100 Miles and Runnin'

For the Wale mixtape, see 100 Miles & Running.
100 Miles and Runnin'
EP by N.W.A
Released August 14, 1990
Recorded 1989-1990
Genre Gangsta rap
Length 23:17
Label Ruthless/Priority
Producer Dr. Dre,
Yella
N.W.A chronology

Eazy-Duz-It
(1988)		 100 Miles and Runnin'
(1990)		 Niggaz4Life
(1991)

100 Miles and Runnin' is an EP by hip hop group N.W.A, released in 1990 on Ruthless Records. It is the first record the group released after Ice Cube began a solo career, and it contains a number of negative references to him. Though reviews were mediocre, it had reached platinum status by September 1992.

Background

Prior to recording the EP, all five of the group members had signed a long-term contract with the Ruthless Records label. However, member and lead vocalist Ice Cube refused the contract's terms and consequently separated himself from the group, which kicked off his solo career.

The title track "100 Miles and Runnin'" was the group's first track to gain radio airtime and appear on TV with its music video. Dr. Dre, who had just finished working with The D.O.C. and Above the Law, added atypical funky beats and the slow synth groove on "Just Don't Bite It". "Sa Prize, Pt. 2" is a sequel to the controversial "Fuck tha Police" from the Straight Outta Compton album.

The group makes a number of references to Ice Cube. On the title track, Dre states: "It started with five but yo, one couldn't take it / So now there's four 'cause the fifth couldn't make it". In "Real Niggaz" he is likened to Benedict Arnold, the proverbial American traitor, and MC Ren says, "Only reason niggaz pick up your record is cause they thought it was us", referring to Ice Cube's first solo album AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted, which had been released earlier that year. Ice Cube responded to these attacks on Death Certificate (1991).

Three songs from the EP, "100 Miles and Runnin'", "Just Don't Bite It", and "Real Niggaz", were later released on N.W.A's Greatest Hits. "Real Niggaz" also appears on N.W.A's final studio album, Efil4zaggin, a year later; the 2003 remastered edition of the album appended the rest of the EP to the track listing. "Just Don't Bite It" was later sampled in Eazy-E's solo track "Gimme That Nutt" as well as Sublime's song "Let's Go Get Stoned."

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [1]
Entertainment Weekly (C+)[2]
RapReviews (6.5/10)[3]
Robert Christgau (C-)[4]

Although the album was released as an EP, it nevertheless hit the charts and sold over 500,000 copies, reaching gold status on November 16, 1990 before reaching platinum certification on September 16, 1992, for over 1 million copies sold.[5]

Charts

Chart
(1990)		 Chart position[6]
Billboard 200 #27
R&B Albums #10
Year Song Chart positions[7]
Billboard Hot 100 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Chart
1990 "100 Miles and Runnin'" - #51

Track listing

All songs produced by Dr. Dre and DJ Yella.

No. TitleWriter(s)Performer(s) Length
1. "100 Miles and Runnin'"  MC Ren, The D.O.C., Cold 187umMC Ren, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E 4:32
2. "Just Don't Bite It"  MC RenMC Ren 5:28
3. "Sa Prize (Part 2)"  MC Ren, The D.O.C.MC Ren, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E 5:59
4. "Real Niggaz"  MC RenMC Ren, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, 4:27
5. "Kamurshol"     1:56

Personnel

Later Samples

References

  1. ↑ Jason Birchmeier. "Allmusic review". Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  2. ↑ Sandow, Greg (August 31, 1990). "100 Miles and Runnin':Music Review:Entertainment Weekly". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 23, 2009.
  3. ↑ "rapreviews.com review". Retrieved 2010-11-25.
  4. ↑ "Robert Christgau review". Retrieved 2010-11-25.
  5. ↑ "RIAA searchable certification database". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2010-11-25.
  6. ↑ "100 Miles and Runnin' chart positions". Rovi Corporation/Billboard. Retrieved 2010-11-25.
  7. ↑ "100 Miles and Runnin' song chart positions". Rovi Corporation/Billboard. Retrieved 2010-11-25.