This is one of the coolest things I’ve read in a long, long time. Martin Cizmar at the Phoenix New Times has written The Posse Project, wherein he has researched the “the 12 Guys from N.W.A’s First Album Cover” and reports who they were, how they ended up on the cover, and where they are now.
Not only does the cover of N.W.A’s first album not look anything like the standard image of “The World’s Most Dangerous Group,” it’s such an odd mix of styles it’s hard to believe the guys posing together are any sort of group at all. Truly, the cover of N.W.A. and the Posse is a puzzle.
This picture is also, however, a perfect snapshot of one of the most important scenes in the history of popular music. Stare for a moment and you can see a myth about to be born. That myth, Gangsta Rap, enabled four guys in this picture — Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, and Eazy E — to titillate and terrify America as Compton-based rap group Niggaz With Attitude.
We all should be able to recognize Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, and MC Ren, but what about the other eight guys? Well, thanks to this fascinating research, you can read all about them. (And by the way, Cizmar’s profiles of the four you know are well worth reading, so click through!)