came out in late 1988 with Straight Outta Compton, their first full-length LP. And it was clear from the outset to all that heard them that at long last the previously muffled voice of angry inner city youth was going to be heard load and clear. Cube's graphic descriptions of life in Compton sounded like Vietnam war stories. Some of rap's most brutal lyrics of all time were laid down on this album courtesy of the boyz of N.W.A. And it was this in combination with Dre's brilliant musical textures which had critics hailing him as one of Hip-Hop's most gifted producers--certainly the best on the West Coast. Despite the lack of support from commercial radio and TV, the album sold well, selling 500,000 copies in its first six weeks of release.

In my opinion this album is a classic, the best the band has released to date. The sounds of guerrilla warfare and chaos are blended perfectly with thumpin' bass lines and squelchy keys by Dre while Cube's lyrics evoke images of a ghetto prophet. But the success of this powerful duo was short lived. Cube was upset over his payments for his work on Eazy's album and the Straight Outta Compton project. He felt he deserved a bigger piece of the pie and filed a lawsuit against N.W.A. manager Jerry Heller which was later settled out of court. Afterwards, Cube left the group to pursue a solo career. Lyrically the band lost its edge.

In 1990 the Cube-less version of NWA released the EP, 100 Miles and Runnin'. The title track by the same name was the best cut off this five-song EP. Like a pot of good gumbo, Dre combined a wide variety of ingredients--everything from whirling police sirens and running footsteps to ticking clocks and live guitar and bass licks--to give the track the necessary adrenaline-sounding edge. Lyrically Ren and Eazy filled in admirably in Cube's absence with behind-the-sceneshelp from the Doc. "Just Don't Bite It," another track from the EP, explored the misogynist side of the band's personality, furthering the band's bad boy reputation.

In 1991 the band released their third and final album, Efil4zaggin ("Niggaz 4 Life" backwards). Two weeks after the album hit store shelves it reached number one on the charts. The sharp social commentary of Straight Outta Compton was nearly nonexistent on this LP. Lyrically the group had been reduced to vulgar Iceberg Slim-like lyrics and cheap self-parody. Dre's production was the only reason to buy this album, and in 1992 he left the group amid accusations of financial wrongdoing. He would go on to form Death Row Records with bodyguard-turned-record industry executive Marion "Suge" Knight, a Godfather-like figure in the music industry with all the mystique to match. Death Row at its peak would be compared to the legendary Motown of old.

Could it be a decade later, that such commentary would once again be necessary to draw attention to the increasingly racially tense environment we live in? One where an innocent black man has to worry about making any move--like reaching for his wallet--in the presence of police officers. One where a verbal dispute with an officer of the law could result in a broken broom handle being shoved up one's ass. An environment that still finds an African American deprived of simple rights like getting a taxi when he needs one. We know Tipper Gore's call for censorship only ended up helping musicians across the board sell more albums. A parental advisory sticker on the cover of a CD almost guarantees an increase in sales as kids continue to look for that which annoys, alienates or is just plain old offensive to older ears.

Recently, a new version of N.W.A. has emerged on the scene, one that has Snoop Dogg filling in the void of Eazy-E and is without the services of beat-maker DJ Yellow. With Cube back in the fold I can only hope they can capture the struggle as it now appears--devoid of gangs for the most part, but still full of race-related hatred and brutality--as eloquently and as passionately as before 'cause Lord knows some of y'all still need to hear it!

On the web:
N.W.A.
Dr. Dre
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DJ Yella
MC Ren
Snoop Dog