#1 N.W.A’s Influence on Society Abstract I conducted research on the influence that the musical group N.W.A had on society in the late 80’s and as well as their influence on today's society. N.W.A is very well known for having changed the music industry, and they have been a controversial group since their debut album “Straight Outta Compton” was released on August 8, 1988. The album's songs were based on the group members' personal lives. N.W.A was putting out music and rapping about topics that at the time no one would dare to do.While conducting my research I found out why they were such a controversial group in the late 80’s; till this day they are still seen as controversial. Research Questions 1. In the 80s why was this group controversial? Is N.W.A still considered controversial today? 2. Why was “F _ _ _ Tha Police” one of their most popular and well known songs? 3. What are the members of the group doing now? “Who gave it that title, gangsta rap? It’s reality rap. It’s about what’s really going on.” - Eazy-E #2 How the Group Formed ● Was formed in 1987 by Eazy-E who co-founded a record label called “Ruthless Records”. ● Eazy-E recruited Dr. Dre and Ice Cube to write for his label. ● Ice-Cube & Dr. Dre wrote a song for a different group under Ruthless Records, but they decided not to record. So Eazy, Ice, & Dre recorded “Boyz-n-the-Hood” under the group name N.W.A. ● They’re all from Compton, California. ● Ice Cube left for a year and returned in 1988. ● “Straight Outta Compton”, their debut album was released on August 8, 1988. ● The five core members: Ice Cube, MC Ren, Eazy-E, Yella, and Dr. Dre. #3 #5 #6 #4 #7 ● Background ○ Birth Name: O’Shea Jackson ○ Born: June 15, 1969; Los Angeles, California. ○ Education: Phoenix Institute of Technology, earned a two year degree in 1988. ○ Before N.W.A: He started a group with two other members called CIA. ○ Went solo in 1989. Created record label “Street Knowledge” in 1990. ○ American Rapper, Actor, and Filmmaker. ○ Boyz n the Hood, 1992: First time acting. ○ 1992: Married Kimberly Woodruff and had 4 children. (biography.com) #9 #10 #8 #11 ● Background ○ Birth Name: Lorenzo Patterson ○ Born: June 14, 1969; Compton, California ○ Recruited by N.W.A in 1988. He was still in High School. ○ Education: Manuel Dominguez High School. ○ Stayed at “Ruthless Records” and went solo in 1992. ○ American Rapper, Songwriter, and Record Producer. ○ Founder and Owner of the record label “Villain”. ○ 2004: Released the film “Lost in the Game.” ○ 1993: Married Yaasamen Alaa and had 5 children. (peoplepill.com) #14 #13 #12 #15 ● Background ○ Birth Name: Eric Lynn Wright. Born on September 7, 1964; Compton, California. ○ Dropped out of High School. ○ Co-founded “Ruthless Records” and formed N.W.A in 1987. ○ Released solo album “Eazy-Duz-It” in 1988. ○ 1994: Host of a Los Angeles radio music show on KKBT-FM. ○ Married a woman named Tomica & had two children with her. He had 9 other children with different women. He had a total of 11 children. ○ Passed Away on March 26, 1995; Los Angeles, California. Passed from AIDS related complications. (biography.com) #17 #18 #16 #19 ● Background ○ Birth Name: Antoine Carraby. ○ Born: December 11, 1961; Compton, California. ○ Before N.W.A: Drummer of band “World Class Wreckin’ Crew” with Dr. Dre. ○ Dr. Dre asked Yella to join N.W.A. ○ American DJ, Rapper, Record Producer, and Film Director. ○ 1991: Produced/Co-wrote their second/final album. ○ 1996: Released his first/only solo album. He dedicated it to Eazy-E (it had been a year after his death). ○ Only member who didn't marry and didn’t have children. (thefamouspeople.com) #21 #22 #20 #23 ● Background ○ Birth Name: Andre Romelle Young. Born: February 18, 1965; Compton, California. Worked as a DJ in his teens. ○ American Rapper, Record Producer, Audio Engineer, Record Executive, and Entrepreneur. ○ 1991: Co-founded “Death Row Records” ○ 1992: First solo album “The Chronic” was a hit. ○ 1993: Debut album of Snoop Dogg, Doggystyle, and Tupac Shakur's 1996 work All Eyez on Me. That same year Dre left Death Row Records, escaping from the increasingly troublesome West Coast/East Coast rap feud. ○ 1996: Started up Aftermath Entertainment and signed Eminem and 50 Cent to his label. ○ 2006: Co-founded the company Beats Electronics with Jimmy Lovine ○ Helped introduce G-funk (biography.com) Straight Outta Compton, 1988 ● Album Released: August 8, 1988 ● New Genre: Gangsta Rap ● The album “details the lives of its creators via a blend of drum-heavy production, samples, turntable scratches, and aggressive, often profane lyrics.” ● “It offers uncensored thoughts on women, drug dealing, gang activity, and police brutality—topics that had not yet #24 been explored so candidly for such a Tracklist: 1. Straight Outta Compton | 2. F _ _ _ Tha Police | 3. Gangsta Gangsta | 4. If It wide audience in any genre of music.” Ain’t Ruff | 5. Parental Discretion Iz Advised | 6. 8 Ball | 7. Something Like That | 8. Express (britannica.com) Yourself | 9. Compton's N The House | 10. I ● Sold more than 2 million copies. Ain’t Tha 1 | 11. Dopeman | 12. Quiet On Tha Set | 13. Something 2 Dance 2 “F_ _ _ Tha Police” ● “Ignited a firestorm of controversy.” (biography.com) ● FBI Involvement due to threats toward police officers made in the song. ● Parodies a criminal trial. ● “The lyrics—and, indeed, the prosecutors (in the video)—strongly criticize the police department for “We make our records based on stuff stereotyping, falsely arresting, that’s happening where we live. And and even brutalizing minorities.”(britannica.com) people out there that don’t like it, f _ _ _ ● This was their way of creating a em.” conversation about racism. Impact After its Release in the 80’s The Album was very controversial due to the violence they talked about and the profanity; it was thought to incite violence. Their “Straight Outta Compton” music video was even banned from MTV. One of their most controversial songs, “F _ _ _ Tha Police” even gained attention from the FBI when the bureau sent them a warning letter. The FBI’s involvement might have boosted album sales. “In the summer of 1989 in Detroit, N.W.A. made it through some 30 seconds of "F _ _ _ Tha Police" before apparent gunshots went off in the crowd at Joe Louis Arena.The group heard the shots and took off, only to run backstage into a line of cops, who threw them to the ground, handcuffed them and hauled them away. It's a dramatic rebellion story that prefigures this era of anti-police-brutality protests.” (gq.com) #25 Impact Years Later → “ACAB”, “F12”, “Defund the Police”. Today “F _ _ _ Tha Police” has become a protest song. 2020 is a year that sparked a lot of protests due to police brutality. “It’s our legacy here in America with the police department and any kind of authority figures that have to deal with us on a day-to-day basis. There’s usually abuse and violence connected to that interaction, so when ‘Fuck tha Police’ was made in 1988, it was 400 years in the making. And it’s still just as relevant as it was before it was made.” - Ice Cube #30 #26 #32 #28 #31 #27 #29 #33 Straight Outta Compton Film, 2015 ● Release Date: August 14, 2015 ● Genre: Drama, Music, Biography; Rated R. ● Run Time: 2 hours and 47 minutes ● Director: Felix Gary Gray ● Producers: Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, F. Gary Gray, Tomica Wright, Scott Bernstein, Matt Alvarez ● It's about the members of N.W.A, it focus’ on what their life was like once they released their debut album “Straight Outta Compton” in 1988. ● Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 89% ● Box Office (Gross USA): $161.0M ● Awards: NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture 2016, NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Motion Picture 2016, BET Award for Best Movie 2016, MTV Movie Award for Best True Story 2016. ● Fun Fact: O'Shea Jackson Jr., played as his father Ice Cube in the #34 film. In Conclusion ... N.W.A proved to be one of the most controversial groups of all time. While they did rap about things like drugs and violence, they also rapped about important issues such as police brutality and racism. While it’s been years since the groups debut, a lot of what they had #35 to say is still relevant today. Image List 1. N.W.A Lineup 15. Eazy-E Kansas City, Missouri in 1989. (Photo 2. Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, DJ Yella, & MC Ren. By Raymond Boyd) (Slide 2) 16. DJ Yella poses for a portrait, October 30, 1991 3. “Yella Wearing Nike Air Jordan 4 Military in New York, New York. (Photo by Al Pereira) Blue, Eazy in the Nike Cortez, Dre and Cube in 17. DJ Yella wearing a Raiders Hat the Air Force STS.”(Slide 3) 18. DJ Yella wearing Beats headphones. attends 4. Ice Cube wearing a Detroit City hat. Dre Day at Tattoo Nightclub on February 20, 5. Ice Cube Sitting on chair. 2014 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Isaiah 6. Ice Cube wearing “Lench Mob” hat. Trickey) 7. Ice Cube 1991 “Boyz n Tha Hood” movie set. 19. DJ Yella Posing, October 15, 2015 8. MC Ren posing. 20.Dr. Dre wearing the Nike Air Force STS.