Today is the 17 year anniversary of the death of Eazy E. On March 15, 1995 Eric “Eazy-E” Wright lay in the intensive care unit of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was 31 years old and fighting for his life. Heavily sedated, Eazy-E had a respirator tube running down his throat to help him breathe. In the cramped, fluorescent-lit room, a few close friends.
The announcement that Eazy had AIDS sent shock waves throughout the hip hop nation. Fans, friends, even journalists wept openly on March 16 as his attorney, Ron Sweeney, read a statement from his client outside the old Motown building in Hollywood. The founder of N.W.A, the man who popularized gangsta rap worldwide, was suddenly thrust into the role of AIDS educator: “I would like to turn my own problem into something good that will reach out to all my homeboys, ” Eazy said through Sweeney. “I want to save their asses before it’s too late. I’m not looking to blame anyone except myself.”
