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Ice Cube has revealed he was planning on having Dr. Dre produce his debut solo album AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted, but Eazy-E and N.W.A. manager Jerry Heller prevented the collaboration from happening.
In a new sitdown conversation with Noah Callahan-Bever for Idea Generation, the West Coast rap legend reflected on when he left N.W.A. over contractual issues and how he tried to maintain friendships with the group members. Cube tried his hardest to the point that he was even in talks with Dre about having him produce his first solo album, AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted.
Cube's exit from the group happened due to Pat Charbonnet, who helped him land a solo deal with Priority Records, putting him on to Heller's shady business tactics. Charbonnet handled publicity for N.W.A. at Priority, and according to Cube, he was the only member who showed up at the meetings where she told him about Heller.
Once Cube caught on to Heller and Eazy withholding the group's money, he left and embarked on his critically acclaimed solo career. However, he didn't want to sever his bond with some of the group members, including Dre, whom he wanted to continue working with after his departure.
"I still tried to be friends with the guys who had nothing to do with the business," said Cube at around the 14:00 mark. "Me and Eazy was shaky, and I didn't care about Jerry Heller at all, so it wasn't no love lost there. But I tried to keep it together with Dre. I even wanted Dre to produce my solo record, and we was talking about it, but Eazy and Jerry vetoed it."
Ironically enough, Eazy and Heller stepping in worked out for Cube in the long run, as he would go ahead and work with the legendary producer duo The Bomb Squad on his debut album. Cube and The Bomb Squad would go on to create AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted, a critical and commercial success that was certified platinum four months after its release in 1990 and is considered a classic hip-hop album by fans of the genre.
You can watch the full conversation above.
English (US) ·