Kendrick Lamar is one of the biggest rappers in the world right now. He’s from a city called Compton. Maybe you’ve heard of it. Most likely you have—because of another group of rappers who came straight outta it back in the 80s. They were called N.W.A.
N.W.A.’s groundbreaking 1988 album Straight Outta Compton revolutionized hip-hop and made sure that the name Compton would be forever iconic. Tomorrow, a movie with the same title, which tells the story of the legendary rap group, will be released. In honor of the occasion, Kendrick Lamar sat down with his heroes, all four remaining living members of N.W.A.—Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, and DJ Yella—to interview them for Billboard, their first magazine cover together since Ice Cube left the group in 1989. It’s 25 minutes long, and it’s amazing. Kendrick asks the group about their relationship to hip-hop today, their relationship with fifth member Eazy-E (who died of AIDS in 1995), and their memories of recording their iconic early work. Perhaps foremost on Kendrick’s mind, though, is how the group deals with keeping their careers afloat and thinking of their legacy. As for what that legacy is?
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“Imagine this,” Dr. Dre says. “We made Straight Outta Compton in six weeks, and that’s without working weekends. Twenty-five years later, and here’s a big-ass Hollywood movie carrying the same name. It’s unbelievable.”
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Check out the full feature at Billboard and watch the incredible interview below:
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