Rap hasn’t been the same since we lost N.W.A.’s jewel in the crown, Eazy-E. For most people’s money, the most talented member of the group is a toss-up between him or Ice Cube, yet, Eazy believed it was neither of them.
Eric Wright was raised on the streets of Compton, and after dropping out of school in tenth grade, he began to turn to drug dealing in order to get by. While this made Wright see things that nobody would ever want to see, it also gave his lyrics authenticity, and you believed every word that came out of his mouth.
Former N.W.A. manager Jerry Heller once recalled his early memories of Wright and said: “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.”
It’s widely believed by the people closest to Eazy he was injected with AIDS, which caused his death in 1995, although there is no concrete proof that supports this theory.
Sadly, Eazy’s relationship with his bandmates dissipated in the years preceding his death. Although over 3000 people attended Wright’s funeral in Compton, DJ Yella was the only member of N.W.A. who attended.
When they were in their pomp, he especially had a strong relationship with MC Ren, and they were inseparable, according to Haller. Furthermore, he even noted that Eazy believed his close friend was the most talented member of the collective.
He explained to VladTV: “Eazy always felt that Ren was the best rapper in the group. Ren is just a quiet, behind the scenes kind of guy, but Ren is a tough guy, and he and a street guy like Eazy were incredibly close.”
Ren’s always been coy about speaking on the topic of his fallen friend and prefers to keep his thoughts on Eazy to himself. His silence speaks volumes about the sacred nature of their relationship. Thankfully, they managed to heal their differences before the rapper’s death, however, he admitted his funeral would have been simply too painful.
