Compton's Most Wanted

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Compton's Most Wanted
Orpheus Records, EMI Records, Epic Records, Qwest Records
, Half Ounce Records Inc., B Dub Records, Startin' Frum Skratch Records.
Members
Website

Compton's Most Wanted (C.M.W.) is an American gangsta rap group and part of the early West Coast hip hop scene.[1][2] The leaders of the group are MC Eiht and Tha Chill.

History

Formation and early years

C.M.W. included rappers

DJ Mike T, and producers DJ Slip and The Unknown DJ.[2]

In the mid-1980s, founding members Tha Chill and MC Eiht were writing raps and recording

Los Angeles County area by releasing records along with rapper Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, DJ Yella and Arabian Prince. In 1987, while in Compton, The Unknown DJ was given one of these "hood tapes" by a friend and became very interested in the diverse style and rhyme schemes of the "Compton's Most Wanted" rap group. The Unknown DJ then took the "hood tape" to DJ Slip in Gardena
, a city just west of Compton, who at the time was the owner of Los Angeles County's largest DJ Rental business called "Music People - DJ4HIRE".

In 1988, Compton's Most Wanted, under the production leadership of Terry "DJ Slip" Allen, recorded their 1st ever professional songs called Rhymes To Funky. It was one of the many featured songs on the "Sound Control Mob - Under Investigation" Compton compilation album on "Kru Cut / City Fresh Records", along with artist like: "Vanilla C", "PG 13" and "MC Looney Tunes A.K.A. MC Loon E Toons". This label was owned by Compton, CA. Executive producers

World Class Wreckin' Crew
and Charles Turner.

In 1989, C.M.W. released their first single "This Is Compton" b/w "Give It Up" and "I Give Up Nothin'" (pt. 1) on The Unknown DJ Los Angeles-based record label Techno Hop Records. Techno Hop Records label was primarily an Electro genre label, but thru the futuristic mind of The Unknown DJ, he single-handedly launched the legendary west coast gangsta rap genre with songs by

King Tee
"Ya Better Bring A Gun" featuring Mixmaster Spade. In the middle of recording this maxi single "This Is Compton" b/w "Give It Up" and "I Give Up Nothin'" managing misunderstanding started to occur between DJ Ant Capone who, along with his father "Old Man Conway", were acting managers for C.M.W. on the "Sound Control Mob - Under Investigation" (Compton Compilation album) and The Unknown DJ. Soon after DJ Ant Capone choose to leave the group.

In 1990, C.M.W. released their first album, It's a Compton Thang on

Orpheus Records.[3] It contained the hit single and video "One Time Gaffled Em Up". It's a Compton Thang was entirely produced by DJ Slip and The Unknown DJ and all song lyrics were written by MC Eiht. During the recording of this album Tha Chill was arrested for joy riding, but was released a few weeks later on time served and finished recording his remaining verses on the songs of the album. The album peaked at #132 in the U.S.
charts.

A year later in 1991, the group C.M.W. released their 2nd album, Straight Checkn 'Em, which featured popular hits songs like "Growin' Up In tha Hood", "Driveby Miss Daisy", "Compton's Lynchin'", and the first version of the "Def Wish" series.. "Growin' Up In The Hood" was also released on Warner Bros for the John Singleton block buster movie Boyz n the Hood starring Ice Cube, Cuba Gooding Jr., Laurence Fishburne, Nia Long and Morris Chestnut. During the recording of this album Tha Chill once again was arrested and this time sent to prison. This altercation had happened some months before the album was released and Tha Chill did not have the chance to participate on any of the other songs recordings, except for the original album version of "Growin' Up In the Hood". However, the album Straight Check'n Em was a bigger success than their previous album, peaking at #92 in the U.S. charts.

Again in 1992, the group released their third and most successful studio album, Music to Driveby. It featured the single "Hood Took Me Under" which the original song was produced by

U.S. The "Hood Took Me Under" album version was also featured years later in 2004 on the popular PlayStation 2 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas radio station, Radio Los Santos and in 2005 for Microsoft Windows and Xbox. MC Eiht also has a voice role on one of the game characters "Ryder". The album charted at #66 in the U.S. U.S. charts and is considered a classic by many people. C.M.W. are known especially for their slow, often melancholic raps, using samples from 1970s soul and funk records such as "Joy" and "Walk On By" by Isaac Hayes and "Love T.K.O." by Teddy Pendergrass
. They are also known for using movie samples such as "Scareface" and "Deep Cover". Freestyle keyboardist, saxophone and harmonica player Willie Zimmerman, though not officially a member, is used extensively on songs Drive By Miss Daisy, Def Wish, Niggaz Strugglin, U's A Bitch, and Hood Rat.

On the Music To Driveby album song "Who's Fucking Who," produced by DJ Mike T and DJ Slip which took aimed at

U.T.F.O. style of dissing like the "Roxanne Roxanne" era. DJ Mike T got infuriated by the gimmick approach, knowing that the New York/ Los Angeles feud was about to boil over and Tim Dog rhyme style was getting outdated in New York by their next generation of rap. Once back on the West Coast DJ Mike T had to convince MC Eiht to write a song because MC Eiht already knowing thatTim Dog was already irrelevant with his one hit wonder. C.M.W. released their 2nd single/ video "Def Wish 2" was focused at well-known Compton rapper name DJ Quik after, MC Eiht fellow gang members convinced him that DJ Quik made a low key diss in a controversial statement on his "underground tape", prior to his signing with Profile Records
. "Def Wish II" along with "Another Victim, Dead Men Tell No Lies, U's A Bitch, Hood Rat", were the last 5 songs ever produced again by The Unknown DJ for Compton's Most Wanted, before being relieved of his production contract from Epic Records for sub selling MC Eiht writers publishing, misdirecting funds and covering it up in a fraudulent business tax write-off. It was the last album C.M.W. released before their long hiatus.

Finally, after a break of eight years, C.M.W. released Represent in 2000 on the independent record label Half Ounce Records Inc. owned by MC Eiht, Boom Bam and deceased rapper Bird from Lil Hawk and Bird. The album featured the single "This Is Compton 2000" and "Some May Know", but did not achieve the success of their previous albums.

In 2006, C.M.W. released Music to Gang Bang on B Dub Records, which contained four singles, most notably the single titled "Music to Gang Bang", with original member MC Eiht and newest members "Big 2Da Boy and Diamond Rich". However the album was not as commercially successful as previous releases.

In 2008, Compton rapper The Game revealed in an interview that he was in talks with MC Eiht to revive the group;[4] however, this has yet to materialize.

Solo careers

By serving over 2 years in prison

Tray Dee and Weasel Loc and the list goes on. Tha Chill
is due any day in 2017 to release his solo album "4 Wit 80" written and produced by himself with some features of many popular artist and of all the original Compton's Most Wanted members:
DJ Mike T
.

After "Music To Driveby",

Gangstarr and recorded his solo album "Which Way Is West" with features by Tha Chill
, "Young Maylay", "Dub C" of the Westside Connection and many more.

Since the formation of Compton's Most Wanted in 1989,

DJ Mike T
A.K.A. "DJ Mike TzLee" is working from his home studio producing and DJing on mixtapes "Startin' Frum Skratch Studio" under the W.C. Skratch Gang production team.

DJ Slip subleased part of Cherokee Studios in the Fairfax, Los Angeles area and opened up "X Factor Studios" where he recorded popular Los Angeles rappers such as 1995, I Smooth 7 debut album Ghetto Life with songs produced by himself and others like DJ Battle Catt and DJ Fat Jack and scratching by

DJ Mike T. Also in 1995, DJ Slip also recorded and mixed MC Eiht's 2nd solo album Death Threatz. In 2001 DJ Slip started working for an Independent studio/label West Coast hip hop
IV Life Records.

Discography

Main article: Compton's Most Wanted discography

Studio albums

Collaboration albums

  • Killafornia Organization with Killafornia Organization (1996)

Compilation albums

References

  1. ^ "Compton's Most Wanted | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  2. ^ a b Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. p. 507.
  3. ^ "Comptons Most Wanted". Trouser Press. Retrieved 6 September 2020.
  4. ^ "The Game - Disses Jay-Z on 104.7 Kiss FM". HipHopDX. August 14, 2008. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  5. ^ Eustice, Kyle (November 20, 2018). "Tha Chill Says Compton's Most Wanted's New Album Has That "Wow Factor"". HipHopDX. Retrieved December 9, 2018.

External links


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