Ice Cube says critics angered at the failure of hip-hop biopic Straight Outta Compton to address past abuse against women by key member Dr Dre should make “their own” film about NWA.
Dre apologised to R&B singer Michel’le and journalist Dee Barnes last month after the pair highlighted abuse they suffered at the hands of the musician and pointed out that it did not feature in F Gary Gray’s blockbuster film. Now Cube has hinted that a proliferation of NWA biopics might emerge in future, perhaps offering alternate takes on the story of the Los Angeles outfit.
“People are welcome to do their own version of the NWA story,” the rapper told Australian television channel SBS. “There’s been a thousand movies about Elvis, we can tolerate a few more NWA movies.”
He added: “That being said, and that put to the side, this is a situation where you could pick and choose what you want to put in the movie. There are things that are bigger that aren’t in the movie.”
Ice Cube and Dr Dre were hands-on producers of Gray’s film, which has scored more than $150m in the US alone. Critics have suggested Dre’s close involvement explains the absence of abuse incidents. Barnes, a former rapper and presenter of Fox’s 1980s hip-hop show Pump it Up!, claims to have been ostracised from the hip-hop community after speaking out against the musician more than a quarter of a century ago.
Whether a film about Dre’s abuse would have quite the commercial appeal of Straight Outta Compton, which featured a number of original NWA songs, appears in doubt. However a number of other hip-hop related movies are currently being considered by studios, including a biopic about Suge Knight’s and Dre’s controversial Death Row Records.
