MC Ren doesn’t always get all the respect he’s due.
For one, when you think of N.W.A., Ren’s name is not one of the first you mention when the group comes up. That’s not his fault. When you have certified West Coast legends like Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and Eazy E on your team, you tend to play the sixth man. But the thing is, he’s still a legend. In all reality, he’s a pioneer of Compton rap.
On various classic West Coast bangers, Ren was the one talking that shit to start the song, pretty much setting the tone for what followed. It didn’t even matter if he didn’t have a verse. If he was on the intro, the track was much more official. His presence carried weight on wax and made you want to turn the volume up louder.
Imagine if he did that today? Say, Dre on the beat and Kendrick Lamar for three verses, while Ren came in for the middle-of-the-song interlude kicking game about the old CPT. Would anyone be surprised if the song already existed in the DETOX vaults?
From his collaborative work on two N.W.A. albums, Eazy E‘s Eazy-Duz-It classic, Dr. Dre’s 2001 and various other works, we pay homage to Lorenzo with an attitude today. Musically quiet in 2014, but never forgotten. West Coast, this is really for you.