If you know even the slightest bit about Gangsta Rap, you will know that Ice-T, Schooly D, and the likes of NWA were the forefathers of this Hip-Hop subgenre that began in the late-1980s.
NWA was regarded as the most dangerous band in the world…
This was due to their violent raps about police brutality and gang life in South Central LA. The band’s members included the two founders, Eazy-E and Dr. Dre, alongside a young and then-unknown Ice Cube, MC Ren, and DJ Yella.
Eazy E, real name Eric Wright, died on 26 March 1996 from AIDS-induced pneumonia, but the death of Eazy-E is shrouded in mystery. At the time, he had many enemies, mostly in the music industry. So, you always hear a bunch of conspiracy theories when people ask, “How did Eazy-E die?” And, in all honesty, there is some strangeness surrounding his untimely passing.
That said, let’s talk a bit about Eazy-E’s career, the rise and fall of NWA, and move on to more details about how Eazy-E died.
Setting the Scene
While New York-based rappers like Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, LL Cool J, and RUN DMC were changing Rap Music on the east coast of America in 1987, a storm was brewing on the west coast.
At the time, rappers from LA, and the west coast in general, were seen as a bit corny when compared to the street rap pioneers in NYC. They were considered novelty acts until Ice-T started lacing his rhymes with street references talking about life in the hoods of Los Angeles. I suggest you check out Ice-T’s OG album. It’s an absolute classic now and will give you a feel of the vibes in LA at that time.
Dre was already a bit of a face on the music scene in Compton…
He was known for his experimental DJ sets and his part in a band called World Class Wreckin Cru’ in 1987. Dre had become disenfranchised by the band’s corny R&B dance-style music, so he left the band. He wanted to do something different that would be more real, authentic, and in line with the streets.
The truth is that Dre was already considered a music production genius. But he didn’t have the cash to set up a new label. That’s where his friend, Eazy-E, comes into the affray.
Dre and Eazy-E Form Ruthless Records
The harsh reality about NWA is that both Dr. Dre and Ice Cube were not gangsters. Nor did they live that thuggish street life. However, Dre needed a cash injection to start a new label, so he went to see his friend Eric Wright.
Eazy-Z had never rapped before, but he did love the music, and he was making fat stacks slanging crack cocaine on the Compton streets. Dre talked E into funding his idea, and NWA was essentially born out of their friendship.
Eazy-E was affiliated with the infamous LA street gang, the Crips…
They are the sworn street enemies of the Bloods. E had the street profile and thug life background, while Dre had the music know-how and conceptual ideas. Dre was tired of LA’s reputation in the Rap Music industry and wanted to give people a real slice of the South Central LA ghettos.
Eazy E parlayed his drug money into forming Ruthless Records in 1987 with Dr. Dre. As well as with the help of the band’s Caucasian manager Jerry Heller, who will play a part in the downfall a bit later.
NWA Hits the Big Time
Dr. Dre recruited a prolific lyric writer who went by the name of Ice Cube, and the NWA we know and love today was born. Dre wanted Eazy to rap on the tracks, but he’d never done it before.
So, Dre, with lyrics from Ice Cube in hand, taught E how to rap and coached him bar by bar in the recording studio. Dre’s thinking was that E was the authentic gangster in the group and had the Jeri-curl image that he wanted to portray in their music.
Their first single was called “Panic Zone” and was released in 1987. However, in 1988, NWA released their iconic debut studio album, Straight Outta Compton, that had showcased a single of the same name and the infamous “F##k Tha Police.” That track gave them the reputation as the most dangerous band in the world.
The entire album went on to be one of the most controversial albums of all time…
And it was pretty much banned from any type of radio play. Even with zero radio, the album was massive and went on to become certified 3x platinum in the US.
The Downfall of Ruthless Records
As with any type of success, it can cause more problems than joy. Especially when money comes into the affray. The truth is that around the time the band was making their second studio album, Niggaz4Life, a massive rift between Ice Cube and both Eazy-E and Jerry Heller was starting to become apparent and was getting out of hand. Essentially, it was all about cash.
Cube wrote most the lyrics on Straight Outta Compton. He wrote his own lyrics, and also those for Dre and E. Ice Cube wasn’t being paid right, considering that his words, alongside Dre’s beats, were the main reasons why the album was a massive hit and sold millions. Cube was still broke when he shouldn’t be. So, he lawyered up and found out his suspicions were indeed correct.
He told Dre that both of them were getting ripped off by Eazy E and Jerry Heller and were owed at least hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid publishing rights. Dre wasn’t very music industry or money savvy at the time. And, although he thought Cube was probably correct, he was having a good time making music and didn’t want to rock the boat.
Cube leaves the band…
Ice Cube started to hate Heller and E and resented what they’d done. So, he officially left the group in 1989. Cube was offered a solo record deal in 1990 and went on the make his debut album, AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted, which was produced by the NYC production crew, The Bomb Squad.
It was a massive risk for Cube’s career, leaving NWA in its prime. But it paid off and resulted in Cube having the glittering music and acting career he has today, so fair play to him. Yes, his first album sold massive numbers and made him a Rap Music star, and is essentially still considered a classic Rap Music album.
On a side note…
If you want to get a feel for what was happening around that time during the year or two after the Cube-NWA split, you should check out Ice Cube’s “No Vaseline” that came out in 1991 from his Death Certificate album. “No Vaseline” was a brutal NWA diss track that blamed E and Heller for him leaving the band. At the time, the track sent shockwaves through the Rap industry and is Hip-Hop history.
The fat lady started to sing…
Cube leaving NWA was the nail in the coffin of the band. Although they did manage to release their second album in 1991, in most respects, it was a flop and didn’t live up to their first outing. This was the end for the group, and they never made another album.
MC Ren was quoted as saying that money destroyed the band. He thought it was quite sad, considering they’d all known each other for years outside of music.
Dre Dre Brings in Suge Knight
Heller and Eazy E were making enemies. And it wouldn’t be too long until Dr. Dre finally got wise to the game and started to make inquiries into if he was getting paid properly. Dre recruited a man called Suge Knight to find out if he was getting ripped off. Suge went on to form Death Row Records with Dr. Dre, and they made history together until they also had a falling out.
The legend is that Suge Knight paid Heller and Eazy E a visit. Allegedly, he strong-armed them to release Dr. Dre from his contract with Ruthless Records with some kind of deal they couldn’t refuse.
However, it seems that Ruthless got paid a percentage when Dre Dre released his debut solo album, The Chronic, in 1994 on the newly formed Death Row Records. So, the deal might have been more amicable than some people say. Anyway, this created a war between Ruthless and Death Row, or more aptly, between Dre and Suge against Heller and Eazy E.
How Did Eazy-E Die?
The official story of Eazy-E’s death is that he had a very bad cough, a cold, high temperature, chest pains, and heavy breathing that wouldn’t go away. He went to see a doctor, had some tests done, and was told he was HIV-positive. And, just a month later after his diagnosis, he died from AIDS-induced pneumonia at just 31 years old.
He was buried on 7th April 1995, and more than 3,000 people turned up to honor his life. For sure, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, and Suge Knight would not be there. But DJ Yella, and his longtime manager and confidant both attended. You’d think that was it, but there is more to the reason behind Eazy-E’s death than meets the eye.
How Did Eazy-E Die? – Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy theories always follow any famous person who dies young in supposedly strange circumstances. They still say that Elvis Presley is alive and well and working in a supermarket in Blackpool, England. Michael Jackson and Tupac Shakur apparently faked their own deaths to escape their crazy lives. The list goes on and on.
However, Eazy-E did have many enemies to who he allegedly owed millions of dollars. So, conspiracy theories about Eazy-E’s death could be possible. Some people close to E reckon that Suge Knight paid someone to inject AIDS into Eazy-E with a needle in the street. Sounds strange, but my friends at Langley assure me this is possible. Just highly unlikely in this case.
The truth is that Eric had a harem of girlfriends and untold mistresses and sexual encounters. So, it makes sense that he contracted AIDS from unprotected sex.
Death Row vs. Ruthless Records
In April 2015, Jerry Heller told the Murder Master Music Show podcast that Eazy-E told him that “Suge Knight is an evil human being.” Eric went on to tell Heller, “This guy is going to be a problem, and I think I should kill him.” Heller claimed he tried to talk E out of killing Suge because of the amount of money they were all still making together.
But Eric saw it another way and understood the streets more than his manager. Both Heller and Eazy-E agreed that Ruthless would still probably be massive. And that Cube and Dre would still be on the books if it wasn’t for Suge’s interference. It shows there was some real resentment between the two parties that could’ve escalated. Or maybe it already did.
Many people close to Eazy-E still believe to this day that his death was shady, and there is more to it than meets the eye. Even the rap group Bone Thugs N Harmony, who signed to Ruthless around that time, said Eric looked himself and didn’t even appear to be that sick. And, that was right after his diagnosis.
Want More Great Rap and Hip-Hop Music?
Well, check out our thoughts on the Best 2000s Rap Songs, the Best Rap Songs About Money of All Time, the Best Sad Rap Songs, the Best 90s Hip Hop Songs, and the Best Hip Hop Songs Of All Time for more banging song selections.
How Did Eazy-E Die? – Final Thoughts
When a news conference in Hollywood on 17 March 1995 informed the world of Eric contracting AIDS and that he was dying, it shocked the music world to its very core. In recent years, Dr. Dre said he visited E in the hospital on his deathbed and that they were cool again before he died. But I am not so sure how true that is.
Whether you believe Eazy-E died from AIDS, or that an enemy killed him in retaliation for owed money, the Rap Music world lost a legend. Sure, he might not have been the greatest rapper in the world. But, he had an authentic vibe that encompassed South Central LA gang life. And you don’t get more real than that. All hail the Godfather of Gangster Rap.
Until next time, happy listening.
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