MC Ren
Encyclopedia
Lorenzo Jerald Patterson (born June 14, 1969), better known by his stage name
MC Ren, is a rapper
who formed part of the group N.W.A. His moniker is derived from his first name (Lorenzo).
. Him and fellow N.W.A.
members Arabian Prince
, DJ Yella
, Dr. Dre
, and Eazy-E
all originated in Compton. The only member of N.W.A that wasn't from Compton was Ice Cube
who is from South Central Los Angeles
.
group N.W.A after finishing his senior year of high school. He contributed vocals on their album Straight Outta Compton
(1988) as well as co-writing several tracks after Ice Cube
left the group in 1989. N.W.A became the first gangsta rap group to gain mainstream success. However, as their album Niggaz4Life reached the #1 spot on the Billboard 200
in 1991, financial conflict between Dr. Dre
and Ruthless Records led to the group disbanding. He also personally cited the inevitable tension of a close knit group. Group member Eazy-E
was accused of skimming money along with the group's manager, Jerry Heller. Dr. Dre left to form Death Row Records
.
MC Ren subsequently released his debut album Kizz My Black Azz
in 1992. It reached platinum
. MC Ren's next album, Life Sentence, was scrapped while he converted to the Nation of Islam
(which he has since left and converted to orthodox Islam) with guidance from DJ Train. Shock of the Hour
in 1993 was released the next year. It also features the single "Mayday on the Front Line" which appeared in the film CB4
. MC Ren soon fell on hard times when DJ Train died in a burning house before the release of The Villain in Black
(1996). The album sold relatively well for a brief period. Before leaving Ruthless Records, Ren released Ruthless for Life
(1998) which proved a small comeback, selling moderately well. In 2000, he appeared on the song "Hello" which featured Dr. Dre and Ice Cube on Ice Cube's War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) album. He joined the Up In Smoke Tour that same year just to rap this verse on this track. He appeared on the posse cut "Some L.A. Niggaz" from Dr. Dre's 2001 album.
MC Ren released the straight-to-DVD Lost in the Game in 2004. His most recent work has appeared on some more politically-oriented projects such as with Public Enemy, specifically Paris
' album Hard Truth Soldiers Vol. 1 as well as on Public Enemy's album Rebirth of a Nation
. Paris stated in an interview with Rapstation.com that "MC Ren is retired and won't be doing a full-length album as far as I know. I get at him for verses, that's about it."
MC Ren appeared on the VH1 Hip Hop Honors
talking about Eazy-E in the tribute to him. As of late 2007, Ren was supposed to be in work with Long Beach
-based rapper RBX
alongside Big Rocc on the group Concrete Criminals and although a debut album was promised, nothing came out of it. In 2009, MC Ren finished his fifth studio album entitled Renincarnated
which was released under his own record label Villain Entertainment on October 31, 2009. Renincarnated was only released in the US.
. He converted to Sunni Islam
a few years later. Interestingly, Ice Cube
, also a member of N.W.A has since converted to Islam.
With N.W.A
With Eazy-E
With The D.O.C.
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
MC Ren, is a rapper
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
who formed part of the group N.W.A. His moniker is derived from his first name (Lorenzo).
Early life
Patterson was born and raised in Compton, CaliforniaCompton, California
Compton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, southeast of downtown Los Angeles. The city of Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city to incorporate. The city is considered part of the South side by residents of Los...
. Him and fellow N.W.A.
N.W.A.
N.W.A was an American hip hop group from Compton, California, widely considered one of the seminal acts of the gangsta rap sub-genre....
members Arabian Prince
Arabian Prince
Arabian Prince is the stage name of Mik Lezan , a rapper and hip hop producer, best known for being an original member of the rap group, N.W.A.-Biography:...
, DJ Yella
DJ Yella
DJ Yella is the stage name of Antoine Carraby , a DJ, drummer, music producer, film director and pornographer from Compton, California. He was a member of the World Class Wreckin' Cru along with Dr. Dre. He later became a founding member of the pioneering gangsta rap group N.W.A...
, Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
, and Eazy-E
Eazy-E
Eric Lynn Wright , better known by his stage name Eazy-E, was an American rapper who performed solo and in the hip hop group N.W.A. Wright was born to Richard and Kathie Wright in Compton, California...
all originated in Compton. The only member of N.W.A that wasn't from Compton was Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
who is from South Central Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
Career
He joined the gangsta rapGangsta rap
Gangsta Rap is a subgenre of hip hop music that evolved from hardcore hip hop and purports to reflect urban crime and the violent lifestyles of inner-city youths. Lyrics in gangsta rap have varied from accurate reflections to fictionalized accounts. Gangsta is a non-rhotic pronunciation of the word...
group N.W.A after finishing his senior year of high school. He contributed vocals on their album Straight Outta Compton
Straight Outta Compton
The lyrics on the album were mainly written by Ice Cube and MC Ren. Critics of the album expressed their view that the record glamorized Black-on-Black crime, but the emcees stated that the group was simply showing the reality of living in the areas of Compton, California, and South Central Los...
(1988) as well as co-writing several tracks after Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
left the group in 1989. N.W.A became the first gangsta rap group to gain mainstream success. However, as their album Niggaz4Life reached the #1 spot on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
in 1991, financial conflict between Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
and Ruthless Records led to the group disbanding. He also personally cited the inevitable tension of a close knit group. Group member Eazy-E
Eazy-E
Eric Lynn Wright , better known by his stage name Eazy-E, was an American rapper who performed solo and in the hip hop group N.W.A. Wright was born to Richard and Kathie Wright in Compton, California...
was accused of skimming money along with the group's manager, Jerry Heller. Dr. Dre left to form Death Row Records
Death Row Records
Death Row Records is a record label founded in 1991 by Marion "Suge" Knight Jr., Andre Young , Tracy Lynn Curry and Michael Harris . It is known to have been home to many popular West Coast hip hop artists such as Dr...
.
MC Ren subsequently released his debut album Kizz My Black Azz
Kizz My Black Azz
Kizz My Black Azz is an EP by MC Ren, released in 1992. This EP was his first solo release that came after N.W.A broke up.All tracks were produced by Bobby "Bobcat" Ervin except "Hounddogz", which was produced by DJ Train, MC Ren and The Torture Chamber....
in 1992. It reached platinum
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
. MC Ren's next album, Life Sentence, was scrapped while he converted to the Nation of Islam
Nation of Islam
The Nation of Islam is a mainly African-American new religious movement founded in Detroit, Michigan by Wallace D. Fard Muhammad in July 1930 to improve the spiritual, mental, social, and economic condition of African-Americans in the United States of America. The movement teaches black pride and...
(which he has since left and converted to orthodox Islam) with guidance from DJ Train. Shock of the Hour
Shock of the hour
Shock of the Hour is MC Ren's first full-length solo album. Released in 1993, it has been called "uneven", but presents a lyrical vision. It was his first solo album released after he converted to the Nation of Islam...
in 1993 was released the next year. It also features the single "Mayday on the Front Line" which appeared in the film CB4
CB4
CB4 is a 1993 comedy film directed by Tamra Davis, and starring Chris Rock. The film follows a fictional rap group named 'CB4', named after the prison block in which the group was allegedly formed...
. MC Ren soon fell on hard times when DJ Train died in a burning house before the release of The Villain in Black
The Villain in Black
The Villain in Black is MC Ren's second solo album. Working with Above the Law's Cold 187um, Ren has constructed an album reminiscent of classic G-funk grooves.-Track listing:# Bitch Made Nigga Killa...
(1996). The album sold relatively well for a brief period. Before leaving Ruthless Records, Ren released Ruthless for Life
Ruthless for Life
Ruthless for Life is MC Ren's third solo album and his last released on Ruthless Records. It's also his first album working with a new producer. The album includes many well known guest artists, including Snoop Doggy Dogg, Ice Cube, Eightball & MJG and RBX....
(1998) which proved a small comeback, selling moderately well. In 2000, he appeared on the song "Hello" which featured Dr. Dre and Ice Cube on Ice Cube's War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) album. He joined the Up In Smoke Tour that same year just to rap this verse on this track. He appeared on the posse cut "Some L.A. Niggaz" from Dr. Dre's 2001 album.
MC Ren released the straight-to-DVD Lost in the Game in 2004. His most recent work has appeared on some more politically-oriented projects such as with Public Enemy, specifically Paris
Paris (rapper)
Oscar Jackson, Jr. , better known by his stage name Paris is an American rapper from San Francisco, California, known for his highly charged political and socially conscious lyrics...
' album Hard Truth Soldiers Vol. 1 as well as on Public Enemy's album Rebirth of a Nation
Rebirth of a Nation
Rebirth of a Nation is the tenth studio album by American hip hop group Public Enemy and Paris, released on March 7, 2006. The album was Mixed and mastered at Data Stream Studio in San Francisco, Ca.-Album information:...
. Paris stated in an interview with Rapstation.com that "MC Ren is retired and won't be doing a full-length album as far as I know. I get at him for verses, that's about it."
MC Ren appeared on the VH1 Hip Hop Honors
Vh1 Hip Hop Honors
Vh1 Hip Hop Honors is an annual event that airs on VH1. The television special honors old school and golden age hip hop rappers and contributors. It features live performances by most of the honorees along with new school artists who have been influenced by them...
talking about Eazy-E in the tribute to him. As of late 2007, Ren was supposed to be in work with Long Beach
Long Beach
-United States:*Long Beach, California, most populous city with this name**Long Beach Airport**Long Beach Naval Shipyard**Long Beach Search & Rescue**Long Beach Unified School District**Port of Long Beach*Long Beach, Indiana*Long Beach, Minnesota...
-based rapper RBX
RBX
Eric Dwayne Collins, better known by his stage name RBX , is a former rapper and R&B singer from Long Beach, California...
alongside Big Rocc on the group Concrete Criminals and although a debut album was promised, nothing came out of it. In 2009, MC Ren finished his fifth studio album entitled Renincarnated
Renincarnated
Renincarnated is rapper MC Ren's fourth studio album, released in 2009. It is MC Ren's first album in 11 years since 1998's Ruthless for Life, and a download-only album, with no physical edition currently available. The album was released on MC Ren's own record label, Villain Entertainment...
which was released under his own record label Villain Entertainment on October 31, 2009. Renincarnated was only released in the US.
Personal life
Around 1993, MC Ren converted to the Islamic faith through the Nation of IslamNation of Islam
The Nation of Islam is a mainly African-American new religious movement founded in Detroit, Michigan by Wallace D. Fard Muhammad in July 1930 to improve the spiritual, mental, social, and economic condition of African-Americans in the United States of America. The movement teaches black pride and...
. He converted to Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam. Sunni Muslims are referred to in Arabic as ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah wa āl-Ǧamāʿah or ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah for short; in English, they are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis or Sunnites....
a few years later. Interestingly, Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
, also a member of N.W.A has since converted to Islam.
Discography
- 1992: Kizz My Black AzzKizz My Black AzzKizz My Black Azz is an EP by MC Ren, released in 1992. This EP was his first solo release that came after N.W.A broke up.All tracks were produced by Bobby "Bobcat" Ervin except "Hounddogz", which was produced by DJ Train, MC Ren and The Torture Chamber....
- 1993: Shock of the HourShock of the hourShock of the Hour is MC Ren's first full-length solo album. Released in 1993, it has been called "uneven", but presents a lyrical vision. It was his first solo album released after he converted to the Nation of Islam...
- 1996: The Villain in BlackThe Villain in BlackThe Villain in Black is MC Ren's second solo album. Working with Above the Law's Cold 187um, Ren has constructed an album reminiscent of classic G-funk grooves.-Track listing:# Bitch Made Nigga Killa...
- 1998: Ruthless for LifeRuthless for LifeRuthless for Life is MC Ren's third solo album and his last released on Ruthless Records. It's also his first album working with a new producer. The album includes many well known guest artists, including Snoop Doggy Dogg, Ice Cube, Eightball & MJG and RBX....
- 2009: RenincarnatedRenincarnatedRenincarnated is rapper MC Ren's fourth studio album, released in 2009. It is MC Ren's first album in 11 years since 1998's Ruthless for Life, and a download-only album, with no physical edition currently available. The album was released on MC Ren's own record label, Villain Entertainment...
With N.W.A
- 1988: Straight Outta ComptonStraight Outta ComptonThe lyrics on the album were mainly written by Ice Cube and MC Ren. Critics of the album expressed their view that the record glamorized Black-on-Black crime, but the emcees stated that the group was simply showing the reality of living in the areas of Compton, California, and South Central Los...
- 1990: 100 Miles and Runnin'100 Miles and Runnin'100 Miles and Runnin' is the title of an EP by hip hop group N.W.A, released in 1990 on Ruthless Records.Prior to recording the EP, all five of the group members had signed a long-term contract with the Ruthless Records label...
- 1991: Niggaz4Life
With Eazy-E
- 1988: Eazy-Duz-ItEazy-Duz-ItEazy-Duz-It is the debut album of rapper Eazy-E, released on September 16, 1988, through both Ruthless and Priority Records. The production by Dr. Dre and DJ Yella was deemed dense and funky by critic Jason Birchmeier. The pieces were written primarily by MC Ren, Ice Cube, and The D.O.C.. The...
(on "2 Hard Mutha's", "We Want Eazy" and "Ruthless Villain") - 1995: Str8 off tha Streetz of Muthaphukkin ComptonStr8 off tha Streetz of Muthaphukkin ComptonStr8 off tha Streetz of Muthaphukkin Compton is rapper Eazy-E's second and final full-length album. It was released posthumously on November 24, 1995, almost exactly eight months after Eazy-E's death from AIDS...
(on "Tha Muthaphukkin' Real")
With The D.O.C.
- 1989: No One Can Do It BetterNo One Can Do It BetterNo One Can Do It Better is The D.O.C.'s debut album, released on June 16, 1989. It reached number-one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart for two weeks, while peaking in the Top 20 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album was certified gold by the RIAA three months after it was released, and platinum...
(on "Comm. 2" and "The Grand Finalé") - 2003: DeuceDeuce (The D.O.C. album)Deuce is the third studio album by West Coast Dallas rapper The D.O.C., and the second since the car accident which severely damaged his larynx. The only single released from Deuce was "The Shit", which features fellow former-N.W.A. members MC Ren and Ice Cube, along with Snoop Dogg and Six2.The...
(on "The Shit")
External links
- Good guys wear black : Interview with Reginald C Dennis, published in The SourceThe Source (magazine)The Source is a United States-based, monthly full-color magazine covering hip-hop music, politics, and culture, founded in 1988. It is the world's second longest running rap periodical, behind United Kingdom-based publication Hip Hop Connection. The Source was founded as a newsletter in 1988...
, August 1992 - MC Ren feature-length radio interview at ConspiracyRadio.com