FUSE TV - 'Straight Outta Compton' Film Review: Brotherhood Beyond Rap

Straight Outta Compton was the first rap album I ever owned. I was eight years old, and I remember stealing the tape from my father’s Ford Bronco and playing it at my grandparents’ house, where I lived at the time. 

One day I’m blasting “F*ck tha Police” in my bedroom and rapping along with it, and in walks grandpop, in his uniform. My grandfather is a six foot black Philadelphia police officer. He takes off his belt—one that makes Santa Claus’s belt look like dental floss—and administers the whooping of my life! I don’t remember much of the lecture I got during the spanking, but there was one line that stuck with me. He said, “F*ck the police? Well the police put a roof over your head and food in your mouth. Show some respect.” That, I am proud to say, was the only time I’ve ever experienced police brutality.

You could make a case for N.W.A being the most important rap group of all time. The fact that it launched the careers of icons Eazy-E, Ice Cube and Dr. Dre should be enough to win any argument. When you think of the other artists the group helped—Snoop Dogg, Tupac, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem and so on—it becomes even more undeniable. The question is: Does all of this make for a good film?