N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip-hop group formed in Compton, California, in 1987. Among the earliest and most significant figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, the group is widely considered one of the greatest and most influential acts in hip-hop.
Active from 1987 to 1991, N.W.A endured controversy owing to their music's explicit lyrics, which some viewed as misogynistic or homophobic, as well as to its glorification of drugs and crime. The group was subsequently banned from many mainstream American radio stations. In spite of this, they have sold over ten million units in the United States alone. Drawing on its members' own stories of racism and excessive policing, N.W.A made inherently political music."Straight Outta Compton and the Social Burdens of Hip-Hop" . The Atlantic. Retrieved August 20, 2017 N.W.A's consistent accusations of institutional racism within the American police significantly contributed to the political awareness and involvement of American youth against racism.
The original lineup, formed in early 1987, consisted of Arabian Prince, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, and Ice Cube, with DJ Yella joining shortly thereafter and MC Ren recruited as the sixth member of the group in mid-1988. Their first release was the compilation/split album, N.W.A. and the Posse (1987), which peaked at No. 39 on Billboard magazine's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and it was followed by their debut studio album Straight Outta Compton (1989).Contrary to the album's copyright and publishing date of 1988, the following sources indicate that Straight Outta Compton was not officially released until at least early 1989:
Arabian Prince left N.W.A in January 1989, just before the release of Straight Outta Compton, with Ice Cube following suit in December of that year. The group continued on as a four-piece, with no replacements for Arabian Prince and Ice Cube, and disbanded shortly after the release of their second album Niggaz4Life (1991).
Eazy-E, Ice Cube, MC Ren, and Dr. Dre later became platinum-selling solo artists in their own right in the 1990s. Eazy-E died from AIDS on March 26, 1995. The surviving members of N.W.A have continued to occasionally work together since Eazy-E's death, including a reunion of the Straight Outta Compton lineup (sans Eazy-E and Arabian Prince) from 1999 to 2001, during which a third album was in the works but abandoned due to issues with the rights to the N.W.A name.
The group's debut album marked the beginning of the new gangsta rap era, as the production and social commentary in their lyrics were revolutionary within the genre. Niggaz4Life was the first hardcore rap album to reach number one on the Billboard 200 sales charts. In general, N.W.A had a lasting effect on generations of hip-hop artists and, in the late 1980s, played a crucial role in shaping rap as it evolved musically and lyrically. Moreover, the group was credited with being the first to open up rap to a white American audience, contributing to the rapid spread of rap within the American population in general, starting from the late 1980s.
Rolling Stone ranked N.W.A at number 83 on its list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time"."100 Greatest Artists of All Time", Rolling Stone. In 2016, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, following three previous nominations. In 2024, they received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
History Formation and "Panic Zone" (1987–1988)
N.W.A was assembled by Compton-based Eazy-E, who co-founded Ruthless Records with Jerry Heller. Eazy-E sought an introduction to Steve Yano. Although Yano initially rebuffed him, he was impressed by Eazy-E's persistence, and arranged a meeting with Dr. Dre. Initially, N.W.A consisted of Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, fellow producer Arabian Prince and Ice Cube who started out as a rapper for the group C.I.A.
Ruthless released the single "Panic Zone" in 1987 with Macola Records, which was later included on the compilation album N.W.A. and the Posse. N.W.A was still in its developing stages, and is only credited on three of the eleven tracks, notably the uncharacteristic record "Panic Zone", "8-Ball", and "Dopeman", which marked the first collaboration of Eazy E, Arabian Prince, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube. Mexican rapper Krazy-Dee co-wrote "Panic Zone", which was originally called "Hispanic Zone", but the title was later changed when Dr. Dre advised Krazy-Dee that the word "hispanic" would hinder sales. Also included was Eazy-E's solo track "Boyz-n-the-Hood".Henderson, Alex. [ "N.W.A and the Posse" – Overview] AllMusic. Retrieved August 17, 2007. Dre later brought DJ Yella on board as well. Dre and Yella were both formerly members of the World Class Wreckin' Cru as DJs and producers. Finally, solo rapper MC Ren joined the group.
Eazy-Duz-It and Straight Outta Compton (1988–1989) N.W.A recorded their official debut, Straight Outta Compton, during the summer and fall of 1988. The album was released in January 1989, and it peaked at No. 37 on the Billboard 200 chart and was eventually certified 3× platinum by the RIAA. With its famous opening salvo of three tracks, the group reflected the rising anger of the urban youth. The opening song "Straight Outta Compton" introduced the group, "Fuck tha Police" protested police brutality and racial profiling, and "Gangsta Gangsta" painted the worldview of the inner-city youth. While the group was later credited with pioneering the burgeoning subgenre of gangsta rap, N.W.A referred to their music as "reality rap".Duff, S.L. N.W.A. YA BOY Biography . Yahoo! Music. Retrieved August 17, 2007.
Twenty-six years after the album's release, member and co-producer of the Straight Outta Compton film, Ice Cube, commented "they were talking about what really led into the style that we ended up doing, which is now called hardcore gangster rap." Dr. Dre, DJ Yella, and Arabian Prince as HighPowered Productions, composed the beats for each song, with Dre making occasional rapping appearances. The D.O.C., Ice Cube, and MC Ren wrote most of the group's lyrics, including "Fuck tha Police", perhaps the group's most notorious song, which brought them into conflict with various law enforcement agencies. Under pressure from Focus on the Family, Milt Ahlerich, an assistant director of the FBI sent a letter to Ruthless and its distributing company Priority Records, advising the rappers that "advocating violence and assault is wrong and we in the law enforcement community take exception to such action." This letter can still be seen at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. Policemen refused to provide security for the group's concerts, hurting their plans to tour. Nonetheless, the FBI's letter only served to draw more publicity to the group.
Straight Outta Compton was also one of the first albums to adhere to the new Parental Advisory label scheme, then still in its early stages: the label at the time consisted of "WARNING: Moderate impact coarse language and/or themes" only. However, the taboo nature of N.W.A's music was the most important factor of its mass appeal. Media coverage compensated for the group's lack of airplay, and its album eventually went double platinum. Two months before Straight Outta Compton, Eazy-E's solo debut Eazy-Duz-It was released. The album was dominated by Eazy's persona (MC Ren was the only guest rapper) but behind the scenes it was a group effort. Music was handled by Dr. Dre and DJ Yella; the lyrics were largely written by MC Ren, with contributions from Ice Cube and The D.O.C., and the album was another double platinum success for Ruthless (a few months earlier, Ruthless had found their initial success with J.J. Fad's gold-certified debut album Supersonic, which featured contributions from Dr. Dre, Arabian Prince, Eazy-E, and MC Ren).
By the time Straight Outta Compton was finished, Arabian Prince increasingly became disillusioned with how Heller managed the group's funds. He gradually skipped studio sessions and photoshoots. N.W.A accompanied Public Enemy and Ice-T on a short nationwide tour from December 1988 to January 1989. When this tour concluded, Arabian Prince left the group. N.W.A embarked on an extensive three-month nationwide tour in the summer and fall of 1989. The shows also typically featured solo sets by Eazy-E. Ruthless also handled numerous successful releases in 1989, such as Michel'le's debut album Michel'le (which featured contributions from Dr. Dre and Eazy-E), the official reissue of N.W.A and the Posse on CD, and The D.O.C.'s debut album No One Can Do It Better. No One Can Do It Better was essentially a collaboration with Dr. Dre and notably free of "gangsta rap" content, including the N.W.A posse cut "The Grand Finalé". It became another platinum-certified album for Ruthless.
===100 Miles and Runnin and Niggaz4Life (1989–1991)=== Ice Cube left the group in late 1989 over royalty disputes; having written almost half of the lyrics on Straight Outta Compton himself, he felt he was not getting a fair share of the profits.Leigh, Danny. "Chillin' With Cube" . The Guardian, February 25, 2000. A lawsuit brought by Ice Cube against band manager Jerry Heller was settled out of court.Ice Cube: Attitude, Joel McIver, p.70, Foruli Classics, 2012 He wasted little time putting together his solo debut, 1990's AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted, but he avoided mentioning his former label mates. The title track from N.W.A's EP 100 Miles and Runnin' (released just three months after AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted), however, included a diss towards Cube: "We started with five, but yo / One couldn't take it—So now it's four / Cuz the fifth couldn't make it." The video for the song depicted the remaining members of N.W.A together in a jail cell, while an Ice Cube look-alike is released.
Also heard on the EP (which found its way on the Efil4zaggin album) was "Real Niggaz", a full-blown diss to Ice Cube where the remaining members accuse him of cowardice, and question his authenticity, longevity and originality: "How the fuck you think a rapper lasts / With your ass sayin' shit that was said in the past / Yo, be original, your shit is sloppy / Get off the dick, you motherfuckin' carbon-copy", and "We started out with too much cargo / So I'm glad we got rid of Benedict Arnold, yo."
The song "100 Miles and Runnin'" was Dr. Dre's final uptempo recording, which had been a common feature of late 1980s hip-hop. After this, he focused on a midtempo, synthesizer based sound which became known as G-funk, starting with "Alwayz Into Somethin'" from Efil4zaggin in 1991. The G-funk style dominated both the West and East Coast hip-hop music scene for several years to come.
N.W.A is referenced on Ice Cube's 1990 EP, Kill at Will, where he name-checks his former group (likely in a mocking manner) on the song "Jackin' For Beats". On "I Gotta Say What Up!!!", Ice Cube gives shout-outs to his rap peers at the time, among them Public Enemy, Geto Boys, and Sir Jinx. At the end of the track, in what appears to be an on-the-phone interview, Ice Cube is asked, "Since you went solo, what's up with the rest of the crew?" and the phone is abruptly hung up on the interviewer.