Would the real 'Rap God', please stand up?

At the height of rave and acid across the pond in Britain in the 1980s, LA discovered a new movement called ‘gangsta rap’, as coined by the media at the time, i.e. hip-hop.

With the rise of the Crips and Blood gangs in the 1970s, coupled with a pandemic of crack cocaine, Compton had a staggering high murder rate in the 1980s. This was further contributed to by Ronald Reagan’s poor tackling in the distribution of drugs and police drug prevention in LA. 

Enter the band N.W.A. and Compton drug dealer, Eazy-E, who reportedly earned over $200,000 through his dealings, and is one of the founders of Ruthless Records.

He soon allied with Dr Dre and Ice Cube when talent scouting, who both lacked the finances to make their dreams a reality. 

It would be an alliance that would change the landscape of hip-hop forever.

‘Straight Outta Compton’ was reportedly completed in only six weeks and released in 1988, selling millions of copies despite receiving no radio airplay.

It was met with outrage and condemned by Reagan and the FBI, with accusations of violence against police officers at the forefront (‘Fuck tha Police’), despite police brutality being a reality for many black Americans. 

This would set the way for the vocalisation of police brutality by many future rap artists, including the harsh reality of the ‘hood, dealing and guns.

Condemnation by the US President only boosted N.W.A.’s notoriety and the hip-hop movement: ‘gangsta rap’ was not only born but established to this day.

The band reportedly split over disagreements about royalties with Ruthless Records. This was followed by the infamous ‘diss’ tracks between the now separated artists in N.W.A.

I reckon Ice Cube's 'No Vaseline' is by far the most controversial, which could not be topped by any of the remaining two band members, but that is quite rightly open to debate and preference amongst hip-hop fans.

Eazy-E died in 1995 from aids. He is still considered one of the founding members of ‘gangsta rap', i.e. hip-hop. His death was met with an outpouring of grief from the rap community, including his former band members. 

Ice Cube is regarded as one of the best MCs in hip-hop history to this day, and has starred in many Hollywood movies, although not considered blockbusters; the most recognised movie is ‘Boyz in the Hood’.

Dr Dre, initially a founding member of Death Row Records with the notorious ‘Suge’ Knight, produced rap artists in the 1990s. ('Suge' Knight is surrounded by well-founded controversy in the contribution to the death of Tupac). So, Dr Dre went on to found Aftermath after the death of Tupac. He has produced influential rap artists and contributed to chart-topping modern hip-hop through his labels.

Thanks to N.W.A., our world has welcomed modern greats in hip-hop, such as Eminem, The Game, Snoop Dogg, and 50 Cent, to name a few, all of whom are heavily influenced by the Compton band and its three members.