| "Natural Born Killaz" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byDr. Dre andIce Cube | ||||
| from the albumMurder Was the Case | ||||
| B-side | "What Would You Do?" | |||
| Released | December 10, 1994[1] | |||
| Recorded | 1994 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 4:52 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Dr. Dre,Sam Sneed | |||
| Dr. Dre singles chronology | ||||
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| Ice Cube singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Natural Born Killaz" onYouTube | ||||
"Natural Born Killaz" is a collaborative single released byDr. Dre andIce Cube for the soundtrack of the filmMurder Was the Case. It was originally intended for the scrapped albumHeltah Skeltah. It would later be used by professional wrestling tag teamThe Gangstas during theirExtreme Championship Wrestling stint before being used byNew Jack for the following years. The music video also has a brief appearance of rapper2Pac towards the end of the video.
The song was originally supposed to be aSam Sneed andJ-Flexx track called "The Heist".[3] J-Flexx ghostwrote Dr. Dre's verses.
It is the first time the duo had worked together since the split ofN.W.A. The single was released in 1994 in theUnited States, but was not released until March 30, 1995, in theUnited Kingdom. The production credits featuresSoopafly on the keyboards and Nanci Fletcher, Danette Williams and Barbara Wilson on vocals.
The song references such subjects asmass murder,Sarah Connor from theTerminator films,Al Cowlings' tight bond withO. J. Simpson,schizophrenia,Charles Manson, theattack on Reginald Denny during theRodney King riots,strychnine poisoning,Michael P. Fay'scaning inSingapore,Jeffrey Dahmer,Kurt Cobain's suicide andpsilocybin mushrooms.
The music video was released for the week ending on November 27, 1994. The album song portrays a couple (performed by Priest ‘Soopafly’ Brooks and Nanci Fletcher) walking down the street until, from a distance, they are yelled at and verbally insulted by a local thug. Though the intro is different in the video and audio versions, both of them involve murder and end with the sound of a gunshot and a woman screaming. The final shot of the video features a cameo from rapper and actorTupac Shakur, prior to his association withDeath Row Records, as a SWAT sniper who takes out Ice Cube's character. Also appearing in the video as police detectives areJohn Amos andArt Evans. An alternate video exists which depicts a riot reminiscent of the1992 Los Angeles riots and Dr. Dre and Ice Cube performing on top of an overturned bus. This previously unreleased version was included in the 2000 documentaryDeath Row Uncut.
Although the song and video were highly popular, and debuted a short time after release of theOliver Stone filmNatural Born Killers, the song did not appear in the film or on its soundtrack.
It did, however, appear in the 2011 filmBridesmaids starringKristen Wiig.
In 1996, the song was covered byChrist Analogue for theelectro-industrial various artists compilationOperation Beatbox.[4]
In 2014, the song was covered by the Americanmetal bandConducting from the Grave and released as a free single. This was the final release from the band before their break-up.[5]
