Eazy-E

Eazy-E

Eric Lynn Wright, known as Eazy-E, was an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and entrepreneur. He was part of the group N.W. A and founded Ruthless Records. His debut album, Straight Outta Compton, was released in 1988 and is considered one of the greatest albums of all time. He died of AIDS in 1995, at the age of 48, in Los Angeles, California.

About Eazy-E in brief

Summary Eazy-EEric Lynn Wright, known as Eazy-E, was an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and entrepreneur. He was part of the group N. W. A and founded Ruthless Records. His debut album, Straight Outta Compton, was released in 1988 and is considered one of the greatest albums of all time. In 1995, he was diagnosed with AIDS and died due to its complications. He is often referred to as the godfather of gangsta rap and the father of West Coast rap. He also had a short solo career with frequent collaboration with Ice Cube and Dr. Dre. N.W. A disbanded in 1991 after disputes over money. He later signed Bone Thugs-N-Harmony from 1993 to 1994. He died of AIDS in 1995, at the age of 48, in Los Angeles, California. His music manager Jerry Heller recalls seeing Wright selling marijuana, but not cocaine. Heller would claim that Wright’s ‘dope dealer’ label was part. of his’self-forged armor’ Wright was also labeled as a ‘thug’ by the Los Angeles gang culture. He started recording songs in his parents’ garage in the mid-1980s. He had several legal troubles before founding Ruthless in 1987. He and Heller invested much of his money into Ruthless. Heller claims that he invested the first USD 250,000 and would eventually put up to USD 1,000,000 into the company.

Wright suggested a half-ownership company, but it was later decided that Wright would get eighty percent of the company’s income and Heller would only get twenty percent. The original lineup consisted of Arabian Prince, Dr. Dr. Dre, Eazy, and Ice Cube. DJ Yella and MC Ren joined later. The compilation album N.w. A. and the Posse was released on November 6, 1987, and would go on to be certified Gold in the United States. The album featured material previously released as singles on the Mac Records. Other artists like the Fila Crew, Fresh Crew, and The O.C. Crew, which was based in Dallas, Texas, were also released by the label. It was labeled as West, Coast hip hop and later, later, as golden age of hip hop. It has sold over 2million copies in the U.S. It reached number forty-one on the Billboard 200 and reached number five on the charts in 1988. The group disbanded after the release of its third and final studio album, Niggaz4Life, in 1991, and soon after disbanded. Eazy became embroiled in bitter rivalries with Dr.  Dre, who had departed for solo careers.