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DJ Yella
DJ Yella in 2015
Background information
Birth name	Antoine Carraby
Also known as	Yella
Born	(1967-12-11) December 11, 1967 (age 57) Compton, California, U.S.
Origin	Compton, California, U.S.
Genres	Hip Hop
Occupation(s)	DJ, record producer, film director
Instrument(s)	Vocals, keyboards, drums, turntables
Years active	1981–present
Labels	Ruthless Records

Antoine Carraby (born December 11, 1967), better known by his stage name DJ Yella, is an American DJ, record producer and film director 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 (composed of DJ Yella, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, Arabian Prince, and Eazy-E).

Career

Along with Dre, Yella produced Eazy-E's debut album Eazy-Duz-It and all three N.W.A albums including one by rapper Dizzee Dac, translating into millions of sales. He co-produced along with Arabian Prince the platinum-selling debut albums of J.J. Fad and Michel'le with Dre and contributed to The D.O.C.'s 1989 album No One Can Do It Better (also produced by Dre). Jerry Heller witnessed Dre and Yella's work together and wrote in 2006 of an almost eerie understanding between the pair, as they crafted high quality beats and productions with almost no words or full sentences needing to be spoken.

Yella remained close to Eazy and stayed on production duties at Ruthless Records after the acrimonious breakup of N.W.A. He produced J.J. Fad's second album Not Just a Fad (1990), Yomo & Maulkie's album Are U Xperienced? (1991), two tracks from Eazy-E's It's On (Dr. Dre) 187 Killa (1993), the gold-selling hit single Foe tha Love of $ from Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's Creepin on ah Come Up E.P., Menajahtwa's album Cha-licious, and tracks from H.W.A.'s Az Much Ass Azz U Want E.P. (all three from 1994), and oversaw Eazy's final album in 1995 after his sudden AIDS-related death. Yella released his 1996 debut solo album One Mo Nigga ta Go on Street Life Records, featuring members of the Ruthless 'family tree' like Kokane, B.G. Knocc Out, & Dresta, rhyming over his productions.

After this record he retired from music to embark on a 12-year career directing and producing porn films. Yella says he produced more than 300 porn films.

In November 2011 Yella began working on a new album, entitled West Coastin', which was released in the summer of 2012.

Yella was played by Neil Brown, Jr. in the 2015 N.W.A. biopic, Straight Outta Compton. He is portrayed as very interested in sex and women, and also as less aggressive than the other members and unwilling to engage in conflict with Ice Cube.

Discography

Selected works

References

1. Coe, Kairi. "Exclusive! DJ Yella Speaks on World Class Wreckin' Cru Days w/ Dr. Dre". Vladtv.com. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
2. "Bustle k". Bustle. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
3. "The 50 Most Influential DJs | Music". BET. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
4. "DJ Yella: 'Cops Got to Be Held Accountable'". Usatoday.com. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
5. Yamato, Jen. "The N.W.A Member Turned Pornographer". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
6. "DJ Yella of NWA is BACK ! ! ! | RuthlessFamily.com". Ruthlessfamily.wordpress.com. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
7. Straight Outta Compton's Neil Brown Jr. on the Oscars: 'Nominations Don't Exactly Reflect How Vast, Eclectic and Diverse Our Art Is'

External links

• DJ Yella at IMDb

• 1967 births
• American hip hop DJs
• American pornographers
• African-American male rappers
• Musicians from California
• Ruthless Records artists
• N.W.A members
• Musicians from Compton, California
• Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees
• American hip hop record producers
• Living people