[APPLAUSE]
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: All right.
Thank you.
So first up, I'd like
to bring out Mr. Jason
Mitchell from the cast.
All right, Jason.
Come on in.
[APPLAUSE]
All right.
Mr. O'Shea Jackson
Jr. O'Shea Jackson Jr.
[APPLAUSE]
You're going to sit on
the far end, right there.
Yep.
Right there.
All right, Mr. Corey Hawkins.
Come on up, sir.
[APPLAUSE]
Esteemed director of
the film, F. Gary Gray.
Ladies and gentlemen,
F. Gary Gray.
[APPLAUSE]
And producer of the film,
with no introduction needed,
Mr. Ice Cube.
[APPLAUSE]
ICE CUBE: Yah yeah.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN:
Hey now, hey now.
All right, welcome, gentlemen.
Thank you guys for coming.
ICE CUBE: Thank
you for having us.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN:
So we're going
to have a nice little
moderator discussion,
then I'm going to open it
up to Q&A for the audience.
We'll have a nice little about
one hour or so conversation,
so I hope you don't
mind with that.
And my first question
to the group,
whoever wants to go
first, why did you
say yes to the story of
"Straight Outta Compton"?
ICE CUBE: To me, it was
just the perfect time
to tell this story.
So many people have been
entertained off the NWA family
tree for the last 25 years.
And it was just like, there's
some people that don't even
know I rap, you know what I
mean, that's out in the world.
And so we wanted to show them
the origin-- where it all
started, what we went
through, and what
we had to kind of endure
just to be ourselves.
And to me, it's a
great American story.
It's a slice of life we
wanted to show people.
People know the
when and the where.
We wanted to show people why.
Why did we make
this kind of music?
And it was all because
of the environment
that we grew up in Compton,
South Central LA, Watts,
Long Beach.
And to me, it was like
the perfect story.
It's juicy enough to be a movie.
So it had all the
ingredients for a great film.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: And same
question to the director.
F. GARY GRAY: Well, for
me, I love a challenge.
And this movie is something that
kind of fits in that category
very easily.
I've never done a
biopic before, and it's
kind of one of
those things where,
when you get a chance
to kind of take off
your world-building hat
in a world of fiction
and put on your journalist
hat and historian hat,
this is an amazing story.
If you break it down,
there's rags to riches.
There's triumph and tragedy.
There's a lot of
universal things
that people can really
kind of tap into no matter
where you're from,
and so as a filmmaker
I gravitated towards this.
And even beyond
that, I felt like it
was personal in the end.
I feel like it's
personal to me, because I
grew up in this
environment at that time
not too far from Ice Cube and
was involved with their careers
once they left NWA and
directing their music videos
and things like that.
So it was the
perfect time for me,
and it's arguably the most
important film of my career.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: Awesome.
Thank you so much for that.
I have a question about
casting for the film.
Obviously, we have these
great gentleman here,
who played the lead
roles of the film.
And I had a question
about casting.
So I read somewhere
you said that this
was a full-circle moment
for you in this filming
and authenticity was key
to the casting process.
What made you say yes to these
three gentlemen for these roles
that they were able
to play for this film?
F. GARY GRAY: Just hands
down their performances.
For Jason, he has
a lot of experience
in New Orleans in the streets.
And he brought a
great performance,
but also I could tell that he
really had a lot of experience
that I could use to
help create Eazy E.
One of the biggest things
about casting that role
is not only his performance,
but his street credibility.
And so with Jason, he has
a lot of street credibility
and also is a great actor.
With Corey, he has a
different background.
He went to Julliard and was
doing Broadway and Shakespeare
and things like that, and he
came and completely transformed
into Doctor Dre.
And so that was a thing that
was so-- he just jumped off
the screen in a way
that no one ever
had regarding these auditions.
It was great.
And for Shea, he
worked the hardest.
He worked the hardest
to get the role.
And I'll let them tell
you about their journey,
but authenticity was the
key, and they brought it.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN:
And to the cast,
actually, I wanted
to ask that question.
What was that journey like?
How did you guys
become these characters
that we are so happy to get a
chance to see pretty soon here?
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: Well.
[LAUGHTER]
I would say the hardest part
about this entire project
was the prep.
We put so much time into prep.
I auditioned for this
role for over two years
before getting callbacks.
Different acting
coaches-- Aaron Speiser.
He works with Will Smith.
Susan Batson works
with Nicole Kidman.
And now once I got
selected, I even
worked with Dustin Felder,
who works with Will's kids.
So I've had a
collective effort--
three different teachers,
three different techniques,
to really form one project.
And I definitely couldn't
do this without them.
And it led to a
chemistry test where
I meet these two right here.
And I'd never done
a chemistry test.
This was my first go-around.
And I walk in there
and I go to meet
the people that are around.
I see a jheri curl, I'm
gonna go say what's up.
So I head over to do it,
and I introduce myself.
How you doing?
I'm O'Shea.
You going for Eazy?
And he says, no,
I'm going for Cube.
And then after further review,
I see what kind of soup I am in.
It's a different kind of setup.
JASON MITCHELL: The
competition gumbo
with the same ingredients in it.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: Exactly.
You know what I'm saying.
So there's two
other Cubes there,
so the pressure
was always there.
And once I booked the
role, it was a weight
lifted off my shoulders.
But even then, I knew the
real work had to start.
I had to look 17.
I went on a strict diet of
dirt and grass and diet water,
and I lost 15 pounds in 24
days of cross fit training.
And shout-out to PJ Stahl.
And we recorded
the entire album.
We all went through our
own separate boot camps.
These guys can attest
to their hard work.
Nothing about this
film was easy,
but great morale
makes great movies.
And the chemistry I have
with these guys and the rest
of the cast shows in our
film, and it's all a test
to the techniques that we had
to go through during prep.
COREY HAWKINS: For
me, like Gary said,
I was at Juilliard just
doing Broadway, Shakespeare
in New York.
And I'd heard about it
and my agent was like,
this movie "Straight Outta
Compton" is about to--
and I'm like, dope.
That's cool.
How can I get in there?
What role can I play?
He's like, go in for Dre.
I said, oh, wait,
wait, wait, wait.
[LAUGHTER]
I said, come on, come on.
Dr. Dre?
So he was like, yeah, yeah.
We got the audition
set up and everything.
I said, listen, I'm not going
in for it, because first of all,
I don't look like him,
I don't sound like him.
I just don't think
I can do that.
The same like things that
get in your head as an actor.
You get in your own way, right?
So he was like, OK, OK, OK.
But I'm gonna set
up the appointment.
I said, no.
Called me back 8
o'clock that night.
He's like, the casting
director called
and said you didn't come in.
I said, I told you
I wasn't going, bro.
But I knew that this
project was going
to be special because of who
was involved, because Gary was
involved and Cube was
involved and Dre was involved,
and the other members of
NWA, and Eazy's widow.
So one thing led to another.
I Skyped with Gary
and then ended up--
F. GARY GRAY: Killing it.
COREY HAWKINS: Thank you, man.
Flying out to LA to
do the studio testing.
He don't run studio tests like
normal people run studio tests.
He had about five, six cameras
rolling for one set-up.
It was crazy.
It was wild.
But it was surreal.
And all I remember thinking
was looking back to the time
when I was doubting myself.
Then, while I was in
it, I was like, oh
yeah, I'm about to go on this.
You know what I mean?
I'm ready now.
I'm hungry.
I want it.
And then yeah, we linked
up and the work began.
But there was so much
work before we could even
start the prep work
before we could even
start principal photography.
So we'll talk about that.
JASON MITCHELL: Well, for me, I
was kind of like in a situation
where I feel like-- I had done
a couple of acting projects here
and there, but I was
I kind of day-playing.
Because I'm from New
Orleans, and I've
never even been to
California, nothing like that.
But it kind of started to
pick up, my acting career.
And I'd done two movies
with Mark Wahlberg.
I did "Broken City"
and "Contraband."
So I was kind of on the
radar for Universal.
They was like, this
kid's just a good dude.
He work hard, he
come, he do his work.
He chill.
So they was like, maybe we
should read him for a lead.
So they sent it to me,
and I was like, Eazy E?
Ooh.
Ooh.
So needless to say, I took
the opportunity serious.
I did my homework,
did what I could.
And I really just went and
like put my foot in it.
The lady I read with,
she's a lady named
Meagan Lewis from New Orleans.
And she's normally like
really, really straightforward
and really serious.
She's really Boston.
If anybody from Boston,
she's really, really Boston.
So I'm like, all right.
And I went and read with her,
and we had this different kind
of vibe in the room that day.
I remember her giving me like
the double high-five and all
that, and she walked
me to the car.
I was like, this is dope.
So I was already
feeling good about it,
but then it took them like
almost a month to call me back.
So I was like, ah,
maybe I didn't get it.
Then, when they
did call me back,
they were like, Gary wants
you to fly out for a callback.
And I'm like, wait, wait, can't
you still not get the role
when you get a callback?
He was like, yeah.
And I was like, well,
you know, the way
my bank account's set up--
[LAUGHTER]
I don't know.
Y'all might gotta
get back at me.
And it as like,
we'll call you back,
see what we can do about it.
So they called me back
like 30 minutes later
and was like, man,
Gary loves you.
He wants to Skype with you.
I'm like, for real?
So I went down
there, did it, and we
Skyped for like an
hour and 17 minutes,
and probably some seconds.
But I was like, whatever.
So I just remember, because
I had to do this scene where
I'm like breaking down.
So I'm crying.
He's like, breathe.
Breathe.
But I'm finally like,
I'm not nervous no more.
Well, the audition's over now,
so I feel like I can breathe.
And I just bust out laughing.
So I hear all these other
voices bust out laughing,
and I can only see his
face on the Skype, like--
[LAUGHING]
I'm like, what's happening?
What's happening?
So I never hear
the words I booked.
So later on, they called
me and they're like,
we're gonna fly you
out for a studio test.
That's where I meet these guys.
But unlike them, I was the
only Eazy-E. But in my mind
I'm thinking, man,
maybe they too big
to have to come to a
studio test like this.
So I'm like on
full pit mentality.
I never thought I got the role.
So we're going through
like days of it.
But through that, I could
feel this chemistry going on
between us.
It was like Gary could
throw something in the mix
and we was like piranhas at it.
It was crazy.
And shout out to the other
guys who didn't get it,
but we already knew what was up.
We already knew.
Yeah, we went into boot camp.
That was something crazy,
because unlike this guy--
unlike the dirt and lemongrass
that he was eating--
we had to eat 4,000
calories a day.
Boxing training,
then weight training,
then I had to go learn how
to walk and talk like Eazy-E
and perform and do
all that, and record.
And then rehearsal, and then
do it again the next day,
for two months.
So yeah, it was for real.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN:
So this next question
is for Cube,
obviously, and Gary.
What was it like having
NWA on set with you
guys during this process?
How was that experience reliving
this story with your team,
with the crew, and with
the whole production cast?
ICE CUBE: I think that was
one of the funnest parts,
was to see them perform.
And we got this big
arena full of people,
and they was actually going
to get up there and do it
for real.
And I've never been
to an NWA concert,
so it was kind of cool.
I was like, damn.
It was impactful.
It was powerful.
And I'm like, man, this
is powerful for 2015.
I can imagine how
it was for 1989.
So it was just a treat
to see it from afar,
and looking at us but
actually be in the audience
or by the monitors with Gary.
And it was just some of the
most amazing, giddy feelings
that we've had with each other,
as far as me, Ren, Yella, Dre,
seeing them up there.
We was like kids, man,
and we was like old times.
So it was so fun, but
I did feel like we
was in a "Back to the
Future" movie and shit.
I felt like we was going
to change history if O'Shea
wore the wrong hat and shit.
Everybody start
disappearing and shit.
[LAUGHTER]
It was just a great, great
experience that I'll never
forget, that we all went
through the fire together,
and we bonded.
I'm bonded with these guys just
like I'm bonded within NWA,
because they are NWA
now for everybody
who looks on the screen who
don't pick up a documentary.
When they see NWA, they're
gonna see these guys.
So they are us.
They're an extension of us.
So it's a beautiful thing.
F. GARY GRAY: So
was the question,
how was it having the
real NWA on the set?
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: Yes.
F. GARY GRAY: Well for
me, it helped out a lot.
For me, the best
filmmaking is when
you have someone at the
helm who just gives you
details and really pays
attention to detail
and just does all the
research and the homework
to transport you to another
time and another world
and make you feel
like you're there.
And so to have NWA
on a set, for me,
was great, because I'm getting
firsthand accounts of all
these moments in the
studio-- all the fights,
all the great moments, all
the debauchery, all the stuff
that was going on.
And so when you watch
the movie, you really
get a sense that, wow,
these guys were brothers.
You got a sense of the
anger when they were angry.
And it wasn't something
that you just-- Google?
You know what I mean?
I don't want to say
like that, but I'm just
saying you can go beyond.
Google's dope,
don't get me wrong.
ICE CUBE: No, of
course Google is dope.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Hashtag #googlesdope.
F. GARY GRAY: But I'm saying,
you get details from the guys
that you can't get on
Wikipedia or online.
And those details
are what really
help the movie feel authentic.
COREY HAWKINS: We dig
Google a lot, too.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: And
funny you should ask that.
So we are at a
technology company.
We are at Google, right?
What would making
this film in like
1995, '91 been like with
the access of social media,
and how do you compare that
today to what we have today?
What do you think
NWA and the story
would have been
like with technology
and with social media
the way it was today
back in the NWA's days?
ICE CUBE: Oh man.
Everything would have just
happened a lot faster.
I can't imagine that, because
it happened fast for us.
We thought we was just
going to be locals.
We thought our music was
so rough and so underground
that we would just be
underground artists
and never really
get to this level.
And so everything would have
happened at a breakneck speed.
So it's interesting
to think about.
I'm kind of glad it
happened the way it did,
because you never know.
One little change, one
little thing in history,
and it might not
turn out like this.
And this is a story-- and
I kept mentioning that.
The reason we wanted
to tell this story
is because we all
have been entertained
by NWA for over 25 years.
No NWA, way there's no
"Boyz n the Hood" movie.
No "Boyz n the Hood"
movie, no "Friday" movie,
which Gary directed
and we did together.
You know what I'm saying?
So these things all
coincide with each other.
And it's a great origin
story, because people
love Snoop and Eminem
and all these things.
And they bumping their
beats and all that,
and we wouldn't have
none of that without NWA.
We might not even have Shea--
[LAUGHTER]
ICE CUBE: --Jr. without NWA.
So everybody--
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: What
kind of a world is that?
ICE CUBE: So it was really
all about showing people
where it came from and
celebrating it, and making
people a part.
The way Gary shot it,
you feel like you're
in the studio with us.
You feel like you're
rolling with us.
You feel like you're
being produced by Dr. Dre.
So these are experiences
that we understand, we felt,
and we want the audience to
experience what we experienced.
And Gary did a magnificent
job in capturing everything
that we wanted to show.
F. GARY GRAY: Thank you.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: And this
question is for you, Gary.
It felt like LA and
South Central Los Angeles
and Compton were
actually the sixth member
of NWA in this film.
It felt like that was actually
a character of the film,
and the way that you
really took care of filming
and doing those things there.
What was that process
like, actually
filming most of the movie
particularly in the Los Angeles
area and the Southern
California area?
F. GARY GRAY: Well,
it was crucial.
Like you said, Los Angeles,
Compton, South Central, they do
feel like the sixth
member of NWA.
And it's because all the things
that happened in that area
in that era really forged
NWA-- all the good stuff, all
the bad stuff, all of the
things that they went through.
And you hear it in their raps.
You hear it in their poetry.
And so being able to open up and
show not only wide shots of Los
Angeles, with the
palm trees and how
kind of beautiful
but dangerous it is,
being able to tap into the
street culture with the custom
cars, and even our atmosphere,
our extras-- all these things
lend itself to making it feel
like Los Angeles in the '80s.
And it's just
about authenticity.
When you watch a Scorsese
movie and he does a casino,
Vegas is a character in a movie.
And all of the different
things that you get,
the nuances from Los Angeles
really help serve the story.
And that's why it was important.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: So this
question is for the cast mates.
What were your favorite
moments from set?
JASON MITCHELL: I'm glad you
said "favorites" with an S.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Favorites with an S.
JASON MITCHELL:
Yeah, that's so dope.
Man, they had so, so
many good moments.
But like Cube said, he'd never
been to an NWA concert before.
And I'm not a rapper, so I'd
never done a concert before.
But I went through this
process of kind of being like,
y'all on TV to being super
confident when I'm around these
guys.
They was the same
people who were like,
y'all have to do
this for the job.
You know what I mean?
But until you see somebody
come out the character
that you normally see them in,
it don't really feel like that.
But when we did those concerts,
you could see them like, yeah.
You could see them in that zone.
Their eyes light up and you're
like, wow, that's what's up.
So it was good.
It's like that type of
feeling that you have.
You get to really live that
rock star life for a minute.
It was a fearless moment,
and it was super dope.
Yeah.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Who's seen the film?
All right.
JASON MITCHELL: Oh,
y'all in for a surprise.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: Yeah.
That changes things
a little bit.
One of my favorite times on
set, it's in the trailer.
I'm pretty upset at
a man in an office.
I kind of take it
out a little bit.
But one of the highlights
of us filming the movie
was Paul Giamatti bouncing with
a beanie and some gold ropes
on to YG--
JASON MITCHELL:
Hitting switches.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
--hitting switches.
Paul Giamatti was the veteran
in the rookie locker room.
He had things to say to all of
us that built confidence in us.
He's Tom Brady.
He ain't cheat, though.
[LAUGHTER]
JASON MITCHELL: [INAUDIBLE].
He would tell me
about his father,
who's a famous baseball player.
If you look him up, Mr. Giamatti
has a huge role in baseball.
But he was telling me
the amount of pressure
he would feel if he had to
play his father in a role.
So he told us all things that
built up something in us,
and I appreciate
everything from Paul.
COREY HAWKINS: It
was probably-- I
think it was definitely
the concert scenes.
It just had to be the concert
scenes, because again, I'm
not a rapper either.
Know what I'm saying,
to be up there?
But the thing about Dre was
sort of on the tables back
in the day.
So it was just cool to be
up there really spinning,
because I had to
actually go through that
and learn how to DJ, literally
learn every single thing,
every single producing,
everything about it.
But those were the moments
that we really felt like NWA.
And then to have, like
you said, LA in "Compton"
is like a sixth
character in a movie.
We had people bringing
us plates on set of food
and sitting on the rooftops.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Dre, hold my baby.
COREY HAWKINS: Yeah.
[LAUGHTER]
Stealing Eazy-E's chairs.
JASON MITCHELL: Come back.
I'm thinking most people
would take the chair back.
They take the whole chair.
I'm like, oh, really?
COREY HAWKINS: It was
positivity, though.
Is was just a lot
of positive energy.
And it's funny, because
in the news, in the media,
everybody tries to say,
oh, all this hootenanny--
is that a word--
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: Good word.
Hashtag #hootenanny.
COREY HAWKINS:
--around the movie,
all this craziness around the--
[LAUGHTER]
F. GARY GRAY: Hootenanny.
COREY HAWKINS:
--craziness surrounding
the movie every day.
F. GARY GRAY: We got
a new nickname now.
You are officially
Hootenannny now.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Hootenanny Hawkins.
F. GARY GRAY: We gotta stop
this right now and give you
a nickname.
You should hear
what they call me.
You have a nickname now.
OG Dr. Hootenanny.
ICE CUBE: I think I ain't
heard that since like
"The Dukes of Hazard" 1983.
[LAUGHTER]
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Inside joke forever.
COREY HAWKINS: I can't
even go on after that one.
It was just real
positive, real positive.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN:
Positive, awesome.
So question for you, Cube.
Compton-- that's
where you're from.
That's your city.
That's your hometown.
What does "Straight
Outta Compton,"
what does this movie mean,
for your philanthropic efforts
that you're doing for the city?
And how can this film
success tie to those programs
that you're running out there?
ICE CUBE: Well, it's like
Compton and South Central,
Long Beach, we was
trying to really put
the west coast on the map.
Before NWA, it was only one
real west coast wrapper getting
any light, and that
was Ice T. So we
was trying to inject some
kind of pride into the city.
Before Eazy E really
pushed for Compton,
people didn't even want to
admit they was from Compton.
It was so bad,
and everybody knew
that it was such a raw area
that people wouldn't even
say they was from there.
They would say they
was from Carson,
which is right by Compton.
So he injected pride
by other people
saying "Brooklyn's in the
house," "Queen's in the house,"
and was like, yo, now
Compton's in the house.
And people wear
Compton with pride now.
I see my man with the
"Compton" on his hat.
So it's a badge of
honor, and people
know that there's talent there.
And it's just really about
giving that talent aspiration,
showing people that we come
off the same streets you do.
And it ain't just Compton.
It could be anywhere.
It ain't gotta be the hood.
It could be the suburbs.
Just do it.
Just have passion, and have
a drive, have a commitment,
and have some
discipline, and you can
get a lot of great things done.
So that's what we're
really trying to push.
And Dre has really stepped
up for the city of Compton,
as well.
He's donating a lot
of his, I guess, money
from his new album to Compton.
And we're figuring
things to do for the city
as well as Eazy's kids.
His kids are left behind
when he passed away.
So we're just trying
to hold the legacy up.
That's all.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: That's great.
That's beautiful.
F. GARY GRAY: Yeah.
For me, I've worked with Dre
over the last four years or so.
And getting back to
Compton specifically,
but I have a youth
center actually,
called the Tom
Bradley Youth Center
on Pico, that I've adopted
and over the last decade been
instrumental in keeping
that place up and going
and running and working with
a lot of kids without parents.
And there's an elementary school
in Watts called 112th Street
Elementary School, and also
Verbum Dei High School,
where I put a film program
in those places in order
to show kids that they can do
other things that's creative,
like they did.
They picked up a pen, a
pad, and a microphone.
So we send cameras and editing
equipment and stuff there,
and we've been doing that
for quite a long time.
COREY HAWKINS: You
know what's crazy?
I feel like all you gotta
do is touch one life, man.
And what they're
doing is powerful,
because it's a family
tree that they created.
So we're an extension of
that, of their legacy.
And hopefully this film
continues that, too.
But just what
they've done in terms
of giving back and just showing
up-- you touch one person,
that person can touch millions.
You know what I mean?
So I just think that's huge.
ICE CUBE: And we can keep
down all the hootenanny
in the world.
[LAUGHTER]
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Good luck, Corey.
Good luck, Corey.
[LAUGHTER]
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: So it's
been about 25-plus years
since the release
of "F the Police,"
and this movie did
such a brilliant job
of depicting police brutality
and what that element did
to people in the cities
of Compton, Los Angeles,
and to people all
over the country.
What has changed?
What do you think has
changed between then and now,
and what can we do to really
elevate this conversation
and support projects like
"Straight Outta Compton" that
are doing this, as well?
ICE CUBE: Well, not
enough has changed.
And this movie really
highlights that, that the more
things change, the more
they stay the same.
I think what incites you
when you see it in our movie
is the fact that you know
that these guys are trying
to do the right thing, so the
humiliation is that much more.
I think it's more humiliation
is really the type of abuse
that we highlighted.
So I just think we've
got to weed it out.
And it's very funny and I
just don't understand it,
that a guy can go into
a church or whatever,
kill all these people,
and they walk him out
like he's the president in
bulletproof vests and shit.
It's like, whoa.
And then the little
18-year-old kid
that mouths off at
the cap cop, he's
the one with the black
eye, the busted nose.
So I just think
they need to refocus
their anger on real
criminals that do real crime.
If you want to beat
up on somebody,
beat up on the child
molester, not the kid
that's a little drunk coming
from the party or whatever.
So these things,
it's just a mentality
that we got to correct.
OK, now, I think the solutions
are more body cameras, more
dash cams, all this
stuff, just to be
able to hold people
accountable, be
able to see the real
picture of what went down,
and just hold
people accountable.
Everybody crossed a
line every now and then.
Even regular citizens
cross the line.
So when they cross the line,
you just hold them accountable.
And it's starting to happen.
And I don't think no cop
want to go out in the day
and then end up on
CNN later that night.
I don't think nobody
want to do that.
So I just think
those kind of things
are helping officers
think twice.
And I hope our movie helps
people to think twice,
that you can't paint our
community with a broad brush
and think that
we're all the same.
For all the statistics
that they show
about the crime in our
community-- 40% this, 30%
that-- just know that
there's 60% that don't do it.
There's 70% that don't do it.
So it's more
law-abiding citizens
in the hood than criminals.
And that's really what
we're just trying to show,
is don't paint us all
with the same brush,
and treat us fairly,
like human beings.
That's all.
[APPLAUSE]
F. GARY GRAY: Well, I think
Cube really hit the mark.
We've done a lot of talking,
we've done a lot of protesting,
and I think we should start
focusing on solutions.
I'm cautiously optimistic
that a lot of the headlines
are going to put
pressure on our leaders
and our leaders
in law enforcement
to make change in the
culture, because it's not just
one cop at a time.
You wouldn't do it if you didn't
feel like it was OK to do it.
So we have to
change the culture.
You come to Google, it's
not just about a job.
It's a culture.
And that's why you guys are
who you are and so successful.
And police and law
enforcement culture, there
has to be a shift.
And that starts at the
top, not just with the guy
who was having a bad day.
And so I think that if we
consider putting pressure
on our lawmakers to
change federal law
and make it a felony to
tamper with audio recordings
and video recordings
and things like that,
and so if you're caught
up in that, you go to jail
and you'll spend time
with those criminals
that you're trying
to keep behind bars.
Make it a real penalty,
not just a consequence
of an investigation.
Make it a real penalty.
And I think if we stop
burning down our cities,
stop just talking about it-- I
mean, the conversation is good,
but let's work on solutions.
I believe there was a
study in Rialto, California
where they put body cams and
dash cams on every officer
there, and basically the
complaints went down by 88%
and the incidents went down by
60% over the course of actually
a year, I believe, or
something like that.
So let's start
focusing on solutions.
Let's not just channel our anger
and conversation on protesting.
Let's look at real solutions.
And I think that's part of it.
COREY HAWKINS: My
mother's a police officer.
And it was funny when I got
to set and she came to visit,
they were like, we might
have to recast you, bro.
[LAUGHTER]
So she's a cop, but she's
a fan of their music.
She's a fan of them.
She's a fan of the culture.
She's a fan of, like we
were saying, positivity.
And what she does
in the community--
and I think a lot of
departments can take lessons
from it-- is her and her partner
started this thing in DC.
I'm from DC.
And it's called
Friday Nights Out.
And basically, they
set up these stages
around different parts,
the trouble areas
in DC, where I grew up, and
they allow kids to come out.
And if you rap, you
can get on stage
and you have a place to do it.
If you sing, whatever,
if you like to do art,
they bring out
artists and they work
with the kids on Friday nights,
the nights when people can
get in a little bit of trouble.
They like to do that.
And it's the police
officers who are down there.
So she likes the art, so she
gets up there and does it
with them.
It's little things like
that that really change
the community, because
they're supposed
to protect the community.
When they walk the
beat, they're supposed
to know who live in this house
and who live in that house,
and understand.
When you can understand
and have that dialogue
with the community,
then you can open it up.
The possibilities are
endless, and the possibilities
for negativity stop.
You know what I mean?
But I think that's
just one little--
F. GARY GRAY: The one
thing I'd like to add,
too, is let's not mistake--
I don't want anyone
to be mistaken about our
story and the message
within the story.
This is not an anti-cop movie.
It's an anti-criminal movie.
Excessive force is a crime.
And ultimately, we know there's
a lot of peaceful warriors
out there that put on the
badge, put on the gun,
and that will help us.
I think most up them
fit into that category.
So for all the good
cops that are out there,
we're not talking about you.
We're talking about
the people who
have the propensity
to go overboard and do
what they're doing.
That's what we're
complaining about.
ICE CUBE: Yeah.
Let's not get it twisted.
Somebody break into my
house, I'm calling the cops.
I'm not calling the homies.
I'm not calling Gary.
I'm calling the cops.
You know what I mean?
Don't get us twisted.
We just want to clean up a
couple of missteps, a couple
of little over-aggression.
We just want to clean that up.
But we were not
anti-law enforcement
by no means, no means.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: So we're
going to start lining up people
in the audience for a Q&A. So
if you have some questions,
please start lining up now.
And I wanted to
wrap this up today.
You guys, thank you
so much for coming.
ICE CUBE: Thank you.
F. GARY GRAY: Thank you
for having us, definitely.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Google McDoogle.
[APPLAUSE]
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: My last
question is a quick rapid fire.
I start with "Straight
out of," and you're
going to tell me your answers.
Ready?
And I'll go around.
So Straight outta Long Beach.
ICE CUBE: Compton.
F. GARY GRAY: South Central.
COREY HAWKINS: Washington, DC.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: [INAUDIBLE].
JASON MITCHELL: And I'm
straight outta New Orleans.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN:
Thank you guys so much.
[APPLAUSE]
We're gonna take questions
from the audience.
AUDIENCE: Hey, guys.
Where I come from,
"hootenanny" is a real word,
just so you know.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: [INAUDIBLE]
AUDIENCE: And hats
off to Juilliard--
major accomplishment.
Love that you did that.
And seeing you here
with these guys,
it's absolutely amazing, too.
So if you all didn't
hear it the first time,
"hootenanny" is a real
word where I come from.
ICE CUBE: Yeah.
We gonna use it every day.
AUDIENCE: Mr. Cube,
your highness.
I love it.
ICE CUBE: Don't do that.
Don't do that.
Oh, god.
AUDIENCE: All seriousness,
when I saw this coming today,
I heard you guys on Jason
Ellis a couple days ago,
which fascinating interview that
you all did with him on Sirius.
But everybody was stunned that
I was coming over here to talk
to y'all, at least on my team.
So is there any chance I
could get a picture with
y'all to prove I
was actually here?
ICE CUBE: We only taking
one picture, and it's yours.
Come on up.
We'll take yours.
One picture.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: Yes, clap.
Clap, Googlers.
[APPLAUSE]
ICE CUBE: They can't
believe you up here causin'
all this hootenanny.
F. GARY GRAY: Everybody
say, "hootenanny."
ALL: Hootenanny!
[APPLAUSE]
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.:
Hashtag #hootenanny.
AUDIENCE: So maybe
you'll take two people?
No, I'm just joking.
So this question actually
is for Dr. Hootenanny.
No, I'm just kidding.
We're gonna keep
the roasting going.
You know it's not gonna
end for a long time.
You gotta understand that.
First of all, I just want
to say, Raider Nation.
Real talk.
We out here, always and forever.
Yeah, so I'm from Southern
California, born and raised
in Barstow, and grew up
really truly with hip
hop as everything that pretty
much got me to the place
where I am now.
And music like "Express
Yourself" and "Lethal
Injection" and all
these incredible albums
that you created had so much
to do with where I am today.
So I just wanted to hear
a little bit about all
of your musical influences,
and what really inspires you
and inspired you in your role.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: I'm
completely inspired by him.
It was all about--
a lot of people
didn't want me to
get the role, but he
wanted me to get the role.
And that's really what I needed.
He's had my back forever.
I just wanted to make sure
I had his back on something.
And everything as far as what
I'm doing in my career in film
and whatever I choose
to do further in music
is to further build on this
empire that he started.
And I'm just thankful that I'm
given the opportunity to do.
And I'm gonna make it rock.
JASON MITCHELL: Well,
I'm a music dude.
I'm a really, really,
really good fan to have.
[LAUGHTER]
I kill it in the shower.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: Awesome.
JASON MITCHELL: I'm
one of them dudes.
Music is a part of my life.
It make everything
go together for me.
And as far as "Straight
Outta Compton"
goes, by us re-recording
the whole album,
I think it put me in a different
mind frame of where I am today,
because I kind of view us as
like the old NWA, the situation
they were in, because there's
so much controversy that's
around this movie and
all that, but it's still
like a super positive
thing that we're doing.
No matter what may come
out of it, it's still words
and it's still art
that we giving them.
And it's like as he mentioned,
we're in that forever.
So for me to be a part
of that is like the best,
to say the least.
So yeah, that's what's up.
COREY HAWKINS: Yeah,
same here, man.
I'm just a fan of music.
So if it sound good,
if it's honest,
if it's coming from what you
come from, then it's good.
I'll rock with it.
But in terms of like just
inspiration and playing
this character, I just
look up to these guys now.
It's like I really see
where they came from,
and I see what they're
doing now and I'm like,
I want to do that.
I want to be a movie mogul.
I want to own a business.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: I want to be
a billionaire so freaking bad.
COREY HAWKINS: It's so crazy
to see the possibilities.
You can do it.
And it's just great to be
a part of this family tree.
ICE CUBE: My musical
influences-- George Clinton
and Parliament Funkadelic.
They really showed us how
to not care and be yourself,
and just do what you feel.
And they saw light years
ahead of their time still.
That music is still intricate
and complex and free
of any kind of chains or
musical, I guess, parameters.
They just do what they feel.
So George Clinton, Parliament
Funkadelic, Roger Zapp,
James Brown-- these
guys are blueprint,
and we are an extension
of what they have done.
You've got P-Funk,
you've got G-Funk.
So there it is.
F. GARY GRAY: For me,
I always kind of just
loved the artists
that just stood up
and had the courage to
go against the grain.
And Marvin Gaye made an album
called "What's Going On"
when he was making ballads.
And he just stood up
and said, you know what?
There's so many things
going on around me.
I can't just talk about love
stories and things like that.
And that's an album that
he got a lot of problems
and a lot of flak for creating
and then putting it out.
But it's a classic.
And I'm not just saying
this because Cube is here,
but he made an album like that
called "Death Certificate,"
where he talked about the
social ills around where
we grew up, and just stood up.
And with all the controversy
and all the judgement that came,
I'm inspired by
artists that stand up,
and even in the midst
of all of the pushback
and the criticism
and the controversy,
and speaks to what
we go through.
And Marvin Gaye
is my number one.
And Cube doesn't know
this, but he definitely
inspired me, as well.
Now he know.
AUDIENCE: So I am just so
excited that you guys are here
presenting to this audience.
I am just so glad that
we had this opportunity
to see you and listen to you
and your actual perspectives.
And to that end, just
real quick, Cube,
I cannot believe
I'm addressing you,
the person who
wrote "No Vaseline,"
because that was insane.
Blew my line as
an eighth-grader.
It was crazy.
But the question that I do
have is for Cube and Gary.
How do you feel about people
taking your work kind of out
of the context that
it's in and enjoying it,
like mainstream American
enjoying it, but not really
understanding what it's
about or where it's from?
Like the example with
"Bye, Felicia," how that's
become like a great phrase
for everyone to use, and then
they don't really know
that it's from "Friday"
or who Felicia was.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: Thank you.
Man, that kills me.
I'm sorry, I'm gonna
let you finish.
But that kills me.
That's ridiculous to me.
AUDIENCE: So how do you
feel about things that when
it happens like that, when
it's co-opted by the mainstream
culture?
ICE CUBE: I don't mind
as much, because I figure
the cool people know
what I'm talking about,
and everybody else
need to catch up.
That's how I feel.
It's like a painting.
Once you put it on
the wall, everybody's
going to have a different
kind of interpretation of what
you were trying to say or do.
And that's fine.
That's what it's all about.
I can't tell you what
to think about my song.
You've got to tell me what
you think about my song.
And all I can do is do
it, do it how I feel it.
With NWA, I don't
want to say that we
was this super positive,
political group that went to go
politically change the world.
No.
We had a lot of records
that was just straight raw
and probably wasn't
positive at all.
But they was honest.
And I think that's why people
love us, because we was honest.
We wasn't worried
about that part.
We wasn't worried about the
people that didn't like us.
We was just worried
about what we liked.
And a lot more people was
on our side than against us.
And that's why we still here.
So it doesn't bother me at
all that people misinterpret
anything that I do.
F. GARY GRAY: It's
all art, like he said.
You're just expressing yourself.
So I couldn't put it any
better than Cube put it.
You just express
yourself and let
it be what it's going
to be, and that's it.
O'SHEA JACKSON
JR.: The people who
don't know that "Bye,
Felicia" is from "Friday"
are the same people
who, on Twitter, say,
oh, man, Kanye's gonna blow
this Paul McCartney dude up,
or man, thank god, Katy
Perry found new artists
like Missy Elliott for
the Super Bowl Halftime.
Those people will probably
watch "Straight Outta Compton"
and like, this should
be a real group.
[LAUGHTER]
That's my piece on that.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN: Nice.
AUDIENCE: So really
quickly, I just
wanna thank you
guys for coming by.
I'm straight from
Compton, actually.
I grew up on [INAUDIBLE]
Avenue, [INAUDIBLE] Elementary,
Roosevelt Middle,
all that stuff.
So I have a question
specifically
for Cube and for Gary.
When I was growing up, a
lot of my friends and stuff
really bought into gangsta rap.
And they kind of figured
that there were really
only two options, right?
It was either going to be music
or it was going to be sports.
And I've tried to go
back to the community
just to tell them about, well,
you could do programming.
You could do other
kinds of arts.
You could go into medicine--
all that kind of stuff.
What would you guys say to
maybe those youths in Compton,
Long Beach, where
we're from, that
think that music and sports
is their only option?
F. GARY GRAY: Well, I'd like to
speak to that, just because I
grew up in South Central LA,
and I don't have a degree.
I didn't go to college.
And I went into film.
I didn't do all the
things-- or at least, I
didn't feel like I
had limited options.
I just found something I liked,
and I just stuck with it.
And you can get in a program or
whatever you want to get into.
And I was on the streets.
Part of the reason why a
lot of the work that we've
done together feels
authentic is because I
was really there and
either witnessed it
or was involved in it.
So you can make a transition.
It's about what you create.
You can create
your own universe.
And I know it sounds
cliche, but it's real.
Right now, I'm super nerding
out on model airplanes,
and I'm building-- seriously.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: It was
telescopes before this, guys.
F. GARY GRAY: No, it was.
I've gone through a
few phases, studying
the surface of the moon
and things like that.
And then I build my planes
and drones and cameras,
and I just started
flying airplanes.
So you can be wherever you from,
and then just have the courage
to make the transition.
I love what Cube's
done, where he's
gone from gangsta rap to
political rap and back,
and to movies and to giving
people opportunities.
He's a family man, and he's
not afraid to stand up and say,
I'm going to make
the transition,
regardless of what you think.
You can judge me.
It doesn't matter.
So people from Compton or
wherever you from, just
don't be afraid to be judged.
It's OK.
ICE CUBE: And this
all kind of-- here's
where I try to stress that
whatever industry you love,
there's 1,000 jobs
around that industry.
You don't have to be
in front of the camera.
Matter of fact, the
cameraman told me
when I was shooting
"Boyz m the Hood,"
I've been sitting behind
this camera 35 years.
I shot everybody.
I see them come and
go in front of me.
I'm still here.
So sometimes, the jobs
that are the real jobs
is behind the scenes.
We've got to just
encourage-- everybody's
not going to be the player or
be on stage, but man, everybody
needs a light man, an
engineer, a coach, an agent.
So there's a million
different jobs
that's surrounded around their
dreams that they should start.
A lot of guys start at the
bottom and end up at the top.
There's one coach used to
coach The Heat still do.
He started out doing
the video playback.
Now he the head coach.
O'SHEA JACKSON JR.: Spoelstra.
ICE CUBE: Yeah.
So it's a thing where you've
got to use your talents,
wherever they may lie,
to get you in the door.
Everybody's not going to
be in front of the camera.
It's all about finding where
you can fit in in the industry
that you love and how you
gonna be happy at that.
So it's really
encouraging people
to look at all
aspects of an industry
that they want to get in.
ALLISON BERNSTEIN:
All right, thank
you gentlemen so much
for your time today.
F. GARY GRAY: Thank you.
[APPLAUSE]
