It's always great to see an act as important as N.W.A. recognized for their influence, but it's even better when it's the right person doing the honoring. You couldn't really ask for a better speaker for the group's induction to the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame than Kendrick Lamar, and he lived up to expectations at the ceremony yesterday.
Lamar went through the contributions of each member of the group with the enthusiasm of a fan, while also illustrating the group's larger importance within history. "I know each and every one of them said they never wanted to be role models," he said. "But look … The first time I see Eazy bust through that screen out the jail cell on stage on “We Want Eazy,” I felt like every single one of them was black superheroes where I come from. Because it shows, like I said, people from our community can be on that television screen, be on awards, and still have their voice and be real to themselves. So make some noise for that because that’s the realest thing."
Of course, the members of the group also made their own speeches, with Ice Cube and MC Ren taking a moment to address Gene Simmons of KISS' negative comments about rap (he said it would last ten years at best, and he was looking forward to its death), to which they responded "hip-hop is here forever!". They also took a pretty epic photo with Kendrick that Cube later threw up on his Instagram.
You can watch K-Dot and N.W.A.'s speeches below, and read the full transcription over at Rolling Stone.
Watch Kendrick Lamar Induct N.W.A. Into The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame
