As expressed in the 2015 biopic, Straight Outta Compton, the triumph of N.W.A singing “F**k the Police” at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit started with Ice Cube chanting, “This is N.W.A., we do what the f**k we want to do, we say what the f**k we want to say” which influences the 20,000-some fans in a middle-finger salute before gunshots ring out. However, what happened in the movie isn’t exactly true.
According to people in the front rows of the show and tour manager, Atron Gregory, the song began with a simple flash of eye contact between DJ Dr. Dre and the lyrical God of the piece, Ice Cube. As soon as that notion was made, the song began playing followed by apparent gunshots. These gunshots were actually fireworks and firecrackers set off by undercover FBI officials and LAPD to create chaos to clear the crowd, ideally making it easier for them to get on stage to restrain the members of N.W.A.
As the movie suggests, once the cops got on the stage, N.W.A security guards began fighting back and the group then found a way out from the chaos, running out of the arena to only be corned by the FBI and then forced into law enforcement vans and later charged for their “wrong-doings.” Although the movie did get one thing right in that cops and security guards were fighting, the rest of the portrayal is flawed and basically made-up for Hollywood fantasy. In reality, with all of the commotion that happened, N.W.A. ended up getting a $25,000 fine and were told to exit the premises.
Flash forward to 2016, when members of the group (besides the late, great Eazy E; RIP) reunited in Detroit (and played “F**k Tha Police”), local cops provided a high-speed escort. In the Black Lives Matter era, “F**k Tha Police” has evolved from a too-dangerous-to-be-performed anthem to a continuous Spotify hit. What is truly unfortunate is why the song keeps popping up and is as relevant as it is today just as much as it was 40 years ago.