Jerry Heller, N.W.A. manager, dead at 75
The former manager of historic rap group N.W.A, Jerry Heller, has died at the age of 75.
Heller's cousin, Gary Ballen, confirmed that the former music business executive died at the Los Robles Hospital in Thousand Oaks, California after suffering a heart attack, according to Billboard.
However, TMZ reports that Heller was first taken to the hospital after being involved in an automobile accident.
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Heller was centrally involved in promoting the early careers of the late rapper Eazy-E as well as N.W.A, the group that helped launch the careers of Dr. Dre and Ice Cube.
In addition to co-founding Ruthless Records with Eazy-E, Heller worked with The D.O.C., Bone Thugs-n-Harmony and many other early groups that emerged from the Los Angeles hip-hop scene.
Before his death, the controversial music business executive had filed a $110 million lawsuit against Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and Eazy-E's widow, Tomica Woods-Wright, over his portrayal in the film Straight Outta Compton.
Despite his eventual fade from relevance in the music business, Heller remained outspoken about the industry. In 2015, TMZ got Heller to comment on the arrest of former record label rival Suge Knight, which Heller called "instant karma."
Back in March, a judge dismissed most of the claims in Heller's lawsuit regarding Straight Outta Compton, but allowed him to continue to pursue a defamation lawsuit. At the time of Heller's death, the status of that lawsuit was unclear.
Topics Music
