Straight Outta Compton

n.w.a’s debut brought West Coast gangsta rap to Middle America and changed hip-hop forever. “Back then, we was calling it ‘reality rap,’ ” Ice Cube told Rolling Stone years later. Ice Cube’s rage and Dr. Dre’s police-siren beats combined for a truly fearsome sound. The protest track “Fuck Tha Police” earned the crew its biggest honor: a threatening letter from the FBI.