N.W.A in legal bother with former manager

Straight Outta Compton charts the creation of the hugely successful hip-hop group N.W.A and its eventual demise.

The former manager of the pioneering rap group N.W.A has filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit over the movie Straight Outta Compton, claiming the summer hit portrays him as a "sleazy, dishonest thief."
Jerry Heller (pictured) is seeking $110 million dollars in damages in the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles against the film's producers, the artists who were the subjects of the biopic and others connected with the film.
Straight Outta Compton charts the creation of the hugely successful hip-hop group N.W.A and its eventual demise.
"Everyone who sees that movie would come away with a notion that Jerry Heller is a sleazy, dishonest thief and his behaviour was the reason the group broke up," Heller's attorney Michael Shapiro said.
"The movie is a huge global success and ironically, as the movie becomes more successful, the damages that befall Jerry become greater."
According to the lawsuit, Heller met rappers Eazy E, Dr. Dre and Ice Cube in the late 1980s and the trio, along with other rappers, subsequently formed N.W.A, an abbreviation of N***** Wit Attitudes.
Heller was the group's manager and was portrayed in the movie by actor Paul Giamatti.
The group, which broke up after the release of their last album in 1991, has helped launch the careers of Ice Cube and Dr. Dre and brought gangsta rap into the mainstream.
Shapiro said his client has had a tough time since the movie, which has earned nearly $200 million worldwide, came out portraying him as a villain.
"He's trying to continue in the music business but it's very hard with this hanging over his head," Shapiro said.
Heller is seeking $35 million in monetary damages, $75 million in exemplary damages and restitution of profits.