If you’ve been a fan of TGRIOnline.com as of late, you’ve noticed our preoccupation with having a particular dislike of the beta male, emotionally expressive movement in popular music. It’s not that we so much hate with passion the Kid Cudis and Pitchfork favored alternative indie bands of the world, we just would prefer to not see popular music taken over and inundated with their sound. As we’ve stated in “Alpha Male Music Week” and our “HARD 10!” countdown, we’re just attempting to represent a balance in music. With that being said, we’ll periodically feature some “harder edged” material to shake you out of your doldrums and give you a no crying wanted, swift kick in your musical ass. Do enjoy!
The breakup of legendary hip hop group NWA led to a plethora of HARD material. The breakup was one that was not based on fantastic amounts of personal enmity between band mates, but one borne of financial considerations. The pursuit of large sums of money will make people who otherwise are completely friendly and totally okay with each other resort to the most terrible of aims to get their comeuppance. The fact that in the years following Eazy E’s demise from AIDS that at various points Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and the other members of NWA have all either performed together, or have been cordial in public with each other speaks volumes to what happens when people now have their OWN money, and don’t have to worry anymore about finances as a concern.
But that wasn’t 1994. Yes, in 1989 Ice Cube looked like Nostradamus when he left NWA and started an incredible solo career, including 1991’s lyrically superior NWA diss track “No Vaseline,” which includes the choice line regarding Eazy E’s relationship with Ruthless Records boss Jerry Heller: “Heard you both got the same bank account!/Dumb nigga, What you thinkin’ about?!/Get rid of that devil real simple, put a bullet in his temple.” But by 1994, the battle was hard, and Eazy was a man without a country, taking hits now from both sides, Dr. Dre and new protege Snoop Doggy Dogg wildly impressing the universe with their G-funk anthems on album The Chronic, included therein the track “Fuck Wit Dre Day,” the most condemning track of the entire feud, as Dre produces some of his finest lyricism of his career for the production.
Back against the wall, Eazy E came out swinging, quite literally, with 1994’s “Real Muthaphukkin G’s.” Bitter, mean, angry, embarrassed and ultimately on point, the song is easily one of the lyrical highlights of the 90s, and Eazy, alongside new running buddies BG Knocc Out and Gangsta Dresta pulls no punches and leaves no stone unturned. It’s the least great salvo of the feud, and easily the most manic yet focused rant in rap history espousing the negative values of another human. Take a listen, and sit in awe of what happens when a man has his back against the wall and has to stand and deliver for one last great time.
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