Abba Tha Police Analysis
“Fuck Tha Police” was a courageous song that represented young African Americans’ hatred towards the law enforcement system. Due to the message and explicit lyrics, this song stood out from any other song in the album, as well as sparking up some controversy. The song was released in 1988 by Niggaz Wit Attitudes (N.W.A) from their second album ‘Straight Outta Compton’ under the Record Label, Priority Ruthless. The group N.W.A was initially formed in 1986 in Los Angeles, California with their genre being Rap. Their styles of Rap included: Golden Age, West Coast Rap, Hardcore Rap, and their most controversial, Gangsta Rap. N.W.A. consisted of the group members: Dr.Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, MC Ren, The Arabian Prince, DJ Yella, and The D.O.C (See
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Figure 1). They were active in their music from 1986 to1991. N.W.A is still widely known as “the unapologetically violent pioneers of gangsta rap and in many ways, the most notorious group in the history of rap for their hardcore lyrics” (Erlewine, “N.W.A Biography”). Their music still
Fig.1. Left to right: Ice Cube, MC Ren, Eazy-E, DJ Yella, Dr.Dre During the 70’s, there was a tremendous rise in gangs amongst Crips and Bloods along with the drug trade in Compton, Los Angeles (Tse, “How Compton Became the Violent City”). Around late 80’s in Los Angeles, it was a devastating time for colored folks. About 45% of African Americans males in South Central, Los Angeles were left unemployed because of outsourcing of union jobs to overseas (Moore, “N.W.A.’s Most Courageous Song”). Consequently, gang activity, violence, and drug trade kept increasing. Later, in the year 1987 Operation Hammer was launched by Los Angeles Chief of Police, Daryl Gates (See Figure 2). Operation Hammer was meant to decrease gang violence. Although LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department) had great motives to execute the operation, LAPD used excessive force, and racist tactics to “solve” the issue. A week before the release of the album, 1,453 people were arrested in South Central, Los Angeles. On August 1,1988, as part of Operation Hammer, eighty-eight police officers decided to deliver a strong message to gangs by raiding two apartment buildings in South Central, Los Angeles. While raiding the homes, Los Angeles police officers completely destroyed furniture, smashed food and tore their clothing. They even went beyond by attacking, beating the residents, and humiliating them in front of everyone else. Additionally, police officers spray painted graffiti with the words “LAPD Rules.” During the period of Operation Hammer (1987-1990), LAPD arrested over 50,000 black men and woman combined. This amount totaled to more arrests than any period since the Watts Riot of 1965. Nonetheless, Operation Hammer consisted of racial profiling, specifically targeting African Americans and Hispanics (Moore,“N.W.A’s Most Courageous Song”). Police brutality, racial profiling, gangs, and the drug trade was a major problem during the 80’s. Fig.2. Operation Hammer
The song “Fuck Tha Police,” was N.W.A.s’ work of art through Rap.
The lyrics were a vivid painting of their reality.
“It was more than just a song that was insulting the police, it was a revenge fantasy. I think that’s really what made people feel scared like we was really wanting to fight the police, you know? It’s just one of them things where that song was doing a little more than just expressing our anger: It was telling what we would do if you wasn’t a cop, if we could have a fair fight. All these things just scared the shit out of people” (Ice Cube). Indeed, law enforcement were so frightened of the message in the lyrics that The Federal Bureau of Investigation took action. The Federal Bureau of Investigation sent a letter to Priority Ruthless Records stating that “Advocating violence and assault is wrong, and we in the law enforcement community take no exception to such action…I wanted you to be aware of the FBI’s position relative to the song and its message.” Yet, this letter did not stop N.W.A. from performing the song on stage. The explicit content of the song led many radios to ban it from playing. “Even without any radio play or media coverage the album still managed to become an underground hit” (Cooper, “Hip-Hop &
Politics”). “Our people been wanting to say, ‘Fuck the police’ for the longest time. If something happened in my neighborhood, the last people we would call is the police. Our friends get killed, they never find the killer” (Ice Cube). MC Ren and Ice Cube were the lyricists of the song “Fuck Tha Police.” Both amazing rappers knew how to express their anger in a form that was different and daring. Ice Cube was born O’Shea Jackson in South Central, Los Angeles. Ice Cube grew up in a neighborhood that revolved around violence, drugs, gangs and guns. He attended high school in San Fernando Valley where he first started writing his first raps. In the mid 1980’s he started a group called C.I.A (Cru’ in Action) with two young men. His group caught the attention of another upcoming artist, Andre Romelle Young, also known as Dr.Dre. Together they teamed up to form a new group named N.W.A (Niggaz Wit Attitude). Lorenzo Patterson, also known as MC Ren was born on June 14, 1969 in Compton, Los Angeles. When Lorenzo was younger he joined the Kelley Park Compton Crips, but he decided to leave the gang when he saw that he was not making any money. For this reason, he began to sell dope. MC Ren decided to abandon his old ways, and instead he chose to focus on making music. He attended Dominguez High School and during this time he started to develop an interest in hip hop. MC Ren began writing raps with his friend MC Chip. As a talented young man, MC Ren was signed as a solo artist to Priority Ruthless Records while still attending high school in 1987. After he had written more than half of the album for Eazy-E’s album “Eazy-Duz-It” he was added to the group N.W.A.
At first glance of the lyrics there is clearly a story being told that takes place in a court room. N.W.A flips the system and puts the LAPD on trial rather than themselves. The song starts off with Dr.Dre playing the role as the judge. Ice Cube, MC Ren and Eazy-E testify before the judge as prosecuting attorneys. The song is a mocking of the judicial system which only gives respect to the witnesses. In the song it gives MC Ren, Eazy-E, and Ice Cube an opportunity to speak up about racial stereotyping. Throughout the song they are able to uncover the reality of life in the ghetto and the violence of gangs. N.W.A is frustrated and criticizes law enforcement for police brutality and racial profiling. Additionally, the song is a fantasy revenge where the rappers tell a story of the things they wish they could do to police officers. “A young nigga got it bad ‘cause I’m brown/ And not the other color, so police think/ They have the authority to kill a minority.” In this lyric, Ice Cube angrily states how police officers think they are superior. Also, how the police used racial profiling and discrimination to target them. It is an exact interpretation of what the African American community felt during Operation Hammer. “For a punk motherfucker with a badge and a gun/ To be beating on, and thrown in jail/ We can go toe-to-toe in the middle of the cell.” Ice Cube fantasizes about being able to beat up a police officer in a cell. He wants to treat them the same way he has been treated by them. He uses the word “punk” which was a popular term in the 80’s referring to someone who is disrespectful. “Fuckin’ with me ‘cause im a teenager.” In this line, Ice Cube is talking about the anti-gang laws Compton had during the 80’s and 90’s. Any group bigger than three would be classified as a gang. Therefore, this law allowed police to treat teenagers as criminals by harassing and arresting them if they were hanging out in big groups. “With a little bit of gold and a pager.” This line is quite interesting because he is referring to “gold” as a gold chain many teenagers would wear for fashion. Yet, this would make them stand out because police officers thought they were drug dealers. Even more so, if they had a pager, which was a device to get in touch with professionals but also a way to keep in touch with a drug dealer.
“Searchin’ my car, lookin’ for the product/ Thinking every nigga is sellin narcotics.” Product in this line means drugs, and this lyric is another example of how police officers discriminated black folks by thinking that all of them are drug dealers. “Huh, a young nigga on the warpath/ And when I’m finished, it’s gonna be a bloodbath.” Ice Cube is tired of the LAPD and wishes to have a full on war with them to kill police officers especially the ones who have killed his friends and family. “Fuck tha police! / Fuck tha police! / Fuck tha police! / Fuck tha police!” The hook in this song is where they vent out their frustration towards the LAPD. “They put out my picture with silence/ ‘Cause my identity by itself causes violence,” This is a very powerful line because black men in American are depicted as criminals or as a symbol of violence. “Without a gun and a badge what do you got? / A sucker in a uniform waiting to get shot” Police officers are like any other person in a neighborhood. They only feel powerful by carrying a badge and a gun as stated in the lyrics. If police officers did not have a gun, they would have been dead in the dangerous neighborhoods of Los Angeles. “Just sit your ass on the curb and shut the fuck up! /Man, fuck this shit! / A’ight, smartass, I’m taking your black ass to jail!” This type of commentary is what police officers would tell colored people. Their aggressive and excessive force inspired N.W.A to include a short skit of it in their song to show how minorities are really treated.
Ultimately, “Fuck Tha Police” serves as a statement against the police. It uncovers the reality of minorities versus police officers. The song vividly depicts how they would like to beat and kill the police the same way police officers have done it to their people. Throughout the song, Dr. Dre parodies the manners of a racist judge by calling the witnesses “black ass.” He simply does this to show how racist law enforcement really is. Throughout Operation Hammer, people of color decided they could not take it any longer. Racial profiling and discrimination is still an issue. This song still holds the truth about the law enforcement system. Needless to say that “Fuck tha Police” is still relevant as ever. Nearly three decades have passed since Operation Hammer, yet it remains as an anthem against police brutality.
Figure 1). They were active in their music from 1986 to1991. N.W.A is still widely known as “the unapologetically violent pioneers of gangsta rap and in many ways, the most notorious group in the history of rap for their hardcore lyrics” (Erlewine, “N.W.A Biography”). Their music still
Fig.1. Left to right: Ice Cube, MC Ren, Eazy-E, DJ Yella, Dr.Dre During the 70’s, there was a tremendous rise in gangs amongst Crips and Bloods along with the drug trade in Compton, Los Angeles (Tse, “How Compton Became the Violent City”). Around late 80’s in Los Angeles, it was a devastating time for colored folks. About 45% of African Americans males in South Central, Los Angeles were left unemployed because of outsourcing of union jobs to overseas (Moore, “N.W.A.’s Most Courageous Song”). Consequently, gang activity, violence, and drug trade kept increasing. Later, in the year 1987 Operation Hammer was launched by Los Angeles Chief of Police, Daryl Gates (See Figure 2). Operation Hammer was meant to decrease gang violence. Although LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department) had great motives to execute the operation, LAPD used excessive force, and racist tactics to “solve” the issue. A week before the release of the album, 1,453 people were arrested in South Central, Los Angeles. On August 1,1988, as part of Operation Hammer, eighty-eight police officers decided to deliver a strong message to gangs by raiding two apartment buildings in South Central, Los Angeles. While raiding the homes, Los Angeles police officers completely destroyed furniture, smashed food and tore their clothing. They even went beyond by attacking, beating the residents, and humiliating them in front of everyone else. Additionally, police officers spray painted graffiti with the words “LAPD Rules.” During the period of Operation Hammer (1987-1990), LAPD arrested over 50,000 black men and woman combined. This amount totaled to more arrests than any period since the Watts Riot of 1965. Nonetheless, Operation Hammer consisted of racial profiling, specifically targeting African Americans and Hispanics (Moore,“N.W.A’s Most Courageous Song”). Police brutality, racial profiling, gangs, and the drug trade was a major problem during the 80’s. Fig.2. Operation Hammer
The song “Fuck Tha Police,” was N.W.A.s’ work of art through Rap.
The lyrics were a vivid painting of their reality.
“It was more than just a song that was insulting the police, it was a revenge fantasy. I think that’s really what made people feel scared like we was really wanting to fight the police, you know? It’s just one of them things where that song was doing a little more than just expressing our anger: It was telling what we would do if you wasn’t a cop, if we could have a fair fight. All these things just scared the shit out of people” (Ice Cube). Indeed, law enforcement were so frightened of the message in the lyrics that The Federal Bureau of Investigation took action. The Federal Bureau of Investigation sent a letter to Priority Ruthless Records stating that “Advocating violence and assault is wrong, and we in the law enforcement community take no exception to such action…I wanted you to be aware of the FBI’s position relative to the song and its message.” Yet, this letter did not stop N.W.A. from performing the song on stage. The explicit content of the song led many radios to ban it from playing. “Even without any radio play or media coverage the album still managed to become an underground hit” (Cooper, “Hip-Hop &
Politics”). “Our people been wanting to say, ‘Fuck the police’ for the longest time. If something happened in my neighborhood, the last people we would call is the police. Our friends get killed, they never find the killer” (Ice Cube). MC Ren and Ice Cube were the lyricists of the song “Fuck Tha Police.” Both amazing rappers knew how to express their anger in a form that was different and daring. Ice Cube was born O’Shea Jackson in South Central, Los Angeles. Ice Cube grew up in a neighborhood that revolved around violence, drugs, gangs and guns. He attended high school in San Fernando Valley where he first started writing his first raps. In the mid 1980’s he started a group called C.I.A (Cru’ in Action) with two young men. His group caught the attention of another upcoming artist, Andre Romelle Young, also known as Dr.Dre. Together they teamed up to form a new group named N.W.A (Niggaz Wit Attitude). Lorenzo Patterson, also known as MC Ren was born on June 14, 1969 in Compton, Los Angeles. When Lorenzo was younger he joined the Kelley Park Compton Crips, but he decided to leave the gang when he saw that he was not making any money. For this reason, he began to sell dope. MC Ren decided to abandon his old ways, and instead he chose to focus on making music. He attended Dominguez High School and during this time he started to develop an interest in hip hop. MC Ren began writing raps with his friend MC Chip. As a talented young man, MC Ren was signed as a solo artist to Priority Ruthless Records while still attending high school in 1987. After he had written more than half of the album for Eazy-E’s album “Eazy-Duz-It” he was added to the group N.W.A.
At first glance of the lyrics there is clearly a story being told that takes place in a court room. N.W.A flips the system and puts the LAPD on trial rather than themselves. The song starts off with Dr.Dre playing the role as the judge. Ice Cube, MC Ren and Eazy-E testify before the judge as prosecuting attorneys. The song is a mocking of the judicial system which only gives respect to the witnesses. In the song it gives MC Ren, Eazy-E, and Ice Cube an opportunity to speak up about racial stereotyping. Throughout the song they are able to uncover the reality of life in the ghetto and the violence of gangs. N.W.A is frustrated and criticizes law enforcement for police brutality and racial profiling. Additionally, the song is a fantasy revenge where the rappers tell a story of the things they wish they could do to police officers. “A young nigga got it bad ‘cause I’m brown/ And not the other color, so police think/ They have the authority to kill a minority.” In this lyric, Ice Cube angrily states how police officers think they are superior. Also, how the police used racial profiling and discrimination to target them. It is an exact interpretation of what the African American community felt during Operation Hammer. “For a punk motherfucker with a badge and a gun/ To be beating on, and thrown in jail/ We can go toe-to-toe in the middle of the cell.” Ice Cube fantasizes about being able to beat up a police officer in a cell. He wants to treat them the same way he has been treated by them. He uses the word “punk” which was a popular term in the 80’s referring to someone who is disrespectful. “Fuckin’ with me ‘cause im a teenager.” In this line, Ice Cube is talking about the anti-gang laws Compton had during the 80’s and 90’s. Any group bigger than three would be classified as a gang. Therefore, this law allowed police to treat teenagers as criminals by harassing and arresting them if they were hanging out in big groups. “With a little bit of gold and a pager.” This line is quite interesting because he is referring to “gold” as a gold chain many teenagers would wear for fashion. Yet, this would make them stand out because police officers thought they were drug dealers. Even more so, if they had a pager, which was a device to get in touch with professionals but also a way to keep in touch with a drug dealer.
“Searchin’ my car, lookin’ for the product/ Thinking every nigga is sellin narcotics.” Product in this line means drugs, and this lyric is another example of how police officers discriminated black folks by thinking that all of them are drug dealers. “Huh, a young nigga on the warpath/ And when I’m finished, it’s gonna be a bloodbath.” Ice Cube is tired of the LAPD and wishes to have a full on war with them to kill police officers especially the ones who have killed his friends and family. “Fuck tha police! / Fuck tha police! / Fuck tha police! / Fuck tha police!” The hook in this song is where they vent out their frustration towards the LAPD. “They put out my picture with silence/ ‘Cause my identity by itself causes violence,” This is a very powerful line because black men in American are depicted as criminals or as a symbol of violence. “Without a gun and a badge what do you got? / A sucker in a uniform waiting to get shot” Police officers are like any other person in a neighborhood. They only feel powerful by carrying a badge and a gun as stated in the lyrics. If police officers did not have a gun, they would have been dead in the dangerous neighborhoods of Los Angeles. “Just sit your ass on the curb and shut the fuck up! /Man, fuck this shit! / A’ight, smartass, I’m taking your black ass to jail!” This type of commentary is what police officers would tell colored people. Their aggressive and excessive force inspired N.W.A to include a short skit of it in their song to show how minorities are really treated.
Ultimately, “Fuck Tha Police” serves as a statement against the police. It uncovers the reality of minorities versus police officers. The song vividly depicts how they would like to beat and kill the police the same way police officers have done it to their people. Throughout the song, Dr. Dre parodies the manners of a racist judge by calling the witnesses “black ass.” He simply does this to show how racist law enforcement really is. Throughout Operation Hammer, people of color decided they could not take it any longer. Racial profiling and discrimination is still an issue. This song still holds the truth about the law enforcement system. Needless to say that “Fuck tha Police” is still relevant as ever. Nearly three decades have passed since Operation Hammer, yet it remains as an anthem against police brutality.