Maps of Music

Niggaz4Life (1991)

Where the lyrics of Niggaz4Life take you, and where it was really made.

The album debuted at number 2 on the Billboard chart and later reached number 1, even though British police seized copies and retailers pulled it from sale.

Key places

Recording location: Audio Achievements (1991)

Recording site Audio Achievements — The album's recording credit names Audio Achievements as the place of recording. The map pin is set at city level, so it does not mark the exact building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Niggaz4Life is the second studio album by the American hip-hop group N.W.A
• Released 28 May 1991; it was the group's final album
• The group disbanded later in 1991 after Dr. Dre and The D.O.C. left to form Death Row Records
• Only four members of the original lineup appear: Arabian Prince left in early 1989 and Ice Cube left in late 1989
• Re-released in 2002 in two formats, with the EP 100 Miles and Runnin' appended to the original track listing

Background

• Heavier on misogyny than the predecessor, which made the album notorious
• Songs on the second half carry more profanity, sexist themes, and references to sexual acts
• Provoked the PMRC, liberal and conservative politicians, and civil rights activist C. Delores Tucker
• In 1992, several months after release, N.W.A issued the video Niggaz4Life: The Only Home Video, covering the making of the album and its three music videos

Recording

• Discogs credits list Audio Achievements as the place where the album was recorded
• Mastering credit goes to Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Artist

Formation

• Assembled in Compton, California, in 1987 by Eazy-E, who co-founded Ruthless Records with Jerry Heller.
• Original lineup: Arabian Prince, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, and Ice Cube; DJ Yella joined shortly after and MC Ren was recruited in mid-1988.
• The name is an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes.

Members

• Eazy-E (vocals, 1987–1991; died 1995).
• Dr. Dre (production, vocals, 1987–1991, 1999–2001, 2016).
• Ice Cube (vocals, 1987–1989, 1999–2001, 2015, 2016).
• Arabian Prince (production, vocals, 1987–1989).
• DJ Yella (DJ, production, 1987–1991, 2000–2001, 2015, 2016).
• MC Ren (vocals, 1988–1991, 1999–2001, 2015, 2016).

Career

• Debut studio album Straight Outta Compton (1989) was certified 3× platinum by the RIAA.
• Second album Niggaz4Life (1991) was the group's final album; the group disbanded shortly after its release.
• Known as one of the earliest and most significant figures of gangsta rap; the group sold over ten million units in the United States.
• Reunited for live performances in 2015 and 2016; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2024.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Critics polarized, mainly over the lyrics, especially in the second half
• The Source named it one of its albums of the year
• Rolling Stone: critic Arion Berger gave two stars out of five, calling it hateful toward women and simply tiresome
• Newsweek: a mediocre work by N.W.A standards, a retreat into simple punk bluster
• Time: called the album incendiary and grotesque, praising its raw rapping
• Melody Maker: Andrew Smith liked two songs but found the boasts unconvincing
• Spin: Mark Blackwell found the production peerless but said the lyrics wore thin quickly

Reappraisal

• Later reviews were more positive, especially about the production
• Rap Reviews: Tom Doggett called it a frightening album jammed with explosive beats
• Pitchfork: Ray Suzuki described it as close to a death metal and hip-hop hybrid

Records

• Debuted at number 2 on the Billboard Top LPs chart, then topped the Billboard 200
• Reportedly sold 954,000 copies in its first week
• First gangsta rap album to top the chart, and the first independently distributed album to top the chart
• Ranked #1 in The Source's Top 15 Albums of 1991 list (1991)
• Ranked #7 in MTV's Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time list (2005)

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• On 7 November, N.W.A and Island were cleared of obscenity charges after only fifteen minutes of deliberation.
• Island added the warning "Not to be played in the presence of minors" to British copies, like the Parental Advisory label on American copies.
• Some copies of the LP carried a round white sticker warning that the record contains explicit language.
• DJ Yella said he liked the second album's production more than the first, even though the first had more hits.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

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