When asked about game changing rappers most people would say 2pac or Biggie. Not a lot of people know about the NWA, the rap group that changed rap as we know it today.
NWA, a rap group based out of Compton, California is considered to be the group that gave rap and hip hop the style it has now, the “gangsta” style. The group was made up of rappers Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Eazy-E (who passed away due to complications with the AIDs virus), Arabian Prince (left the group in 1988), DJ Yella, and MC Ren (joined after Arabian Prince left in 1988).
NWA is considered to be the creator of gangsta rap. The group was ranked 83rd by Rolling Stones on their list of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”. Still though, not a lot of people know this. That won’t be for long though as Hollywood has decided that it is time to tell the story of the group and make their accomplishments known by releasing a movie on the group. The movie is titled “Straight Outta Compton”, named after the group’s debut album. It has been in production since March 9th 2014 and is set to hit theaters August 14th 2015. This news has local NWA and rap fans ecstatic.
“NWA is one of the most historical groups in rap,” said junior Trevor Claveau, who is an avid hip hop and rap listener and a fan of the group.
“People who listen to modern rap now will get a view of where it all started.”
This movie is being produced by two of the former members of the group, Ice Cube and Dr. Dre.
The cast of the movie will feature Jason Mitchell as Eazy-E, Corey Hawkins as Dr. Dre, O’Shea Jackson Jr. (the son of Ice Cube) as Ice Cube, Aldis Hodge as MC Ren, and Neil Brown, Jr. as DJ Yella. The entire cast is handpicked by the two of the former members Dr. Dre and Ice Cube to make sure that the story is told straight and not twisted towards Hollywood and its idea of what the movie should be like.
“It’s good that the members are picking the actors,” said junior Dwayne Branch. “That way they can pick the characters that will accurately represent them.”
The movie’s trailer isn’t publicly released yet but fans witnessed one of Ice Cube’s concerts and through a video of that has been put up on worldstarhiphop.com .
“The movie is going to be sick,” said junior Brian Borda, another big fan of gangsta rap. “To see the whole era of gangsta rap and its roots on screen is going to be awesome.”