Fuck tha Police
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| "Fuck tha Police" | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Single by N.W.A. | ||
| from the album Straight Outta Compton | ||
| Released | 1988 as on the Straight Outta Compton album, January 1989 on 12" record. | |
| Format | CD single 7" single |
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| Recorded | 1988 in Menlo Park, California | |
| Genre | Gangsta rap/Protest | |
| Length | 5:43 | |
| Label | Priority/Ruthless | |
| Writer(s) | Ice Cube, MC Ren, Eazy-E | |
| Producer(s) | Dr. Dre, DJ Yella | |
| N.W.A. singles chronology | ||
| "Straight Outta Compton" (1988) |
"Fuck tha Police" (1988) |
"Express Yourself" (1988) |
- This article is about the N.W.A. song. For the J Dilla song of the same name, see Fuck The Police (J Dilla song).
"Fuck tha Police" is a protest song by the controversial hip hop group N.W.A. on the album Straight Outta Compton, first released in 1988 as an exclusive song for the 1988 album, and later released in a 12" in 1989. It ranked #417 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and is the group's only song on the list.
Contents |
[edit] Content
Fuck tha Police is a mock court scene, in which the "Police Department" is put on trial, with Ice Cube, MC Ren, and Eazy-E playing the role of the prosecution. Judge "Dre" is presiding and the trial is described as being "N.W.A versus the police department". Rapped "testimonies" expressing anger at racism and police brutality in abrasive, violent language are delivered by Ice Cube:
- Fuck tha police
- Comin straight from the underground
- Young nigga got it bad cuz I'm brown
- And not the other color so police think
- They have the authority to kill a minority
MC Ren:
- Lights start flashin' behind me
- But they're scared of a nigga so they mace me to blind me
- But that shit don't work, I just laugh
- Because it gives 'em a hint not to step in my path
and Eazy-E:
- Without a gun and a badge, what do you got?
- A sucker in a uniform waiting to get shot,
- By me, or another nigga
- And with a Gat it don't matter if he's smaller or bigger
At the end of the song, "Judge Dre" delivers the verdict: "the jury has found you guilty of being a redneck, white bread, chickenshit muthafucker" —— "you" referring to a police officer who represents the Los Angeles Police Department. The police officer's reaction is: "But wait, that's a lie! That's a god damn lie! I want justice! I want justice! Fuck you, you black motherfuckerrrrr!" as he is apparently dragged out of the courtroom.
[edit] Impact
The song "Fuck tha Police", containing N.W.A's trademark inflammatory lyrics, stood out in particular from many of the songs on Straight Outta Compton. It highlights many of the tensions between black urban youth and the police (widespread resentment towards the LAPD boiled over 3 years later, in the 1992 Los Angeles riots following the Rodney King incident). The song also alleged that minorities in the police department betrayed their race, with lyrics such as-
- And on the other hand, without a gun they can't get none
- But don't let it be a black and a white one
- Cause they'll slam ya down to the street top
- Black police showing out for the white cop
Especially controversial were the areas of the song that appear to condone violence towards police authorities; lines such as "I'm a sniper with a hell of a scope/Taking out a cop or two, they can't cope/with me" and "A sucka in a uniform waitin' to get shot/by me, or anotha nigga" directly reference the murder of police officers. The FBI and the U.S. Secret Service sent a letter to Ruthless Records informing the label of their displeasure with the song's message, and N.W.A were banned from performing at several venues.
Whether or not the actual message of the song was taken seriously by listeners, "Fuck tha Police" was an important representation of the attitudes of many impoverished inner-city blacks, albeit a highly controversial one.
This song has proven popular enough to be covered by such acts as Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Rage Against the Machine, dope, Public Enemy, and Soulfly, among others, even including more "mainstream" bands completely removed from the hip-hop genre, such as Pearl Jam.
This song was included on N.W.A's Greatest Hits.
In 1989, Sydney radio station 2JJJ had been playing "Fuck tha Police" for up to six months, before gaining the attention of Australian Broadcasting Corporation management who subsequently banned it. As perhaps the only government funded radio station in the world to play the song, as a reaction the staff went on strike and put N.W.A's song "Express Yourself" on continuous play for 24 hours, playing it roughly 360 times in a row.
[edit] Music sample
- Fuck Tha Police, by N.W.A (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- From the 1988 album Straight Outta Compton, jointly produced by Dr. Dre and DJ Yella. Although "Judge Dre" talked in the introduction and conclusion to the song, this sample is of Eazy-E's verse.
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
