Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Blender	[2]
Pitchfork Media	8.8/10[3]
RapReviews	9/10[4]
Robert Christgau	C−[5]
Rolling Stone	[6]
Rolling Stone	[7]

Niggaz4Life (also known as Efil4zaggin), was the second and final studio album by Gangsta rap group N.W.A, released in 1991. It was their final album, as the group disbanded later the same year after the departure of Dr. Dre and songwriter The D.O.C. for Death Row Records; the album features only four members of the original line-up, as Ice Cube had already left the group in 1989. Niggaz4Life debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200, but in its second week reached #1.

In 1992, several months after the release of the album, N.W.A released a video entitled Niggaz4Life: The Only Home Video, which chronicled the making of the album and its three music videos, "Alwayz into Somethin'", "Appetite for Destruction" and "Approach to Danger".

In 2003, the CD was re-released in two formats. Both had the EP 100 Miles and Runnin' appended to the end of the original track listing, but one was available with a DVD copy of Niggaz4Life: The Only Home Video.

Title[link]

On the cover the title appears as a mirror-image of the text "NIGGAZ4LIFE". The name of the new album had been revealed in "Kamurshol" from N.W.A's previous release 100 Miles and Runnin', but only by playing a vinyl copy backwards could the otherwise unintelligible sound be deciphered as "niggaz for life". Since the album contained the word "Nigga" in it, on some publications it had to be edited out as Straight Out of Compton 2.

While "Niggaz 4 Life" was the original title, it was likely changed on the cover to its reversed form due to political (and financial) considerations. The corruption of the word "nigga" as used in the album title was perhaps influenced by censorship measures in the US music industry introduced at the time. Controversy surrounding the content of heavy metal and hip hop music in general, in particular N.W.A, had been directed by Tipper Gore's Parents Music Resource Center, which had resulted in the adoption of self-censorship measures in the US music industry, including the Parental Advisory sticker. Straight Outta Compton, N.W.A's previous full-length, which also contained the song "Parental Discretion Iz Advised", was one of the first to be branded. By obfuscating the offensive word, the group were able to lever a small measure of artistic freedom. At the time of release, the album was removed from music stores in the United Kingdom.

In 1991, Island records UK (who licensed the record outside the USA) were charged under section two of the UK's obscene publication act for wilfully releasing efil4zaggin in the UK. Given the chance to withdraw the album by the police and avoid prosecution the board of director took the decision to defend NWA's right of free speech. Island president Marc Marot was personally threatened with prosecution under section 1 of the act as the 'controlling mind' behind Island records at the time of the case. Island engaged Geoffrey Robinson QC as a barrister and were rewarded with a famous win at Redbridge magistrate court on 7 November 1991, with all charges dismissed and costs awarded against the Crown prosecution services. This was to be the last obscenity trial levelled against the UK music industry.

In comparison to its predecessor, the album was also heavier on misogyny, which it became notorious for. The album's final nine songs were laden with more sexist profanity and references to various sexual acts; provoking the ire of the PMRC,^[8] liberal and conservative politicians, and civil rights activist C. Delores Tucker.^[9]

Track listing[link]

Chart positions[link]

Album[link]

Singles[link]

Billboard 200 chronology[link]

References[link]

Eazy-E
Eazy-E in 1993
Background information
Birth name	Eric Lynn Wright
Born	(1963-09-07)September 7, 1963 Compton, California, U.S.
Died	March 26, 1995(1995-03-26) (aged 31) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres	Gangsta rap, West Coast hip hop, gangsta funk
Occupations	Rapper, CEO, record producer
Years active	1986–1995
Labels	Ruthless, Priority, Relativity, Epic, MCA
Associated acts	DJ Yella, Dr.Dre ,N.W.A, Rhythum D, Naughty by Nature, Cold 187um, Above the Law, B.G. Knocc Out & Dresta, Kokane, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Brownside, Kid Frost, Compton's Most Wanted, Roger Troutman

Eric Lynn Wright^[1][2][3] (September 7, 1963 – March 26, 1995), better known by his stage name Eazy-E, was an American rapper who performed solo and in the hip hop group N.W.A. Wright was born to Richard and Kathie Wright in Compton, California. After dropping out of high school in the tenth grade, he supported himself primarily by selling drugs before investing in Ruthless Records and becoming a rapper. When Ruthless artists Dr. Dre and Ice Cube wrote "Boyz-n-the-Hood", Dre, Cube, and Eazy formed N.W.A. After DJ Yella, MC Ren, and Arabian Prince joined the group, N.W.A released N.W.A. and the Posse. In 1988, they released their most controversial album, Straight Outta Compton. The group released two more albums and then disbanded after Eazy released Dr. Dre from his contract.

Eazy's main influences included 1970s funk groups, contemporary rappers, and comedians. When reviewing Eazy's albums, many critics noted his unique overall style, with Steve Huey of the All Music Guide summing up: "While his technical skills as a rapper were never the greatest, his distinctive delivery (invariably described as a high-pitched whine), over-the-top lyrics, and undeniable charisma made him a star."^[4] On February 24, 1995, Eazy was admitted into Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles with what he believed to be asthma, but was instead diagnosed with AIDS. On March 16 he acknowledged his condition publicly, and died due to complications ten days later.

Early life and Ruthless Records investment[link]

Eric Wright was born to Richard and Kathie Wright on September 7, 1963, in Compton, California, a Los Angeles suburb notorious for gang activity and crime.^[5][6] His father was a postal worker and his mother was a grade school administrator.^[7] Wright dropped out of high school in the tenth grade,^[8] but later received a high-school general equivalency diploma (GED).^[9]

Wright supported himself primarily by selling drugs.^[8] Wright's friend Jerry Heller admits that he witnessed Wright selling marijuana, but says that he never saw him sell cocaine. As Heller noted in his book Ruthless: A Memoir, Wright's "dope dealer" label was part of his "self-forged armor".^[10] Wright was also labeled as a "thug". Heller explains: "The hood where he grew up was a dangerous place. He was a small guy. 'Thug' was a role that was widely understood on the street; it gave you a certain level of protection in the sense that people hesitated to fuck with you. Likewise, 'dope dealer' was a role that accorded you certain privileges and respect."^[10]

In 1986, at the age of 23, Wright had allegedly earned as much as USD $250,000 from dealing drugs. However, he decided that he could make a better living in the Los Angeles hip-hop scene, which was growing rapidly in popularity.^[11] He started recording songs during the mid-1980s in his parent's garage.^[9]

The original idea for Ruthless Records came when Wright asked Heller to go into business with him. Wright suggested a half-ownership company, but it was later decided that Wright would get eighty percent of the company's income, and Heller woud only get twenty percent. Heller said to Wright, "Every dollar comes into Ruthless, I take twenty cents. That's industry standard for a manager of my caliber. I take twenty, you take eighty percent. I am responsible for my expenses, and you're responsible for yours. You own the company. I work for you."^[10] Along with Heller, Wright invested much of his money into Ruthless Records.^[12] Heller claims that he invested the first $250,000, and would eventually put up to $1,000,000 into the company.^[10]

Musical career[link]

[edit] N.W.A and Eazy-Duz-It (1987–91)

N.W.A was formed when Ruthless signees Dr. Dre and Ice Cube wrote "Boyz-n-the-Hood". It included Wright, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube, and later DJ Yella, MC Ren, and Arabian Prince.^[13] 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.^[14][15] The album featured N.W.A collaborating with the Fila Fresh Crew, a West Coast rap group originally based in Dallas, Texas.^[16][17]

Eazy-E's debut album, Eazy-Duz-It, was released on September 16, 1988, and featured twelve tracks. It was labeled as West Coast hip hop, Gangsta rap, and Golden age hip hop. It has sold over 2.5 million copies in the United States and reached number forty-one on the Billboard 200.^[9][18] The album was produced by Dr. Dre and DJ Yella and largely written by Ice Cube, with contributions from MC Ren and The D.O.C..^[19] Both Glen Boyd from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and MTV's Jon Wiederhorn claimed that Eazy-Duz-It "paved the way" for N.W.A's most controversial album, Straight Outta Compton.^[20][21] Wright's only solo in the album was a remix of the song "8 Ball", which originally appeared on N.W.A and the Posse. The album featured Wrights's writing and performing; he performed on eight songs and helped write four songs.^[22]

After the release of Straight Outta Compton, Ice Cube left due to internal disputes, and the group continued as a four-piece ensemble.^[13] N.W.A released 100 Miles and Runnin' and Niggaz4Life in 1991. A diss war started between N.W.A and Ice Cube when "100 Miles and Runnin'" and "Real Niggaz" were released. Ice Cube responded with "No Vaseline" on Death Certificate.^[23] Wright performed on seven of the eighteen songs on Niggaz4Life.^[24]

In March 1991 Wright accepted an invitation to a lunch benefiting the Republican Senatorial Inner Circle, hosted by then-President George H. W. Bush.^[25] A spokesman for the rapper said that Eazy-E supported Bush because of his performance in the Gulf War.^[26]

End of N.W.A and feud with Dr. Dre (1991–94)[link]

N.W.A began to split up after Jerry Heller became the band's manager. Dr. Dre recalls: "The split came when Jerry Heller got involved. He played the divide and conquer game. He picked one nigga to take care of instead of taking care of everybody, and that was Eazy. And Eazy was like, 'I'm taken care of, so fuck it'." Dre sent Suge Knight to look into Eazy's financial situation because he was beginning to grow suspicious of Eazy and Heller. Dre asked Eazy to release him from the Ruthless Records contract, but Eazy refused. The impasse led to what reportedly transpired between Knight and Eazy at the recording studio where Niggaz4life was recorded. After he refused to release Dre, Knight declared to Eazy that he had kidnapped Heller and was holding him prisoner in a van. The rumor did not convince Eazy to release Dre from his contract, and Knight threatened Eazy's family: Knight gave Eazy a piece of paper that contained Eazy's mother's address, telling him, "I know where your mama stays." Eazy finally signed Dre's release, officially ending N.W.A.^[27]

The feud with Dr. Dre continued after a track on Dre's The Chronic contained lyrics that insulted Eazy-E. Eazy responded with the EP It's On (Dr. Dre) 187^um Killa, featuring the tracks "Real Muthaphuckkin G's" and "It's On". The album, which was released on October 25, 1993, contains pictures of Dre wearing "lacy outfits and makeup" when he was a member of the Electro-hop World Class Wreckin' Cru.^[27]

Legal issues[link]

After Dr. Dre left Ruthless Records, executives Mike Klein and Jerry Heller sought assistance from the Jewish Defense League (JDL). Klein, a former Ruthless Records director of business affairs, said this provided Ruthless Records with leverage to enter into negotiations with Death Row Records over Dr. Dre's departure.^[28] While Knight had sought an outright release from Ruthless Records for Dr. Dre, the JDL and Ruthless Records management negotiated a release in which the record label would continue to receive money and publishing rights from future Dr. Dre projects with Death Row Records, founded by Dr. Dre with Suge Knight.^[29] The FBI launched a money-laundering investigation under the assumption that the JDL was extorting money from Ruthless Records to fight their causes. This led to JDL spokesperson Irv Rubin issuing a press release stating "There was nothing but a close, tight relationship" between Eazy-E and the organization.^[28]

Death[link]

On February 24, 1995, Eazy-E was admitted into Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles with what he believed to be asthma. Instead he was diagnosed with AIDS. He announced his illness in a public statement on March 16. Eazy's sexual activity began at the age of twelve and resulted in not only a fatal disease, but seven children with six different women.^[11][30][31] He died due to "complications from AIDS" one month after his diagnosis, on March 26, 1995, at approximately 6:35 PM (Pacific time). He was 31 years old. During the week of March 20, having already made amends with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, Eazy-E drafted his last message to fans. One week after the release of that message, Eazy succumbed to the disease.^[9][32] Eazy was buried at Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier, California.^[33][34] In November 1995, shortly after Eazy-E's death, Str8 off tha Streetz of Muthaphukkin Compton was released.^[4][35]

Musical influences and style[link]

Allmusic cites Eazy-E's influences as Ice-T, Redd Foxx, King Tee, Bootsy Collins, Run-D.M.C., Richard Pryor, The Egyptian Lover, Schoolly D, Too $hort, Prince, The Sugarhill Gang, and George Clinton.^[36] In the documentary The Life and Timez of Eric Wright, Eazy-E mentions collaborating with many of his influences.^[37]

When reviewing Str8 off tha Streetz of Muthaphukkin Compton, Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted "...Eazy-E sounds revitalized, but the music simply isn't imaginative. Instead of pushing forward and creating a distinctive style, it treads over familiar gangsta territory, complete with bottomless bass, whining synthesizers, and meaningless boasts."^[38] When reviewing Eazy-Duz-It, Jason Birchmeier of Allmusic said, "In terms of production, Dr. Dre and Yella meld together P-Funk, Def Jam-style hip-hop, and the leftover electro sounds of mid-'80s Los Angeles, creating a dense, funky, and thoroughly unique style of their own." Birchmeier described Eazy's style as "dense, unique, and funky," and said that it sounded "absolutely revolutionary in 1988."^[36]

Several members of N.W.A wrote lyrics for Eazy-Duz-It: Ice Cube, The D.O.C., and MC Ren.^[39] The EP 5150: Home 4 tha Sick features a song written by Naughty By Nature. The track "Merry Muthaphuckkin' Xmas" features Menajahtwa, Buckwheat, and Atban Klann as guest vocalists, and "Neighborhood Sniper" features Kokane as a guest vocalist.^[40] It's On (Dr. Dre) 187^um Killa features several guest vocalists, including Gangsta Dresta, B.G. Knocc Out. Kokane, Cold 187um, Rhythum D, and Dirty Red.^[41] Str8 off tha Streetz of Muthaphukkin Compton featured several guest vocalists, including B.G. Knocc Out, Gangsta Dresta, Sylk-E. Fyne, Dirty Red, Menajahtwa, Roger Troutman, and ex-N.W.A members MC Ren and DJ Yella.^[42]

Legacy[link]

Graffiti of Eazy-E in the Netherlands

Eazy-E has been called the godfather of gangsta rap.^{[43][44][45][46]} MTV's Reid Shaheem said that Eazy was a "rap-pioneer,"^[46] and he is sometimes cited by critics as a legend.^[47][48][49] Steve Huey of Allmusic said that he was "one of the most controversial figures in gangsta rap."^[4] Since his 1995 death, many book and video biographies were produced, including 2002's The Day Eazy-E Died and Dead and Gone.^[50][51][52] Jerry Heller and Gil Reavill wrote the book Ruthless: A Memoir, which was released August 28, 2007.^[53] It included information on his death, his split with Dr. Dre, his debut Eazy-Duz-It, and many of Heller's experiences with Eazy.^[54]

When Eazy was diagnosed with AIDS, many magazines like Jet,^[55] Vibe,^[56] Billboard,^[57] The Crisis,^[58] and Newsweek covered the story and released information on the topic.^[59] All of his studio albums and EPs charted on the Billboard 200,^[60][61][62] and many of his singles—"Eazy-Duz-It", "We Want Eazy", "Real Muthaphuckkin G's", and "Just tah Let U Know"—also charted in the U.S.^[62][63] On March 30, 1995, four days after Eazy-E's death, Tom Elerwine, a Daily Arts editor for The Michigan Daily covered Eazy's career in a feature story.^[64]

Discography[link]

Solo

With N.W.A

References[link]

External links[link]

	Book: Eazy-E
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Eazy-E

• Eazy-E at the Internet Movie Database
• Eazy E At Find A Grave
• FBI file on Easy E

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2009)

Ice cubes in a glass of iced tea

Ice cubes are small, roughly cube-shaped pieces of ice, conventionally used to cool beverages. Ice cubes are sometimes preferred over crushed ice because they melt more slowly; they are standard in mixed drinks that call for ice, in which case the drink is said to be "on the rocks."

Ice cubes that are crushed or sheared into irregularly-shaped flakes may add an interesting aesthetic effect to some cocktails. Crushed ice is also used when faster cooling is desired, since the rate of cooling is governed by the number and average radius of the ice particles.^[1]

Melting ice cubes sometimes precipitate white flakes, commonly known as "floaties". This is calcium carbonate which is present in many water supplies and is completely harmless.^{[citation needed]}

Origin[link]

Gorrie's ice machine.

American physician and humanitarian John Gorrie built a refrigerator in 1844 with the purpose of cooling air. His refrigerator produced ice which he hung from the ceiling in a basin. Gorrie can be considered the creator of ice cubes, but his aim was not to cool drinks: he used the ice to lower the ambient room temperature. During his time, a dominant idea was that bad air quality caused disease. Therefore, in order to help treat sickness, he pushed for the draining of swamps and the cooling of sickrooms.

Methods of production[link]

Ice cubes are produced domestically by filling an ice cube tray with water and placing it in a freezer. Many freezers also come equipped with an icemaker, which produces ice cubes automatically and stores them in a bin from which they can be dispensed directly into a glass.

Ice cube tray[link]

Ice cubes in a tray

Ice cube trays are designed to be filled with water, then placed in a freezer until the water freezes to ice, producing ice cubes. Trays are often flexible, so the frozen cubes can be easily removed by flexing the tray. Twist ice trays have a simple spring loaded mechanism with a lever that is used to turn the tray upside down and flex at the same time such that the cubes drop are collected in a removable tray below and return the ice cube tray to its upright position without removing it from the freezer which can save time and reduces accidents and mess, though the tray has to be removed to be collected and the ice cube tray still has to be removed to be refilled. An alternative system is an aluminum tray with a lever that raises the ice cubes, freeing them from the tray. A motorized version of this is found in most automatic ice-making freezers.

While the usual shape of the ice 'cube' is roughly cubical, there are trays that dispense hemispherical or cylindrical blocks. These are commonly referred to as ice tubes. Some novelty trays produce blocks of ice in seasonal, festive or other shapes.

The first rubber ice cube tray was invented by Lloyd Groff Copeman. One day in 1928, while walking through some woods collecting sap for maple syrup, Copeman noticed that slush and ice flaked off his rubber boots rather than adhering to them. Having recalled this incident over lunch with his patent attorney, he conducted experiments using rubber cups. Later, he set about designing and then patenting different types of tray: a metal tray with rubber separators, a metal tray with individual rubber cups, and a tray made completely of rubber.^[2]

The first flexible stainless steel, all-metal ice cube tray was created by Guy L. Tinkham in 1933. The tray bent sideways to remove the ice cubes.

Several companies now offer pre-filled disposable ice trays for home freezing, which they claim provide better taste and reduced risk of contamination.^[3]

Large-scale ice cube production[link]

Dedicated ice-maker machines can be used to produce ice cubes for laboratories and academic use. Ice cubes are also produced commercially and sold in bulk; these ice cubes, despite their name, are often cylindrical, and may have holes through the center.

An interesting characteristic of commercially made ice cubes is that they are completely clear, lacking the clouding found in the center of domestically made ice cubes. Cloudy ice cubes result when water is frozen quickly, or when the water is high in dissolved solids. When water is cooled to its freezing point, and ice starts to form, dissolved gases can no longer stay in solution and come out as microscopic bubbles. However, as ice floats in water, once there is enough ice to form a layer on the surface, the ice layer traps all bubbles within the ice cube. Commercial ice-makers use a flowing source of purified water to make ice with cooling elements at the bottom, allowing the bubbles to be washed away from the top as the cube grows.^{[citation needed]}

See also[link]

Listen to this article (info/dl)

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More spoken articles

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ice cubes

• Ice pack
• Pagophagia
• Refrigeration
• Ice

References[link]

1. ^ Rauch, Jeffrey (1975). "The mathematical theory of crushed ice". Partial differential equations and related topics (Program, Tulane Univ., New Orleans, La., 1974). Berlin, New York (the state): Springer-Verlag. pp. 370–379. MR0427863. 
2. ^ "www.lloydcopeman.com: Biography". http://www.lloydcopeman.com/biography/CopemanStory.pdf. 
3. ^ "After Bottled Water? Purified Ice Cubes". http://www.aquaice.com/PressRelease_WSJ_2006.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-03. 

External links[link]

Look up ice cube in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Hot water can freeze faster than cold water (Subscription required)

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. It includes attribution to IMDb, which may not be a reliable source for biographical information. Please help by adding additional, reliable sources for verification. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (September 2008)

Antoine Carraby (born December 11, 1967), better known by his stage name DJ Yella, is an American DJ, music producer, film director and pornographer from Compton, California. He was a member of the World Class Wreckin' Cru along with Dr. Dre. He later became a founding member of the pioneering gangsta rap group N.W.A (composed of Yella, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, and Eazy-E). Along with Dre, he produced Eazy-E's debut album Eazy-Duz-It and all three N.W.A albums, translating into millions of sales. He co-produced the platinum-selling debut albums of J.J. Fad and Michel'le with Dre and contributed to The D.O.C.'s 1989 album No One Can Do It Better (also produced by Dre). Jerry Heller witnessed Dre and Yella's work together and wrote in 2006 of an almost eerie understanding between the pair, as they crafted high quality beats and productions with almost no words or full sentences needing to be spoken.^{[citation needed]}

Post N.W.A[link]

Yella remained close to Eazy and stayed on production duties at Ruthless Records after the acrimonious break up of N.W.A. He produced J.J. Fad's second album Not Just a Fad (1990), Yomo & Maulkie's album Are U Xperienced? (1991), two tracks from Eazy-E's It's On (Dr. Dre) 187^um Killa (1993), the gold-selling hit single Foe tha Love of $ from Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's Creepin on ah Come Up E.P., Menajahtwa's album Cha-licious, and tracks from H.W.A.'s Az Much Ass Azz U Want E.P. (all three from 1994), and oversaw Eazy's final album in 1995 after his sudden AIDS-related death.

Post Ruthless[link]

Yella released his 1996 debut solo album 'One Mo Nigga ta Go' on Street Life Records, featuring members of the Ruthless 'family tree' like Kokane, B.G. Knocc Out, & Dresta, rhyming over his productions. After this record he retired from music to embark on a long and successful career directing porn films. Yella has credited himself with "producing over 150 adult films".^[1]

Return to music[link]

As of November 26, 2011, Yella has returned to the music industry and is currently finishing a new album, entitled West Coastin', which is expected to be released in the summer of 2012.^[2]

Discography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• DJ Yella at the Internet Movie Database
• DJ Yella on Myspace
• Yella speaks out on the rise and fall of hardcore
• Davey D interviews Yella
• DubCNN.com interview with Yella