N.W.A
By: Kamran Maddela
Intro to N.W.A
N.W.A was an American Hip-Hop group consisting of 5 members, Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice-Cube, MC Ren, and DJ Yella. They emerged from south central LA in the late 80's. They were the first "gangsta rap" group and they created a lot of controversy with their lyrics and behavior. They're one of the legends in rap history.
How did they change rap forever?
They brought a whole new sound to the table, Gangsta Rap. They started the trend in rap of acting "hard" or "gangster", talking about violence using foul language, talking about the things that they saw day to day in Compton, California.
In the 80's what made them so appealing?
They were so "bad" and their music contained so much explicit content that they were the first group ever to get the "Parentel Advisory, Explicit Content" sticker on their CD. No one had ever seen that before so naturally as humans most people bought their music to see what was hidden behind that CD.
Today what makes the group still popular?
One, they're viewed as legends and people still listen to their old music. Two, recently they came out with a biopic about the group titled, "Straight Outta Compton", which has a sequel coming soon. After that movie came out more people started listening to their old music.
What are some of their top songs?
Their most popular songs came off their album, "Str8 Outta Compton." Some popular songs were "Str8 Outta Compton", "F the Police" (which caused a lot of controversy and even made them get a letter from the FBI), and "Express Yourself".
Timeline of N.W.A
Early 1988- The group is fully formed. (Dr. Dre, Ice-Cube, Eazy-E, DJ Yella, and MC Ren.)
August 1988- They drop their debut album "Str8 Outta Compton"
1989- Their second album, NWA and the Posse, is released.
1990- Ice-Cube leaves the group and disses the group through a song.
1995- Eazy-E dies of HIV/AIDS.