The collaborative nature of the music - with Dre and Yella producing the D.O.C., Ice Cube, and MC Ren writing the songs MC Ren featured as a guest on half of them and Eazy-E performing - fortunately makes Eazy-Duz-It more of an N.W.A effort than a true solo album. In terms of songwriting, the D.O.C., Ice Cube, and MC Ren are each credited plus, Ren performs raps of his own on five of the 12 songs. 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. It's no wonder why, for the album plays like a humorous, self-centered twist on Straight Outta Compton with Eazy-E, the most charismatic member of N.W.A, front and center while his associates are busy behind the scenes, producing the beats and writing the songs. Dre changed the rap game with The Chronic (1992), before MC Ren struggled to establish himself with Shock of the Hour (1993), and before Yella simply fell into obscurity, Eazy-E rose to immediate superstar status with this solo debut. Years before Ice Cube went solo with Amerikkka's Most Wanted (1990), before Dr. R.I.Released only a month after Straight Outta Compton (1988), Eazy-Duz-It was the first N.W.A spin-off album. The high speed, drum-tastic beat of 2 Hard Mutha’s and roaring bass, frequent claps and twinkly synths of Boyz-N-The-Hood (Remix) are just two examples of this.įor my conclusion, rather than giving a long, drawn out, detailed reiteration of the summary, I’m going to substitute it with the following. However, rather than being slow-moving, they are uptempo, matching Eazy-E’s rapping style. Dre beats, all the tracks on the album are of the same typical West coast gangsta rap format in terms of sound. Dre produced the entire album (with some help from DJ Yella.) Rather than the typical, chill G-funk Dr. In addition to that, early in his career – before N.W.A broke apart – Eazy-E had lots of firepower on the boards.
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Nobody Move, Boyz-N-The-Hood (Remix), and Chapter 8 Verse 10 are all examples of this, as he tells tales of an armed robbery, life in Compton, and a driveby (respectively) full of vivid images. Never the lyrical wiz, Eazy-E more often than not, relied on his story-telling abilities to compensate for that. This style probably helped him gravitate to his comically inclined, but gangsta lyrics – “Take out the security guard, with the strap in my hand/Yea he’s wearing a badge but he’s just an old-ass man” –as it just somehow fit the mold. Combine that with his smooth, uptempo flow, his rapping style was a favorite amongst hip-hop fans.
But as Eazy said, “I don’t give a f*ck.” With some help from the N.W.A crew, Eazy-Duz-It is a great solo debut effort from the E.Įazy E’s whiny, nasally, teenager voice was a staple of his rapping style. He and his Ruthless cohorts were hated by middle-to-upper class America for their violent, sex-craving, drug-obsessed, bleak outlook on life. Probably should have added something about the Dre beats somewhere in here too…huh…?Įazy-E’s (practically) patented voice and his gangsta lyrics made him a lovable figure within the scope of rap, but not so loved outside it.
Review Summary: Eazy-E’s prevailing ‘hood nigga’ mentality, vulgar sense of humor, and storytelling abilities make Eazy-Duz-It a gangsta rap classic.