Rap group N.W.A., featuring Ice Cube and Dr. Dre, released their debut album “Straight Outta Compton” on August 8, 1988. The seminal gangsta rap work features three influential singles: the title track, “Gangsta Gangsta,” and “Express Yourself.”Though the album eventually earned a double platinum certification from the RIAA, selling over two million copies, it initially went largely unnoticed by commercial radio. N.W.A. also played relatively few tour dates in support of the record. With songs like “F*ck the Police” the album brought controversy, but also took the budding gangsta rap genre to a wider audience, publicizing life in Los Angeles’ toughest urban neighborhoods. While speaking with The Los Angeles Times’ Terry McDermott in 2002, N.W.A.’s manager Jerry Heller says he knew instantly that the album would have widespread appeal:“It blew me away,” Heller explained. “I thought it was the most important music I had ever heard.”