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Straight Outta Compton

Straight Outta Compton is the debut studio album by American gangsta rap group N.W.A, which, led by Eazy-E, formed in Los Angeles County's City of Compton in early 1987.[3][4] Released by his label, Ruthless Records, on August 8, 1988,[1] the album was produced by N.W.A members Dr. Dre, DJ Yella, and Arabian Prince, with lyrics written by N.W.A members Ice Cube and MC Ren[5] along with Ruthless rapper The D.O.C.[3] Not merely depicting Compton's street violence, the lyrics repeatedly threaten to lead it by attacking peers and even police. The track "Fuck tha Police" drew an FBI agent's warning letter, which aided N.W.A's notoriety, with N.W.A calling itself "the world's most dangerous group."[3][6][7]

Straight Outta Compton
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 8, 1988 (1988-08-08)[1]
StudioAudio Achievements
(Torrance, California)
Genre
Length60:16
Label
Producer
N.W.A chronology
N.W.A. and the Posse
(1987)
Straight Outta Compton
(1988)
100 Miles and Runnin'
(1990)
Singles from Straight Outta Compton
  1. "Straight Outta Compton"
    Released: July 10, 1988
  2. "Gangsta Gangsta"
    Released: September 5, 1988
  3. "Express Yourself"
    Released: March 27, 1989

In July 1989, despite its scarce radio play beyond the Los Angeles area,[4] Straight Outta Compton received gangsta rap's first platinum certification, one million copies sold by then.[3] That year, the album peaked at number 9 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and at number 37 on the Billboard 200.[8] Receiving media spotlight, N.W.A's example triggered the rap genre's movement toward hardcore, gangsta rap.[9]

Remastered, the album's September 2000 reissue gained four bonus tracks. Nearing the album's 20th anniversary, another extended version of it arrived in December 2007.[10] In 2015, after an album reissue on red cassettes,[11] theater release of the biographical film Straight Outta Compton reinvigorated sales of the album, which by year's end was certified 3x Multi-Platinum.[3] In 2016, it became the first rap album inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[12] The next year, the Library of Congress enshrined Straight Outta Compton in the National Recording Registry, who have deemed it to be "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[13]

Background edit

For most of the 1980s, New York City, the birthplace of hip hop,[14] remained the rap genre's dominant scene.[15] Los Angeles County was secondary.[16] Until 1988, the Los Angeles hip hop scene, retaining more of hip hop's dance and party origin, prioritized DJs and DJ crews as the central players in hip hop;[17] the prevailing style at the time was electro rap and "funk hop",[18] similar to the New York-based 1982 hit "Planet Rock".[15] By contrast, East Coast hip hop had moved to prioritizing the lyricist (or "MC") after the success of Run-DMC's self-titled 1984 album.[16]

As the 1980s continued, it became increasingly popular to record lyrics on top of electro rap music. The World Class Wreckin' Cru, which included Dr. Dre and DJ Yella, published the West Coast's first rap album to be released under a major record label.[16] Also among LA's rising lyricists was Ice-T. Inspired by Philadelphia rapper Schoolly D's 1985 single "P.S.K. What Does It Mean?"[16][15][19] Ice-T released the track "6 in the Mornin'" in 1986. This song began to pull the Los Angeles scene's attention away from electro rap; it reached gold sales and inaugurated a new rap subgenre, later called "gangsta rap".[16][15]

In 1986, Eric Wright, a Kelly Park Compton Crip, formed Ruthless Records, an independent record label based in Compton.[16] Through drug dealing, Wright had become acquainted with Dr. Dre and Arabian Prince, a pair of locally successful record producers and recording artists who were struggling to receive royalties.[20] Wright recruited the South Central Los Angeles-based rapper Ice Cube, then a member of rap group C.I.A., as a ghostwriter, and instructed him to collaborate with Dr. Dre and write a song for the label. The resulting track was "Boyz-n-the-Hood".[21] This song was originally intended to be performed by a New York-based group who were signed to Ruthless Records; however, after that group rejected the song, Wright adopted the stage name Eazy-E and performed the rapping himself.[18][21] Released under the name N.W.A, "Boyz-n-the-Hood" became a local hit, despite criticism that it sounded similar to Schoolly D's "P.S.K." single, and that its tempo was too slow to dance to.[15]

Expanding upon Ice-T's model, N.W.A imparted to gangsta rap a signature style that featured "exaggerated descriptions of street life, militant resistance to authority, and outright sexist violence".[22] N.W.A further strove to secure radio play by supplying radio edits of their music to local stations such as KDAY.[4] Despite these efforts, N.W.A's national debut, Straight Outta Compton, saw virtually no radio play; even so, the album was hugely successful, selling one million copies and becoming the first gangsta rap album to be certified platinum.[16][23] As rap fans, even from afar, sought more from Compton and South Central,[24] local rappers, like MC Eiht of Compton's Most Wanted, met the call.[25] The Los Angeles rap scene rapidly moved from party rap to hardcore rap.[16]

On the global stage, N.W.A towered as gangsta rap's icons. The group's profane, unrelentingly violent lyrics led to backlash from law enforcement and other groups: an FBI agent sent the record label a warning letter, MTV banned the "Straight Outta Compton" video, some venues banned N.W.A performance, and some police officers refused to work security at N.W.A shows elsewhere.[3][23][26] The controversy served to further bolster N.W.A's anti-establishment image, and so the rappers would highlight it themselves in later tracks.[3][27]

Slant Magazine describes Straight Outta Compton as laying the foundation for the East Coast–West Coast hip hop rivalry, referring to the album as "the West Coast firing on New York's Fort Sumter in what would become '90s culture's biggest Uncivil War."[28]

Record production edit

The album was recorded and produced in Audio Achievements Studio in Torrance, California for $12,000. Dr. Dre, in a 1993 interview, recalls, "I threw that thing together in six weeks so we could have something to sell out of the trunk.[3]

In an incident recalled in Jerry Heller's book and later portrayed in the film Straight Outta Compton, police approached the group while they were standing outside the studio in the fall of 1987 and demanded them to get on their knees and show ID without explanation. Outraged by the experience, Cube began writing the lyrics that would become "Fuck tha Police."[29] Initially, still spending weekends in jail over traffic violations, Dre was reluctant to do "Fuck tha Police", a reluctance that dissolved once that sentence concluded.[3]

Synthesis edit

The album's producers were Dr. Dre with DJ Yella and Arabian Prince. Its production was mostly sampled horn blasts, some funk guitar riffs, sampled vocals, and turntable scratches atop a drum machine.[24] Their drum machine, used for kick, was the Roland TR-808.[30]

Vocals edit

N.W.A's Ice Cube and MC Ren along with Ruthless Records rapper The D.O.C. wrote the lyrics, including those rapped by Eazy-E and by Dr. Dre.[3] On the other hand, DJ Yella never raps, and Arabian Prince does only minor vocals on "Something 2 Dance 2". Otherwise, each group member stands out through a solo rap, too.

MC Ren has two solo tracks, "If It Ain't Ruff" and "Quiet on tha Set". Dr. Dre dominates "Express Yourself". Ice Cube's is "I Ain't tha 1". Eazy-E's is a remix of "8 Ball", a track which originally appeared on N.W.A's 1987 debut compilation album N.W.A. and the Posse. The one guest is The D.O.C., who raps the opening verse of "Parental Discretion Iz Advised".

Whereas Ren wrote his own lyrics, and The D.O.C. wrote many of Eazy's lyrics, Cube wrote his lyrics, and both Dre's and Eazy's as well.[24] Still, even Eazy and Dre, alike Cube and Ren, each brings a distinct delivery and character, making N.W.A altogether stand out from imitators.[24]

Content edit

Reflecting in 2002, Rolling Stone writer Jon Caramanica calls the album a "bombastic, cacophonous car ride through Los Angeles' burnt-out and ignored hoods".[31] In a contemporary review, rather, Mark Holmberg, in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, calls it "a preacher-provoking, mother-maddening, reality-stinks" album that "wallows in gangs, doping, drive-by shootings, brutal sexism, cop slamming and racism".[32] Newsweek wrote, "Hinting at gang roots, and selling themselves on those hints, they project a gangster mystique that pays no attention to where criminality begins and marketing lets off."[33] Even when depicting severe and unprovoked violence, the rappers cite their own stage names as its very perpetrators. By their sheer force, the album's opening three tracks—"Straight Outta Compton", "Fuck tha Police", and "Gangsta Gangsta"—signature songs setting N.W.A's platform, says AllMusic album reviewer Steve Huey, "threaten to dwarf everything that follows".[24]

First, the title track, smearing and menacing civilians and police, men and women, while women receive gruff sexual advances, too, even threatens to "smother your mother". Then, after a skit of the police put on criminal trial, "Fuck tha Police", alleging chronic harassment and brutality by officers, singularly threatens lethal retaliation. "Gangsta Gangsta" depicts group outings to carouse with women while slurring unwilling women and assaulting men, whether confrontational troublemakers, innocent bystanders, or a driver who, fleeing the failed carjacking, gets shot at. "8 Ball" is dedicated to the 40 oz bottles of malt liquor, Olde English 800.[34] "Express Yourself", written by Cube and rapped by Dre, incidentally scorns weed smoking—already proclaimed by Cube in "Gangsta Gangsta" as his own, chronic practice—which allegedly causes brain damage, a threat to the song's optimistic agenda, liberal individuality. "I Ain't tha 1" scorns spending money on women. "Dopeman" depicts the crack epidemic's aftermath. Closing the album, "Something 2 Dance 2" is upbeat.[3]

The term "gangsta rap", soon to arise in journalism, had not been coined yet.[3] According to Ice Cube, the rappers themselves called it "reality rap".[3] Indicting N.W.A as its leading example, journalist David Mills, in 1990, acknowledges, "The hard-core street rappers defend their violent lyrics as a reflection of 'reality'. But for all the gunshots they mix into their music, rappers rarely try to dramatize that reality" empathetically. "It's easier for them to imagine themselves pulling the trigger."[35] Still, the year before, Bud Norman, reviewing in the Wichita Eagle-Beacon, assesses that on Straight Outta Compton, "they don't make it sound like much fun".[36] In Norman's view, "They describe it with the same nonjudgmental resignation that a Kansan might use about a tornado."[36] Steve Huey, writing for AllMusic, considered that "Straight Outta Compton's insistent claims of reality ring a little hollow today, since it hardly ever depicts consequences. But despite all the romanticized invincibility, the force and detail of Ice Cube's writing makes the exaggerations resonate."[24]

N.W.A's Greatest Hits, released in July 1996, featured six tracks from Straight Outta Compton: "Gangsta Gangsta", "If It Ain't Ruff", "I Ain't tha 1", "Express Yourself", an extended mix of "Straight Outta Compton", and "Fuck tha Police", which is absent from Straight Outta Compton's censored version.[37]

Release edit

In the United Kingdom, the album was released by 4th & B'way Records after a period that Roy Wilkinson of Sounds described as "months" of selling well as an import release.[38]

Critical reception edit

Critiques edit

Contemporary professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Chicago Tribune    [39]
Los Angeles Times     [40]
NME5/10[41]
Q     [42]
Sounds     [38]
The Village VoiceB[43]

Music journalist Greg Kot, reviewing Straight Outta Compton for the Chicago Tribune, finds N.W.A's sound "fuller and funkier" than that of East Coast hip hop, and their lyrics just as "unforgiving" as those of East Coast group Public Enemy.[39] Los Angeles Times critic Dennis Hunt anticipates that listeners may be offended by the album's lack of "moralizing", "even more so than the searing street language", and advises, "To appreciate this remarkable, disturbing album you have to approach it for what it is—a no-holds-barred, audio-documentary of ghetto life."[40] On the other hand, Cary Darling, in California's Orange County Register, while thinking that the lyrics make Ice-T "look like a Cub Scout", ultimately deems Straight Outta Compton "curiously uninvolving", as it "lacks the insight and passion that put the best work by the likes of Boogie Down Productions, Ice-T and Public Enemy so far ahead of the field".[44] Robert Christgau of The Village Voice perceives N.W.A's persona as calculated: "Right, it's not about salary—it's about royalties, about brandishing scarewords like 'street' and 'crazy' and 'fuck' and 'reality' until suckers black and white cough up the cash."[43]

In the UK, Sounds reviewer Roy Wilkinson declared Straight Outta Compton "rap's answer to Slayer's Reign in Blood—a record the majors were scared to touch", continuing, "This is rock made genuinely wild again. Beware, the pop jive of the current 'Express Yourself' single will in no way prepare you for the Magnum beat that fires here."[38] Other British publications were less enthusiastic. Paolo Hewitt of NME takes issue with the lyrics' "macho repetition and tunnel vision",[41] while in the Hi-Fi News & Record Review, Peter Clark, going further, calls the lyrics "unrelenting in their unpleasantness".[45] Offering the lowest possible rating, Clark adds, "The cumulative effect is like listening to an endless fight next door. The music on this record is without a hint of dynamics or melody."[45] Charlie Dick, writing for Q, contends, "In the wake of Public Enemy and KRS-One, it is amazing that something this lightweight could cause such a stir. The all-mouth-and-trousers content is backed up by likable drum machine twittering, minimal instrumentation and duffish production."[42] Still, he predicts, "This regressive nonsense will be passed off as social commentary by thrill-seekers all across the free world."[42]

Retrospective professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [24]
Blender     [46]
Mojo     [47]
Pitchfork9.7/10[48]
Q     [49]
Rolling Stone     [31]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide     [50]
The Source5/5[51]
Spin Alternative Record Guide10/10[52]
Uncut     [53]

By 1991, while criticizing group members for allegedly carrying misogynist lyrics into real life, Newsweek incidentally comments that Straight Outta Compton, nonetheless, "introduced some of the most grotesquely exciting music ever made".[33] Writing in retrospect, Steve Huey, in AllMusic, deems the album mainly just "raising hell" while posturing, but finds that "it still sounds refreshingly uncalculated because of its irreverent, gonzo sense of humor, still unfortunately rare in hardcore rap".[24] In the 2004 Rolling Stone Album Guide, Roni Sarig states that although Straight Outta Compton was viewed as a "perversion" of the "more politically sophisticated" style of hip hop exemplified by Public Enemy, the album displays "a more righteous fury than the hundreds of copycats it spawned".[50]

Rankings edit

In 1994, British magazine Hip Hop Connection, placing the album third among rap's best albums, adds, "Straight Outta Compton sounded so exciting, insignificant details such as realism and integrity could be overlooked."[54] Hip hop magazine The Source included Straight Outta Compton in its 1998 "100 Best Albums" list.[55] Television network VH1, in 2003, placed it 62nd.[56] Spin magazine, sorting the "100 Greatest Albums, 1985–2005", identified it 10th.[57]

The first rap album ever to gain five stars from Rolling Stone at initial review, it placed 70th among the magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in its 2020 revised list.[58] Time, in 2006, named it one of the 100 greatest albums of all time.[59] Vibe appraised it as one of the 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century.[60] In 2012, Slant Magazine listed it 18th among the "Best Albums of the 1980s".[28] In any case, in November 2016, Straight Outta Compton became the first rap album inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[12] In 2017, Straight Outta Compton was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress, who deemed it to be "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[61]

Commercial performance edit

N.W.A's best selling album, Straight Outta Compton, released in August 1988, attained gold certification, half a million copies sold, on April 13, 1989.[62] Meanwhile, the album peaked at number 9 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and on April 15, 1989, at number 37 on the Billboard 200, which ranks the week's most popular albums.[8][63] On July 18, 1989, the album was certified platinum, one million copies sold.[62]

By contrast, N.W.A. and the Posse, out since November 1987, reached gold certification in September 1994.[64] The group's 100 Miles and Runnin' EP, which took two years to produce and was released in August 1990, went platinum in September 1992.[65] That year, on March 27, Straight Outta Compton was certified double-platinum, two million copies sold.[62]

By Priority Records' estimation, about 80% of Straight Outta Compton's sales occurred in suburban areas predominantly white.[66][67] N.W.A's next and final full-length album, Efil4zaggin or Niggaz4Life, released in late May 1991, went platinum just over two months later, in August 1991, yet in 2020 remains platinum,[68] whereas on November 11, 2015, Straight Outta Compton was certified triple-platinum, three million copies sold.[62]

Approaching the August 2015 release of the film Straight Outta Compton, the album reentered the Billboard 200 at number 173.[69] The next week, it rose to number 97, another week later reached number 30[69]—beyond its 1989 peak position of #37—and on September 5 peaked at number 6.[70] Meanwhile, the album's title track, entering the popular songs chart, the Billboard Hot 100, becoming N.W.A's first song in the Top 40,[71] spent two weeks at number 38.[72]

Media presence edit

In 2004, the DigitaArts list 25 Best Albums Covers included Straight Outta Compton.[73] By the album's release, Arabian Prince, on the cover, had left N.W.A. Lacking him, an iconic group photo taken by Ithaka Darin Pappas on November 11, 1988, at Pappa's studio apartment in Los Angeles' Miracle Mile district, has been repeatedly republished in media,[74] including The Source's May 1989 cover, captioning, "California Rap Hits Nationwide!" Pappas calls it the "Miracle Mile Shot",[75] the DVD cover of the 2015 documentary Kings Of Compton,[76][77] in France's Musée d'art contemporain de Marseille from 2017 to 2018,[78][79] and a backdrop at N.W.A's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2016 in Brooklyn, New York.[80]

Sinéad O'Connor, then herself controversial, appraised in 1990 that "It's definitely the best rap record I've ever heard".[81] But, feeling that he had rushed its production, N.W.A's own Dr. Dre, in a 1993 interview, remarked, "To this day, I can't stand that album. I threw that thing together in six weeks so we could have something to sell out of the trunk.” Additionally, he said, “Back then, I thought the choruses were supposed to just be me scratching.”[3] In 2006, parodic music artist "Weird Al" Yankovic released a new album, Straight Outta Lynwood. Punk rock band NOFX released the 2009 song "Straight Outta Massachusetts". In the 2014 film 22 Jump Street, the character Mrs. Dickson, whose husband is played by Ice Cube, says she's "straight outta Compton".[82] In 2015, the biopic Straight Outta Compton was a hit film.[83]

Track listing edit

All songs produced by Dr. Dre and DJ Yella & Arabian Prince

No. Title Writer(s) Performer(s) Samples[84][85] Length
1 "Straight Outta Compton"
  • Ice Cube
  • MC Ren
  • Eazy-E
4:18
2 "Fuck tha Police"[86]
  • Ice Cube
  • MC Ren
  • The D.O.C.
  • Ice Cube
  • MC Ren
  • Eazy-E
5:45
3 "Gangsta Gangsta"
  • Ice Cube
  • Ice Cube
  • Eazy-E
  • MC Ren
5:36
4 "If It Ain't Ruff"
  • MC Ren
  • MC Ren
3:34
5 "Parental Discretion Iz Advised"
  • The D.O.C. (also for Dr. Dre)
  • MC Ren
  • Ice Cube
  • The D.O.C.
  • Dr. Dre
  • MC Ren
  • Ice Cube
  • Eazy-E
5:15
6 "8 Ball" (remix)
  • Ice Cube
  • Eazy-E
4:52
7 "Something Like That"
  • MC Ren (also for Dr. Dre)
  • MC Ren
  • Dr. Dre
3:35
8 "Express Yourself"
  • Ice Cube
  • Dr. Dre
4:25
9 "Compton's n the House (remix)"
  • MC Ren (also for Dr. Dre)
  • MC Ren
  • Dr. Dre
  • "Something Like That" by N.W.A
5:20
10 "I Ain't tha 1"
  • Ice Cube
  • Ice Cube
4:54
11 "Dopeman" (remix)
  • Ice Cube
  • Ice Cube
  • Eazy-E
5:20
12 "Quiet on tha Set"
  • MC Ren
  • MC Ren
3:59
13 "Something 2 Dance 2"
  • Arabian Prince
  • Dr. Dre
  • Eazy-E
3:23
2002 reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Performer(s)Length
14."Express Yourself" (extended mix)
  • Ice Cube
  • MC Ren
  • Dr. Dre
  • MC Ren
  • Ice Cube
4:42
15."Bonus Beats"  3:03
16."Straight Outta Compton" (extended mix)
  • Ice Cube
  • The D.O.C.
  • MC Ren
  • MC Ren
  • Eazy-E
  • Ice Cube
4:53
17."A Bitch Iz a Bitch"Ice CubeIce Cube3:10
2007 reissue (20th Anniversary Edition) bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Performer(s)Length
14."---- tha Police" (tribute remix)
  • MC Ren
  • Eazy-E
Bone Thugs-n-Harmony5:02
15."Gangsta Gangsta" (tribute remix)
  • Eazy-E
  • MC Ren
4:39
16."Dopeman" (tribute remix)
  • Ice Cube
  • Eazy-E
Mack 104:01
17."If It Ain't Ruff" (tribute remix)MC RenWC3:44
18."Compton's n the House" (live)
  • MC Ren
  • Dr. Dre
  • MC Ren
2:02

Personnel edit

Credits adapted from Tidal[87] and All Music.[24]

N.W.A.
  • Eazy-E – rapping (tracks 1-3, 5, 6, 9, 11-13), spoken word (tracks 1-3, 10 and 12) co-producer (track 6), executive producer
  • Ice Cube – rapping (tracks 1-3, 5, 10 & 11), spoken word (tracks 2 and 8)
  • MC Ren – rapping (tracks 1-5, 7, 9, 12), spoken word (tracks 2, 3, 7 and 9)
  • Dr. Dre – rapping (tracks 5, 7-9, 11 & 13), spoken word (tracks 1-3, 7, 8 and 9) keyboards and drum programming (all tracks)
  • DJ Yella – sampling, turntables and drum programming (all tracks)
  • Arabian Prince – rapping (track 13), keyboards & drum programming (1, 3, 7, 9 and 13)
Additional musicians
  • The D.O.C. – rapping (track 5), spoken word (track 2), lyrics (tracks 1, 2 & 5)
  • Krazy Dee – spoken word (tracks 3 and 11)
Studio Personnel
  • Big Bass Brian – mastering
  • Donovan Sound – engineer
  • Eric Poppleton – photography
  • Helane Freeman – art direction

Charts edit

Chart (1989)[88][89] Peak
position
US Billboard Top LPs 37
US Billboard Top Soul LPs 9
Chart (1991) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[90] 51
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[91] 43
Chart (2003)[88][89] Peak
position
Irish Albums Chart 20
UK Albums Chart 35
Chart (2015–16)[92] Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[93] 8
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[94] 55
French Albums (SNEP)[95] 17
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[96] 36
Irish Albums (IRMA)[97] 7
Italian Vinyl Records (FIMI)[98] 15
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[99] 38
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[100] 54
UK R&B Albums (OCC)[101] 6
US Billboard 200 4

Certifications edit

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[102] Platinum 300,000
United States (RIAA)[103] 3× Platinum 3,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ a b Kory Grow (August 8, 2018). "N.W.A's 'Straight Outta Compton': 12 Things You Didn't Know". rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone, LLC. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
  2. ^ "Straight Outta Compton – N.W.A – Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Kory Grow, "N.W.A's 'Straight Outta Compton': 12 things you didn't know", Rolling Stone website, Penske Business Media, LLC, 8 Aug 2018.
  4. ^ a b c David Diallo, ch. 10 "From electro-rap to G-funk: A social history of rap music in Los Angeles and Compton, California", in Mickey Hess, ed., Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide, Volume 1: East Coast and West Coast (Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood Press, 2010), pp 234–238.
  5. ^ Incidentally, this 1988 album is N.W.A's last album with contributions by Arabian Prince, already gone by its August release, and by Ice Cube, gone by 1990. Both, however, are on N.W.A's 1987 compilation album, N.W.A. and the Posse—sometimes recognized as N.W.A's first album—whereas at the Posse album's release, MC Ren may not have yet joined N.W.A's roster. That is despite MC Ren's appearance, among several others, in the Posse album's cover photo [Martin Cizmar, "Whatever happened to N.W.A's posse?", LA Weekly, 6 May 2010]. In any case, by N.W.A's next significant release, a 1990 EP, 100 Miles and Runnin', the group is four—Eazy, Dre, Yella, and Ren—also on the next and final album, 1991's Efil4zaggin or Niggaz4Life.
  6. ^ Musician (Amordian Press), 1991, volume 147, p 59.
  7. ^ McDermott, Terry (April 14, 2002). "NWA:Straight Outta Compton pt 1". Los Angeles Times. Reprinted at Hip Hop News. Retrieved August 15, 2015.
  8. ^ a b "Tenth Ruthless anniversary: For the record", Billboard, 1997 Aug 9;109(32):R-16.
  9. ^ Jeff Chang, Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation (New York: St. Martin's Press, 2005), pp. 327–328.
  10. ^ Omar Burgess (October 10, 2007). "HHDX News Bits: NWA and Eazy-E". HipHopDX. Retrieved October 10, 2007.
  11. ^ Universal Music Group announced that it would reissue the album as a limited-edition red cassette on April 15 as part of Universal's Respect the Classics series [Pietro Fililpponi, , Gotham News website, Gotham News LLC, 2 Apr 2015].
  12. ^ a b . grammy.com. The Recording Academy. 2016. Archived from the original on December 4, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  13. ^ "National Recording Registry Picks Are 'Over the Rainbow'". Library of Congress. March 29, 2016. Retrieved March 29, 2016.
  14. ^ Wayne Marshall, "Kool Herc," in Mickey Hess, ed., Icons of Hip Hop: An Encyclopedia of the Movement, Music, and Culture, Volume 1 (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2007), pp 6–7.
  15. ^ a b c d e Loren Kajikawa, "Compton via New York", Sounding Race in Rap Songs (Oakland: University of California Press, 2015), pp 91–96.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h David Diallo, ch. 10 "From electro-rap to G-funk: A social history of rap music in Los Angeles and Compton, California", in Mickey Hess, ed., Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide, Volume 1: East Coast and West Coast (Santa Barbara, California: Greenwood Press, 2010), with pp 228–231 on Ice-T, p 233 and following on World Class Wreckin' Cru', pp 234–238 on N.W.A, and otherwise backstory on their precursor, contemporary, and evolving rap scene in the Los Angeles area.
  17. ^ There were, for example, Egyptian Lover, down with Uncle Jamm's Army, and The Unknown DJ, down with the World Class Wreckin' Cru.
  18. ^ a b David Diallo, "Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg", in Mickey Hess, ed., Icons of Hip Hop: An Encyclopedia of the Movement, Music, and Culture (Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood Press, 2007), pp 319–321.
  19. ^ In the song, Schoolly D raps, "Park Side Killers is making that green / One by one, I'm knocking 'em out" Tom Moon, "The first great gangsta rap record: Straight Outta Compton: N.W.A", 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die: A Listener's Life List (New York: Workman Publishing, 2008), p 557.
  20. ^ Vlad Lyubovny, interviewer, "Arabian Prince on being founding member of NWA w/ Dre & Eazy-E", VladTVDJVlad @ YouTube, 11 Sep 2015.
  21. ^ a b Stephen Thomas Erlewine, "N.W.A: Biography", AllMusic.com, Netaktion LLC, visited 26 Apr 2020.
  22. ^ Robin D. G. Kelley, "Kickin' reality, kickin' ballistics: Gangsta rap and postindustrial Los Angeles", in William Eric Perkins, ed., Droppin' Science: Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop Culture (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1996), p 128.
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External links edit

straight, outta, compton, other, uses, disambiguation, debut, studio, album, american, gangsta, group, which, eazy, formed, angeles, county, city, compton, early, 1987, released, label, ruthless, records, august, 1988, album, produced, members, yella, arabian,. For other uses see Straight Outta Compton disambiguation Straight Outta Compton is the debut studio album by American gangsta rap group N W A which led by Eazy E formed in Los Angeles County s City of Compton in early 1987 3 4 Released by his label Ruthless Records on August 8 1988 1 the album was produced by N W A members Dr Dre DJ Yella and Arabian Prince with lyrics written by N W A members Ice Cube and MC Ren 5 along with Ruthless rapper The D O C 3 Not merely depicting Compton s street violence the lyrics repeatedly threaten to lead it by attacking peers and even police The track Fuck tha Police drew an FBI agent s warning letter which aided N W A s notoriety with N W A calling itself the world s most dangerous group 3 6 7 Straight Outta ComptonStudio album by N W AReleasedAugust 8 1988 1988 08 08 1 StudioAudio Achievements Torrance California GenreWest Coast hip hop 2 gangsta raphardcore hip hopLength60 16LabelRuthlessPriorityProducerEazy E exec Dr DreDJ YellaArabian PrinceN W A chronologyN W A and the Posse 1987 Straight Outta Compton 1988 100 Miles and Runnin 1990 Singles from Straight Outta Compton Straight Outta Compton Released July 10 1988 Gangsta Gangsta Released September 5 1988 Express Yourself Released March 27 1989 In July 1989 despite its scarce radio play beyond the Los Angeles area 4 Straight Outta Compton received gangsta rap s first platinum certification one million copies sold by then 3 That year the album peaked at number 9 on Billboard s Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums chart and at number 37 on the Billboard 200 8 Receiving media spotlight N W A s example triggered the rap genre s movement toward hardcore gangsta rap 9 Remastered the album s September 2000 reissue gained four bonus tracks Nearing the album s 20th anniversary another extended version of it arrived in December 2007 10 In 2015 after an album reissue on red cassettes 11 theater release of the biographical film Straight Outta Compton reinvigorated sales of the album which by year s end was certified 3x Multi Platinum 3 In 2016 it became the first rap album inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame 12 The next year the Library of Congress enshrined Straight Outta Compton in the National Recording Registry who have deemed it to be culturally historically or aesthetically significant 13 Contents 1 Background 2 Record production 2 1 Synthesis 2 2 Vocals 2 3 Content 3 Release 4 Critical reception 4 1 Critiques 4 2 Rankings 5 Commercial performance 6 Media presence 7 Track listing 8 Personnel 9 Charts 10 Certifications 11 See also 12 Notes 13 External linksBackground editFor most of the 1980s New York City the birthplace of hip hop 14 remained the rap genre s dominant scene 15 Los Angeles County was secondary 16 Until 1988 the Los Angeles hip hop scene retaining more of hip hop s dance and party origin prioritized DJs and DJ crews as the central players in hip hop 17 the prevailing style at the time was electro rap and funk hop 18 similar to the New York based 1982 hit Planet Rock 15 By contrast East Coast hip hop had moved to prioritizing the lyricist or MC after the success of Run DMC s self titled 1984 album 16 As the 1980s continued it became increasingly popular to record lyrics on top of electro rap music The World Class Wreckin Cru which included Dr Dre and DJ Yella published the West Coast s first rap album to be released under a major record label 16 Also among LA s rising lyricists was Ice T Inspired by Philadelphia rapper Schoolly D s 1985 single P S K What Does It Mean 16 15 19 Ice T released the track 6 in the Mornin in 1986 This song began to pull the Los Angeles scene s attention away from electro rap it reached gold sales and inaugurated a new rap subgenre later called gangsta rap 16 15 In 1986 Eric Wright a Kelly Park Compton Crip formed Ruthless Records an independent record label based in Compton 16 Through drug dealing Wright had become acquainted with Dr Dre and Arabian Prince a pair of locally successful record producers and recording artists who were struggling to receive royalties 20 Wright recruited the South Central Los Angeles based rapper Ice Cube then a member of rap group C I A as a ghostwriter and instructed him to collaborate with Dr Dre and write a song for the label The resulting track was Boyz n the Hood 21 This song was originally intended to be performed by a New York based group who were signed to Ruthless Records however after that group rejected the song Wright adopted the stage name Eazy E and performed the rapping himself 18 21 Released under the name N W A Boyz n the Hood became a local hit despite criticism that it sounded similar to Schoolly D s P S K single and that its tempo was too slow to dance to 15 Expanding upon Ice T s model N W A imparted to gangsta rap a signature style that featured exaggerated descriptions of street life militant resistance to authority and outright sexist violence 22 N W A further strove to secure radio play by supplying radio edits of their music to local stations such as KDAY 4 Despite these efforts N W A s national debut Straight Outta Compton saw virtually no radio play even so the album was hugely successful selling one million copies and becoming the first gangsta rap album to be certified platinum 16 23 As rap fans even from afar sought more from Compton and South Central 24 local rappers like MC Eiht of Compton s Most Wanted met the call 25 The Los Angeles rap scene rapidly moved from party rap to hardcore rap 16 On the global stage N W A towered as gangsta rap s icons The group s profane unrelentingly violent lyrics led to backlash from law enforcement and other groups an FBI agent sent the record label a warning letter MTV banned the Straight Outta Compton video some venues banned N W A performance and some police officers refused to work security at N W A shows elsewhere 3 23 26 The controversy served to further bolster N W A s anti establishment image and so the rappers would highlight it themselves in later tracks 3 27 Slant Magazine describes Straight Outta Compton as laying the foundation for the East Coast West Coast hip hop rivalry referring to the album as the West Coast firing on New York s Fort Sumter in what would become 90s culture s biggest Uncivil War 28 Record production editThe album was recorded and produced in Audio Achievements Studio in Torrance California for 12 000 Dr Dre in a 1993 interview recalls I threw that thing together in six weeks so we could have something to sell out of the trunk 3 In an incident recalled in Jerry Heller s book and later portrayed in the film Straight Outta Compton police approached the group while they were standing outside the studio in the fall of 1987 and demanded them to get on their knees and show ID without explanation Outraged by the experience Cube began writing the lyrics that would become Fuck tha Police 29 Initially still spending weekends in jail over traffic violations Dre was reluctant to do Fuck tha Police a reluctance that dissolved once that sentence concluded 3 Synthesis edit The album s producers were Dr Dre with DJ Yella and Arabian Prince Its production was mostly sampled horn blasts some funk guitar riffs sampled vocals and turntable scratches atop a drum machine 24 Their drum machine used for kick was the Roland TR 808 30 Vocals edit N W A s Ice Cube and MC Ren along with Ruthless Records rapper The D O C wrote the lyrics including those rapped by Eazy E and by Dr Dre 3 On the other hand DJ Yella never raps and Arabian Prince does only minor vocals on Something 2 Dance 2 Otherwise each group member stands out through a solo rap too MC Ren has two solo tracks If It Ain t Ruff and Quiet on tha Set Dr Dre dominates Express Yourself Ice Cube s is I Ain t tha 1 Eazy E s is a remix of 8 Ball a track which originally appeared on N W A s 1987 debut compilation album N W A and the Posse The one guest is The D O C who raps the opening verse of Parental Discretion Iz Advised Whereas Ren wrote his own lyrics and The D O C wrote many of Eazy s lyrics Cube wrote his lyrics and both Dre s and Eazy s as well 24 Still even Eazy and Dre alike Cube and Ren each brings a distinct delivery and character making N W A altogether stand out from imitators 24 Content edit Reflecting in 2002 Rolling Stone writer Jon Caramanica calls the album a bombastic cacophonous car ride through Los Angeles burnt out and ignored hoods 31 In a contemporary review rather Mark Holmberg in the Richmond Times Dispatch calls it a preacher provoking mother maddening reality stinks album that wallows in gangs doping drive by shootings brutal sexism cop slamming and racism 32 Newsweek wrote Hinting at gang roots and selling themselves on those hints they project a gangster mystique that pays no attention to where criminality begins and marketing lets off 33 Even when depicting severe and unprovoked violence the rappers cite their own stage names as its very perpetrators By their sheer force the album s opening three tracks Straight Outta Compton Fuck tha Police and Gangsta Gangsta signature songs setting N W A s platform says AllMusic album reviewer Steve Huey threaten to dwarf everything that follows 24 First the title track smearing and menacing civilians and police men and women while women receive gruff sexual advances too even threatens to smother your mother Then after a skit of the police put on criminal trial Fuck tha Police alleging chronic harassment and brutality by officers singularly threatens lethal retaliation Gangsta Gangsta depicts group outings to carouse with women while slurring unwilling women and assaulting men whether confrontational troublemakers innocent bystanders or a driver who fleeing the failed carjacking gets shot at 8 Ball is dedicated to the 40 oz bottles of malt liquor Olde English 800 34 Express Yourself written by Cube and rapped by Dre incidentally scorns weed smoking already proclaimed by Cube in Gangsta Gangsta as his own chronic practice which allegedly causes brain damage a threat to the song s optimistic agenda liberal individuality I Ain t tha 1 scorns spending money on women Dopeman depicts the crack epidemic s aftermath Closing the album Something 2 Dance 2 is upbeat 3 The term gangsta rap soon to arise in journalism had not been coined yet 3 According to Ice Cube the rappers themselves called it reality rap 3 Indicting N W A as its leading example journalist David Mills in 1990 acknowledges The hard core street rappers defend their violent lyrics as a reflection of reality But for all the gunshots they mix into their music rappers rarely try to dramatize that reality empathetically It s easier for them to imagine themselves pulling the trigger 35 Still the year before Bud Norman reviewing in the Wichita Eagle Beacon assesses that on Straight Outta Compton they don t make it sound like much fun 36 In Norman s view They describe it with the same nonjudgmental resignation that a Kansan might use about a tornado 36 Steve Huey writing for AllMusic considered that Straight Outta Compton s insistent claims of reality ring a little hollow today since it hardly ever depicts consequences But despite all the romanticized invincibility the force and detail of Ice Cube s writing makes the exaggerations resonate 24 N W A s Greatest Hits released in July 1996 featured six tracks from Straight Outta Compton Gangsta Gangsta If It Ain t Ruff I Ain t tha 1 Express Yourself an extended mix of Straight Outta Compton and Fuck tha Police which is absent from Straight Outta Compton s censored version 37 Release editIn the United Kingdom the album was released by 4th amp B way Records after a period that Roy Wilkinson of Sounds described as months of selling well as an import release 38 Critical reception editCritiques edit Contemporary professional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingChicago Tribune nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 39 Los Angeles Times nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 40 NME5 10 41 Q nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 42 Sounds nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 38 The Village VoiceB 43 Music journalist Greg Kot reviewing Straight Outta Compton for the Chicago Tribune finds N W A s sound fuller and funkier than that of East Coast hip hop and their lyrics just as unforgiving as those of East Coast group Public Enemy 39 Los Angeles Times critic Dennis Hunt anticipates that listeners may be offended by the album s lack of moralizing even more so than the searing street language and advises To appreciate this remarkable disturbing album you have to approach it for what it is a no holds barred audio documentary of ghetto life 40 On the other hand Cary Darling in California s Orange County Register while thinking that the lyrics make Ice T look like a Cub Scout ultimately deems Straight Outta Compton curiously uninvolving as it lacks the insight and passion that put the best work by the likes of Boogie Down Productions Ice T and Public Enemy so far ahead of the field 44 Robert Christgau of The Village Voice perceives N W A s persona as calculated Right it s not about salary it s about royalties about brandishing scarewords like street and crazy and fuck and reality until suckers black and white cough up the cash 43 In the UK Sounds reviewer Roy Wilkinson declared Straight Outta Compton rap s answer to Slayer s Reign in Blood a record the majors were scared to touch continuing This is rock made genuinely wild again Beware the pop jive of the current Express Yourself single will in no way prepare you for the Magnum beat that fires here 38 Other British publications were less enthusiastic Paolo Hewitt of NME takes issue with the lyrics macho repetition and tunnel vision 41 while in the Hi Fi News amp Record Review Peter Clark going further calls the lyrics unrelenting in their unpleasantness 45 Offering the lowest possible rating Clark adds The cumulative effect is like listening to an endless fight next door The music on this record is without a hint of dynamics or melody 45 Charlie Dick writing for Q contends In the wake of Public Enemy and KRS One it is amazing that something this lightweight could cause such a stir The all mouth and trousers content is backed up by likable drum machine twittering minimal instrumentation and duffish production 42 Still he predicts This regressive nonsense will be passed off as social commentary by thrill seekers all across the free world 42 Retrospective professional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingAllMusic nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 24 Blender nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 46 Mojo nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 47 Pitchfork9 7 10 48 Q nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 49 Rolling Stone nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 31 The Rolling Stone Album Guide nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 50 The Source5 5 51 Spin Alternative Record Guide10 10 52 Uncut nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 53 By 1991 while criticizing group members for allegedly carrying misogynist lyrics into real life Newsweek incidentally comments that Straight Outta Compton nonetheless introduced some of the most grotesquely exciting music ever made 33 Writing in retrospect Steve Huey in AllMusic deems the album mainly just raising hell while posturing but finds that it still sounds refreshingly uncalculated because of its irreverent gonzo sense of humor still unfortunately rare in hardcore rap 24 In the 2004 Rolling Stone Album Guide Roni Sarig states that although Straight Outta Compton was viewed as a perversion of the more politically sophisticated style of hip hop exemplified by Public Enemy the album displays a more righteous fury than the hundreds of copycats it spawned 50 Rankings edit In 1994 British magazine Hip Hop Connection placing the album third among rap s best albums adds Straight Outta Compton sounded so exciting insignificant details such as realism and integrity could be overlooked 54 Hip hop magazine The Source included Straight Outta Compton in its 1998 100 Best Albums list 55 Television network VH1 in 2003 placed it 62nd 56 Spin magazine sorting the 100 Greatest Albums 1985 2005 identified it 10th 57 The first rap album ever to gain five stars from Rolling Stone at initial review it placed 70th among the magazine s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in its 2020 revised list 58 Time in 2006 named it one of the 100 greatest albums of all time 59 Vibe appraised it as one of the 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century 60 In 2012 Slant Magazine listed it 18th among the Best Albums of the 1980s 28 In any case in November 2016 Straight Outta Compton became the first rap album inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame 12 In 2017 Straight Outta Compton was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress who deemed it to be culturally historically or aesthetically significant 61 Commercial performance editN W A s best selling album Straight Outta Compton released in August 1988 attained gold certification half a million copies sold on April 13 1989 62 Meanwhile the album peaked at number 9 on Billboard s Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums chart and on April 15 1989 at number 37 on the Billboard 200 which ranks the week s most popular albums 8 63 On July 18 1989 the album was certified platinum one million copies sold 62 By contrast N W A and the Posse out since November 1987 reached gold certification in September 1994 64 The group s 100 Miles and Runnin EP which took two years to produce and was released in August 1990 went platinum in September 1992 65 That year on March 27 Straight Outta Compton was certified double platinum two million copies sold 62 By Priority Records estimation about 80 of Straight Outta Compton s sales occurred in suburban areas predominantly white 66 67 N W A s next and final full length album Efil4zaggin or Niggaz4Life released in late May 1991 went platinum just over two months later in August 1991 yet in 2020 remains platinum 68 whereas on November 11 2015 Straight Outta Compton was certified triple platinum three million copies sold 62 Approaching the August 2015 release of the film Straight Outta Compton the album reentered the Billboard 200 at number 173 69 The next week it rose to number 97 another week later reached number 30 69 beyond its 1989 peak position of 37 and on September 5 peaked at number 6 70 Meanwhile the album s title track entering the popular songs chart the Billboard Hot 100 becoming N W A s first song in the Top 40 71 spent two weeks at number 38 72 Media presence editIn 2004 the DigitaArts list 25 Best Albums Covers included Straight Outta Compton 73 By the album s release Arabian Prince on the cover had left N W A Lacking him an iconic group photo taken by Ithaka Darin Pappas on November 11 1988 at Pappa s studio apartment in Los Angeles Miracle Mile district has been repeatedly republished in media 74 including The Source s May 1989 cover captioning California Rap Hits Nationwide Pappas calls it the Miracle Mile Shot 75 the DVD cover of the 2015 documentary Kings Of Compton 76 77 in France s Musee d art contemporain de Marseille from 2017 to 2018 78 79 and a backdrop at N W A s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2016 in Brooklyn New York 80 Sinead O Connor then herself controversial appraised in 1990 that It s definitely the best rap record I ve ever heard 81 But feeling that he had rushed its production N W A s own Dr Dre in a 1993 interview remarked To this day I can t stand that album I threw that thing together in six weeks so we could have something to sell out of the trunk Additionally he said Back then I thought the choruses were supposed to just be me scratching 3 In 2006 parodic music artist Weird Al Yankovic released a new album Straight Outta Lynwood Punk rock band NOFX released the 2009 song Straight Outta Massachusetts In the 2014 film 22 Jump Street the character Mrs Dickson whose husband is played by Ice Cube says she s straight outta Compton 82 In 2015 the biopic Straight Outta Compton was a hit film 83 Track listing editAll songs produced by Dr Dre and DJ Yella amp Arabian Prince No Title Writer s Performer s Samples 84 85 Length 1 Straight Outta Compton Ice Cube MC Ren The D O C Ice Cube MC Ren Eazy E Funky Drummer by James Brown You ll Like It Too by Funkadelic West Coast Poplock by Ronnie Hudson and the Street People Get Me Back on Time Engine No 9 by Wilson Pickett Amen Brother by The Winstons One for the Treble by Davy DMX 4 18 2 Fuck tha Police 86 Ice Cube MC Ren The D O C Ice Cube MC Ren Eazy E Funky President People It s Bad by James Brown It s My Thing by Marva Whitney Boogie Back by Roy Ayers Feel Good by Fancy Funky Drummer by James Brown Ruthless Villain by Eazy E Be Thankful for What You Got by William DeVaughn 5 45 3 Gangsta Gangsta Ice Cube Ice Cube Eazy E MC Ren Weak at the Knees by Steve Arrington Troglodyte by Jimmy Castor Bunch Be Thankful for What You Got by William DeVaughn Impeach the President by The Honey Drippers N T by Kool amp the Gang Funky Worm by Ohio Players Prison by Richard Pryor My Philosophy by Boogie Down Productions KRS One La Di Da Di by Doug E Fresh and Slick Rick Girls by Beastie Boys Ruthless Villain by Eazy E Take the Money and Run by Steve Miller Band 5 36 4 If It Ain t Ruff MC Ren MC Ren A Star in the Ghetto by Average White Band Quiet on tha Set and Straight Outta Compton by N W A Ruthless Villain by Eazy E Don t Believe the Hype by Public Enemy 3 34 5 Parental Discretion Iz Advised The D O C also for Dr Dre MC Ren Ice Cube The D O C Dr Dre MC Ren Ice Cube Eazy E I Turned You On by The Isley Brothers and Dave Baby Cortez 5 15 6 8 Ball remix Ice Cube Eazy E It s My Beat by Sweet Tea Be Thankful for What You Got by William DeVaughn Yes We Can Can by The Pointer Sisters You Gotta Fight for Your Right To Party The New Style Girls Paul Revere and Hold It Now Hit It by Beastie Boys Terminator X Speaks With His Hands and Too Much Posse by Public Enemy Hollywood Swinging by Kool amp the Gang Let s Get It On by Marvin Gaye Go See the Doctor by Kool Moe Dee Boyz n the Hood by Eazy E My Melody by Eric B amp Rakim 4 52 7 Something Like That MC Ren also for Dr Dre MC Ren Dr Dre Down on the Avenue by Fat Larry s Band Take the Money and Run by Steve Miller Band I Think I ll Do It by Z Z Hill 3 35 8 Express Yourself Ice Cube Dr Dre Express Yourself by Charles Wright amp the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band Dopeman by N W A 4 25 9 Compton s n the House remix MC Ren also for Dr Dre MC Ren Dr Dre Something Like That by N W A 5 20 10 I Ain t tha 1 Ice Cube Ice Cube The Message Inspiration by Brass Construction 4 54 11 Dopeman remix Ice Cube Ice Cube Eazy E Dance to the Drummer s Beat by Herman Kelly and Life Funky Worm by Ohio Players My Posse by C I A 5 20 12 Quiet on tha Set MC Ren MC Ren Down to the Grissle by Cool C Funky Drummer by James Brown I Get Lifted by George McCrae Rock Creek Park by The Blackbyrds Take the Money and Run by Steve Miller Band Straight Outta Compton by N W A On the Bugged Tip by Big Daddy Kane Rebel Without a Pause by Public Enemy 3 59 13 Something 2 Dance 2 Arabian Prince Arabian Prince Dr Dre Eazy E You re the One for Me by D Train Dance to the Music by Sly and the Family Stone 3 23 2002 reissue bonus tracksNo TitleWriter s Performer s Length14 Express Yourself extended mix Ice Cube MC RenDr Dre MC Ren Ice Cube4 4215 Bonus Beats 3 0316 Straight Outta Compton extended mix Ice Cube The D O C MC RenMC Ren Eazy E Ice Cube4 5317 A Bitch Iz a Bitch Ice CubeIce Cube3 10 2007 reissue 20th Anniversary Edition bonus tracksNo TitleWriter s Performer s Length14 tha Police tribute remix MC Ren Eazy EBone Thugs n Harmony5 0215 Gangsta Gangsta tribute remix Eazy E MC RenSnoop Dogg C Murder4 3916 Dopeman tribute remix Ice Cube Eazy EMack 104 0117 If It Ain t Ruff tribute remix MC RenWC3 4418 Compton s n the House live MC RenDr Dre MC Ren2 02Personnel editCredits adapted from Tidal 87 and All Music 24 N W A Eazy E rapping tracks 1 3 5 6 9 11 13 spoken word tracks 1 3 10 and 12 co producer track 6 executive producer Ice Cube rapping tracks 1 3 5 10 amp 11 spoken word tracks 2 and 8 MC Ren rapping tracks 1 5 7 9 12 spoken word tracks 2 3 7 and 9 Dr Dre rapping tracks 5 7 9 11 amp 13 spoken word tracks 1 3 7 8 and 9 keyboards and drum programming all tracks DJ Yella sampling turntables and drum programming all tracks Arabian Prince rapping track 13 keyboards amp drum programming 1 3 7 9 and 13 Additional musicians The D O C rapping track 5 spoken word track 2 lyrics tracks 1 2 amp 5 Krazy Dee spoken word tracks 3 and 11 Studio Personnel Big Bass Brian mastering Donovan Sound engineer Eric Poppleton photography Helane Freeman art directionCharts editChart 1989 88 89 Peakposition US Billboard Top LPs 37 US Billboard Top Soul LPs 9 Chart 1991 Peakposition Australian Albums ARIA 90 51 New Zealand Albums RMNZ 91 43 Chart 2003 88 89 Peakposition Irish Albums Chart 20 UK Albums Chart 35 Chart 2015 16 92 Peakposition Australian Albums ARIA 93 8 Austrian Albums O3 Austria 94 55 French Albums SNEP 95 17 German Albums Offizielle Top 100 96 36 Irish Albums IRMA 97 7 Italian Vinyl Records FIMI 98 15 Norwegian Albums VG lista 99 38 Swiss Albums Schweizer Hitparade 100 54 UK R amp B Albums OCC 101 6 US Billboard 200 4Certifications editRegion Certification Certified units sales United Kingdom BPI 102 Platinum 300 000 United States RIAA 103 3 Platinum 3 000 000 Shipments figures based on certification alone Sales streaming figures based on certification alone See also editAlbum era Straight Outta Compton N W A 10th Anniversary TributeNotes edit a b Kory Grow August 8 2018 N W A s Straight Outta Compton 12 Things You Didn t Know rollingstone com Rolling Stone LLC Retrieved June 9 2019 Straight Outta Compton N W A Songs Reviews Credits AllMusic a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Kory Grow N W A s Straight Outta Compton 12 things you didn t know Rolling Stone website Penske Business Media LLC 8 Aug 2018 a b c David Diallo ch 10 From electro rap to G funk A social history of rap music in Los Angeles and Compton California in Mickey Hess ed Hip Hop in America A Regional Guide Volume 1 East Coast and West Coast Santa Barbara CA Greenwood Press 2010 pp 234 238 Incidentally this 1988 album is N W A s last album with contributions by Arabian Prince already gone by its August release and by Ice Cube gone by 1990 Both however are on N W A s 1987 compilation album N W A and the Posse sometimes recognized as N W A s first album whereas at the Posse album s release MC Ren may not have yet joined N W A s roster That is despite MC Ren s appearance among several others in the Posse album s cover photo Martin Cizmar Whatever happened to N W A s posse LA Weekly 6 May 2010 In any case by N W A s next significant release a 1990 EP 100 Miles and Runnin the group is four Eazy Dre Yella and Ren also on the next and final album 1991 s Efil4zaggin or Niggaz4Life Musician Amordian Press 1991 volume 147 p 59 McDermott Terry April 14 2002 NWA Straight Outta Compton pt 1 Los Angeles Times Reprinted at Hip Hop News Retrieved August 15 2015 a b Tenth Ruthless anniversary For the record Billboard 1997 Aug 9 109 32 R 16 Jeff Chang Can t Stop Won t Stop A History of the Hip Hop Generation New York St Martin s Press 2005 pp 327 328 Omar Burgess October 10 2007 HHDX News Bits NWA and Eazy E HipHopDX Retrieved October 10 2007 Universal Music Group announced that it would reissue the album as a limited edition red cassette on April 15 as part of Universal s Respect the Classics series Pietro Fililpponi Universal announces more N W A re releases Straight Outta Compton cassette tape Friday 20th anniversary vinyl Gotham News website Gotham News LLC 2 Apr 2015 a b Grammy Hall of Fame Adds 25 Recordings grammy com The Recording Academy 2016 Archived from the original on December 4 2016 Retrieved March 11 2020 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint unfit URL link National Recording Registry Picks Are Over the Rainbow Library of Congress March 29 2016 Retrieved March 29 2016 Wayne Marshall Kool Herc in Mickey Hess ed Icons of Hip Hop An Encyclopedia of the Movement Music and Culture Volume 1 Westport CT Greenwood Press 2007 pp 6 7 a b c d e Loren Kajikawa Compton via New York Sounding Race in Rap Songs Oakland University of California Press 2015 pp 91 96 a b c d e f g h David Diallo ch 10 From electro rap to G funk A social history of rap music in Los Angeles and Compton California in Mickey Hess ed Hip Hop in America A Regional Guide Volume 1 East Coast and West Coast Santa Barbara California Greenwood Press 2010 with pp 228 231 on Ice T p 233 and following on World Class Wreckin Cru pp 234 238 on N W A and otherwise backstory on their precursor contemporary and evolving rap scene in the Los Angeles area There were for example Egyptian Lover down with Uncle Jamm s Army and The Unknown DJ down with the World Class Wreckin Cru a b David Diallo Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg in Mickey Hess ed Icons of Hip Hop An Encyclopedia of the Movement Music and Culture Santa Barbara CA Greenwood Press 2007 pp 319 321 In the song Schoolly D raps Park Side Killers is making that green One by one I m knocking em out Tom Moon The first great gangsta rap record Straight Outta Compton N W A 1 000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die A Listener s Life List New York Workman Publishing 2008 p 557 Vlad Lyubovny interviewer Arabian Prince on being founding member of NWA w Dre amp Eazy E VladTV DJVlad YouTube 11 Sep 2015 a b Stephen Thomas Erlewine N W A Biography AllMusic com Netaktion LLC visited 26 Apr 2020 Robin D G Kelley Kickin reality kickin ballistics Gangsta rap and postindustrial Los Angeles in William Eric Perkins ed Droppin Science Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop Culture Philadelphia Temple University Press 1996 p 128 a b Stephen Thomas Erlewine N W A Biography AllMusic com Netaktion LLC visited 25 Apr 2020 a b c d e f g h i Huey Steve Straight Outta Compton N W A AllMusic Retrieved May 7 2020 Jason Birchmeier Compton s Most Wanted in Chris Woodstra John Bush amp Stephen Thomas Erlewine eds All Music Guide Required Listening Volum 2 Old School Rap and Hip Hop New York NY Backbeat Books 2008 p 15 Eazy E Timeline Eazy E com Accessed October 4 2007 In N W A s 1990 single 100 Miles and Runnin the title track of the group s only nationally distributed EP whose music video shows the rappers running from police Dre raps that now the FBI is all over my dick MetroLyrics N W A 100 Miles And Running lyrics CBS Interactive Inc 2020 And in the title track of his 1990 or debut solo album AmeriKKKa s Most Wanted Ice Cube raps With a pay off cop gotta lay off FBI on my dick stay off MetroLyrics Ice Cube Amerikkka s Most Wanted lyrics CBS Interactive Inc 2020 a b The 100 Best Albums of the 1980s Slant March 5 2012 Retrieved August 14 2015 Westhoff Ben 2016 Original Gangstas The Untold Story of Dr Dre Eazy E Ice Cube Tupac Shakur and the Birth of West Coast Rap Hachette Books p 79 ISBN 978 0 3163 8389 9 George Ciccariello Maher The 808 in Mickey Hess ed Icons of Hip Hop An Encyclopedia of the Movement Music and Culture Volume 1 Westport CT Greenwood Press 2007 p 75 a b Caramanica Jon October 17 2002 Straight Outta Compton Reissue Rolling Stone No 907 New York Archived from the original on June 19 2022 Retrieved July 22 2009 Richmond Times Dispatch 30 June 1989 quoted in Anne Janette Johnson Contemporary Musicians N W A Encyclopedia com Cengage updated 1 April 2020 a b Newsweek staff Number one with a bullet Newsweek 30 Jun 1991 quoted in Anne Janette Johnson Contemporary Musicians N W A Encyclopedia com Cengage updated 1 Apr 2020 Tim Scott 40oz beats A brief history of malt liquor in hip hop Vice 17 November 2015 David Mills Rap s hostile fringe From N W A and others reality based violence Washington Post 2 September 1990 G1 quoted by Soren Baker The History of Rap and Hip Hop Farmingham Mills Michigan Lucent Books 2012 p 58 and also cited by Loren Kajikawa Sounding Race in Rap Songs Berkeley California University of California Press 2015 p 169 a b Wichita Eagle Beacon 3 August 1989 quoted in Anne Janette Johnson Contemporary Musicians N W A Encyclopedia com Cengage updated 1 April 2020 Straight Outta Compton Clean Version Artist Direct Retrieved August 15 2015 a b c Wilkinson Roy September 9 1989 Guns and girls and rap n roll Sounds London Retrieved October 29 2021 via Rock s Backpages a b Kot Greg July 13 1989 N W A Straight Outta Compton Ruthless Priority Chicago Tribune Retrieved May 6 2016 a b Hunt Dennis March 19 1989 N W A Straight Outta Compton Priority Ruthless Los Angeles Times Retrieved May 6 2016 a b Hewitt Paolo April 15 1989 NWA Straight Outta Compton NME London p 34 a b c Dick Charlie November 1989 N W A Straight Outta Compton Q No 38 London a b Christgau Robert April 25 1989 Christgau s Consumer Guide The Village Voice New York Retrieved May 6 2016 Darling Cary March 3 1989 Fine Young Cannibals dish out an underdone album The Orange County Register a b Hi Fi News amp Record Review Dec 1989 Mao Chairman October 2002 Mad as F Blender Vol 1 no 10 New York p 142 Archived from the original on April 19 2010 Retrieved August 19 2015 Harrison Ian March 2008 N W A Straight Outta Compton Mojo No 172 London p 118 Suzuki Ray October 2 2003 N W A Straight Outta Compton Efil4zaggin Pitchfork Retrieved July 22 2009 Howe Rupert November 2002 N W A Straight Outta Compton Efil4zaggin 100 Miles and Runnin Q No 196 London a b Sarig Roni 2004 N W A In Brackett Nathan Hoard Christian eds The New Rolling Stone Album Guide 4th ed Simon amp Schuster pp 594 595 ISBN 0 7432 0169 8 N W A Straight Outta Compton The Source No 150 New York March 2002 Sandow Greg 1995 N W A In Weisbard Eric Marks Craig eds Spin Alternative Record Guide Vintage Books pp 277 278 ISBN 0 679 75574 8 N W A Straight Outta Compton Uncut No 66 London November 2002 p 141 Hip Hop Connection July 1994 100 Best Albums The Source No 100 New York January 1998 VH1 List of 100 Best Rock Albums dailycelebrations com Retrieved February 16 2016 Spin 20th Anniversary Special July 2005 rocklistmusic co uk July 1 2005 Retrieved February 16 2016 The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone September 22 2020 Retrieved September 28 2020 The All TIME 100 Albums TIME Accessed January 4 2008 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century Vibe December 1999 p 164 National Recording Registry Picks Are Over the Rainbow Library of Congress March 29 2016 Retrieved March 29 2016 a b c d The Recording Industry Association of America reports this upon a January 1989 album release Gold amp Platinum search Straight Outta Compton RIAA website visited 7 May 2020 Chart history N W A Billboard com visited 7 May 2020 Gold amp Platinum search N W A and the Posse Recording Industry Association of America website visited 7 May 2020 Gold amp Platinum search 100 Miles and Runnin Recording Industry Association of America website visited 7 May 2020 Scott Warfield N W A in Melissa Ursula Dawn Goldsmith amp Anthony J Fonseca eds Hip Hop Around the World An Encyclopedia Santa Barbara CA Greenwood 2018 p 535 Terry McDermott NWA Straight Outta Compton Los Angeles Times 14 Apr 2002 archived by Davey D FNV Newsletter website Gold amp Platinum search Efil4zaggin Recording Industry Association of America website visited 7 May 2020 a b Victoria Hernandez Hip Hop album sales Dr Dre Kendrick Lamar amp N W A HipHopDX 17 Aug 2015 Chart history Straight Outta Compton N W A Billboard com visited 7 May 2020 Keith Caulfield N W A takes over charts gets first Top 40 Hit on Hot 100 Billboard com 25 Aug 2015 Chart history Straight Outta Compton N W A Billboard com visited 7 May 2020 Staff June 14 2004 The 25 Best Album Covers DigitalArts Retrieved on September 27 2010 There are a number of examples Tanay Hudson Former N W A manager disappointed with biopic Vibe 30 June 2014 Valentina I Valentini Two 90s era hip hop films revive L A s rap glory days Los Angeles 8 June 2015 Dianne de Guzman N W A to be inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame but won t perform SFGate 7 April 2016 Ithaka Darin Pappas director The Miracle Mile Shot Ithaka Darin Pappas 2019 Documentary NWA amp Eazy E Kings of Compton on DVD in January Cine Outsider Retrieved April 6 2017 NWA amp Eazy E The Kings of Compton coming to DVD Music News com Retrieved April 6 2017 Exposition HIP HOP UN AGE D OR 1970 1995 Marseille petitfute com Retrieved April 6 2017 Hip Hop un age d or 1970 1995 Living Marseille in French Archived from the original on December 13 2017 Retrieved April 6 2017 Ice Cube and Dr Dre join NWA members in Brooklyn as they re admitted to Rock amp Roll Hall of Fame digitalspy com April 9 2016 Retrieved April 6 2017 Rolling Stone 15 November 1990 22 Jump Street 10 pop culture references you might have missed Entertainment Weekly s EW com Retrieved August 14 2015 von Tunzelmann Alex September 2 2015 Straight Outta Compton Hit biopic raps up NWA story cleanly The Guardian Retrieved March 11 2020 Tracks on Straight Outta Compton N W A 1988 SecondHandSongs secondhandsongs com Retrieved November 14 2016 N W A WhoSampled WhoSampled Retrieved August 11 2015 On the album the obscenity is covered Credits Straight Outta Compton N W A Tidal Tidal Retrieved May 24 2023 a b N W A Discography Charts and Awards Allmusic Accessed October 9 2007 a b N W A Straight Outta Compton Chart Positions aCharts Accessed October 9 2007 Ryan Gavin September 5 2015 ARIA Albums The Weeknd Takes Top Spot On Australian Chart Noise11 Retrieved September 5 2015 Charts nz N W A Straight Outta Compton Hung Medien Retrieved September 10 2015 HipHopDX August 17 2015 Hip Hop Album Sales Dr Dre Kendrick Lamar amp N W A HipHopDX Ryan Gavin September 12 2015 ARIA Albums Troye Sivan Wild EP Debuts At No 1 Noise11 Retrieved September 12 2015 Austriancharts at N W A Straight Outta Compton in German Hung Medien Retrieved September 10 2015 Lescharts com N W A Straight Outta Compton Hung Medien Retrieved September 21 2015 Longplay Chartverfolgung at Musicline in German Musicline de Phononet GmbH Retrieved September 10 2015 GFK Chart Track Albums Week 37 2015 Chart Track IRMA Retrieved September 11 2015 Straight Outta Compton on the FIMI charts in Italian Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana Retrieved April 6 2018 Norwegiancharts com N W A Straight Outta Compton Hung Medien Retrieved September 15 2015 Swisscharts com N W A Straight Outta Compton Hung Medien Retrieved September 9 2015 Official R amp B Albums Chart Top 40 Official Charts Company Retrieved August 14 2015 British album certifications Nwa Straight Outta Compton British Phonographic Industry American album certifications N W A Straight Outta Compton Recording Industry Association of America External links editStraight Outta Compton Adobe Flash at Radio3Net streamed copy where licensed Straight Outta Compton at Discogs Outlaw Rock More Skirmishes on the Censorship Front The New York Times 1 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Straight Outta Compton amp oldid 1221641570, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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