US gangsta rap royalty DJ Yella and Lil Eazy-E arrive in Darwin ahead Monsoons show

Lil Eazy-E opened up about his ‘hard upbringing’, saying ‘losing my father kind of made me a little knucklehead at times’, ahead of his Friday night show with his old man’s NWA bandmate.

Classic member of pioneering Compton gangsta rap group NWA, DJ Yella, with the son of late band member Eazy-E, Lil Eazy-E, ahead of their performance in Darwin on Friday. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Californian gangsta rap royalty DJ Yella and Lil Eazy-E will bring some “west coast Compton love” to Monsoons on Friday night, belting out the legendary hits of NWA.

Yella is one of the classic line-up members of the pioneering hip-hop group along with Ice Cube, Dr Dre, Eazy-E (Sr) and MC Ren that exploded onto the scene with the electrifying Boyz-n-the-Hood in 1987.

On Friday, Lil Eazy will step into his old man’s shoes on lead vocals while Yella kicks one of them funky-ass beats as the pair recreates some of that old school magic, along with a few next generation originals.

“You gotta be old school, his daddy’s stuff, some NWA stuff,” Yella said, speaking to the NT News ahead of the show.

“Even when I DJ music it’d be old school, I just like the old school and a lot of people like old school, nothing wrong with the new school but old school is the best.”

DJ Yella signs autographs for fans on Thursday. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

On Thursday the pair was jetting off to the Tiwi Islands to do some youth engagement, with Yella saying “we don’t mind giving back”.

“I probably was a bad child my whole childhood and there’s a way out, there is a way out,” he said.

Lil Eazy said helping youths who might have lost their way get back on the straight and narrow came naturally after struggling with the death of Eazy Sr in 1995.

“I come from a hard upbringing, losing my father kind of made me a little knucklehead at times,” he said.

“So I understand just needing somebody to talk to and kind of guide you to be better and to have an individual that has been through it before is always better to inspire you to do better.”

DJ Yella and Lil Eazy-E will take their Straight Outta Compton tour to Monsoons on Friday night, supported by local acts Yung Milla, RileyP, Emerald Sun, Mau Power, Yello & Tha Trigger, Lil Cube & DJ VTAC.