Jerry Heller’s family says he would have wanted the surviving members of N.W.A at his funeral, but they probably shouldn’t expect an appearance by Ice Cube.
The rapper-slash-actor told Detroit’s 107.5 over the weekend that he had “no emotions” regarding the passing of Heller, who managed N.W.A for four years, on Saturday.
“I didn’t have no emotions,” Cube said during the interview. “I’m glad I’m with DJ Yella, I’m glad I’m with MC Ren today, it’s only right. “I ain’t gonna pop no champagne but I ain’t gonna shed no tears either. It is what it is … He’s outta here. I’m not losing no sleep over Heller.”
In an interview with TMZ published on Wednesday, Heller’s nephew, Terry, said he hoped Cube, Dr. Dre and the rest of the hip-hop group would attend his uncle’s funeral, and that he died listening to N.W.A’s music.
Heller, who was memorably played by Paul Giamatti in last summer’s N.W.A biopic “Straight Outta Compton” — suffered a medical emergency while driving in Ventura County, California, and collided with another car.
After working with acts such as Elton John,
Heller also spent four years managing N.W.A, the controversial and influential gangsta rap group featuring Eazy-E, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, DJ Yella and MC Ren.
Ice Cube quit the supergroup in 1989 in the midst of a disagreement with Heller about royalties. Two years later, Dr. Dre had his own dispute with Heller and left Ruthless to form rival hip-hop label Death Row with Marion “Suge” Knight.
Last October, Heller filed a $110 million defamation suit against Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, NBCUniversal and others, disputing his portrayal in “Straight Outta Compton” as a “sleazy manager” who was “solely responsible for the demise of N.W.A,” according to his suit.
See Cube’s interview below.