1 00:00:06,673 --> 00:00:08,591 Rapper Easy-E has died in Los Angeles, 2 00:00:08,675 --> 00:00:10,510 - after a battle with AIDS. - [music] 3 00:00:10,593 --> 00:00:12,929 [narrator]: Eazy-E was the small-time drug dealer 4 00:00:13,054 --> 00:00:16,725 who made it big rapping about life on the streets. 5 00:00:16,891 --> 00:00:18,226 [Eazy-E]: Gangster rap. 6 00:00:18,351 --> 00:00:20,270 Just like, tellin' it real and not holdin' back. 7 00:00:20,395 --> 00:00:23,606 [Donnell]: He was an underdog who made it to the top. 8 00:00:23,773 --> 00:00:26,735 [narrator]: His incendiary music shocked America... 9 00:00:26,901 --> 00:00:28,778 While making millions. 10 00:00:28,903 --> 00:00:30,613 It was revolutionary, it was different. 11 00:00:30,739 --> 00:00:32,657 It was very controversial. 12 00:00:32,782 --> 00:00:34,284 [Big Hutch]: It was like Beetle Mania. 13 00:00:34,409 --> 00:00:36,786 I'm talkin' like kids crawlin' all over us. 14 00:00:36,911 --> 00:00:40,623 [narrator]: But his career was cut short by a sudden illness. 15 00:00:40,790 --> 00:00:43,126 [Big Hutch]: We didn't even know it was that serious. 16 00:00:43,251 --> 00:00:44,502 [Tracy]: People were sayin', like, 17 00:00:44,669 --> 00:00:46,379 "Oh, you heard Eazy-E's in the hospital! 18 00:00:46,504 --> 00:00:47,756 They sayin' he has AIDS." 19 00:00:47,881 --> 00:00:49,758 [narrator]: When he died at just 30 years old, 20 00:00:49,883 --> 00:00:52,385 the shockwaves were quickly followed by rumors 21 00:00:52,510 --> 00:00:54,846 and conspiracy theories. 22 00:00:55,013 --> 00:00:58,224 Everybody's still questioning things 20 plus years later. 23 00:01:00,852 --> 00:01:04,147 [Dr. Hunter]: Eazy-E was a controversial figure in life, 24 00:01:04,272 --> 00:01:05,857 and in his death. 25 00:01:05,982 --> 00:01:08,902 He died so suddenly that it aroused suspicions 26 00:01:09,069 --> 00:01:10,737 from friends and family. 27 00:01:10,904 --> 00:01:14,115 Casting a shadow of doubt over his final days. 28 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:19,204 I'm going to get to the truth of how exactly Eazy-E died. 29 00:01:19,329 --> 00:01:24,542 [music] 30 00:01:26,669 --> 00:01:28,296 [narrator]: World-renowned medical examiner 31 00:01:28,421 --> 00:01:31,007 and forensic pathologist, Dr. Michael Hunter, 32 00:01:31,174 --> 00:01:33,676 has performed thousands of autopsies. 33 00:01:33,843 --> 00:01:36,012 Collaborating closely with law enforcement 34 00:01:36,137 --> 00:01:38,264 and other forensic specialists. 35 00:01:38,431 --> 00:01:41,559 His pivotal role in investigating suspicious cases, 36 00:01:41,726 --> 00:01:44,312 has revealed the truth behind mysterious deaths 37 00:01:44,479 --> 00:01:46,105 for over 20 years. 38 00:01:50,151 --> 00:01:52,695 Eazy-E's death certificate says he died from 39 00:01:52,862 --> 00:01:57,075 Pneumocystis Pneumonia after contracting AIDS. 40 00:01:57,242 --> 00:01:59,661 AIDS is caused by the HIV virus. 41 00:01:59,828 --> 00:02:02,205 And today, HIV is a manageable illness, 42 00:02:02,372 --> 00:02:06,000 with a life expectancy averaging 56 years. 43 00:02:06,126 --> 00:02:08,753 But Eazy died at the age of 30. 44 00:02:08,878 --> 00:02:11,965 And no autopsy was conducted, so I'm going to study 45 00:02:12,090 --> 00:02:14,759 Eazy's medical history in order to find out why 46 00:02:14,884 --> 00:02:19,222 this iconic figure died so tragically young. 47 00:02:19,389 --> 00:02:22,600 [police sirens] 48 00:02:22,767 --> 00:02:25,395 [narrator]: December, 1994. 49 00:02:25,562 --> 00:02:28,231 The Tunnel Club, New York City. 50 00:02:28,398 --> 00:02:31,776 [music] 51 00:02:31,943 --> 00:02:33,820 [narrator]: Four months before his death, 52 00:02:33,945 --> 00:02:36,573 the Godfather of LA's gangster rap scene 53 00:02:36,739 --> 00:02:41,119 shows up at one of Manhattan's hottest night clubs. 54 00:02:41,286 --> 00:02:45,248 It's been over three years since his band, NWA, broke up. 55 00:02:45,373 --> 00:02:48,626 But Eazy's in town to promote other artists on his label, 56 00:02:48,751 --> 00:02:51,004 Ruthless Records. 57 00:02:51,170 --> 00:02:52,630 He had a dual role. 58 00:02:52,755 --> 00:02:56,759 He was a artist, but he was a business man first. 59 00:02:56,885 --> 00:02:59,971 [crowd murmuring] 60 00:03:00,138 --> 00:03:02,390 [narrator]: But in the Tunnel Club's VIP area, 61 00:03:02,557 --> 00:03:05,101 Eazy bumps into another West Coast rapper. 62 00:03:05,268 --> 00:03:09,606 His ex band mate, Ice Cube. 63 00:03:09,731 --> 00:03:13,109 It's been five years since Ice Cube walked out on Eazy, 64 00:03:13,234 --> 00:03:17,614 and a war of words has been raging ever since. 65 00:03:17,739 --> 00:03:19,616 [Ebie]: You know, everybody expected it to kind of 66 00:03:19,741 --> 00:03:21,242 be a bad run-in. 67 00:03:21,367 --> 00:03:24,037 Because they hadn't spoken to each other 68 00:03:24,204 --> 00:03:25,830 in a really long time. 69 00:03:25,997 --> 00:03:27,999 Couple months ago, we had Ice Cube on the show. 70 00:03:32,754 --> 00:03:35,590 [Ebie]: They had done diss records towards one another, 71 00:03:35,715 --> 00:03:38,009 and a whole lot had kinda gone down. 72 00:03:38,134 --> 00:03:40,386 So, I think everybody was pretty much on edge 73 00:03:40,511 --> 00:03:43,264 with them running into one another. 74 00:03:43,389 --> 00:03:46,351 It actually was the complete opposite. 75 00:03:46,476 --> 00:03:49,312 [narrator]: Eazy wants to bury the hatchet. 76 00:03:49,437 --> 00:03:50,688 [Big Hutch]: He was like, 77 00:03:50,855 --> 00:03:52,398 "Well, I wanna put NWA back together." 78 00:03:52,523 --> 00:03:55,526 You know, put the whole band back together, basically. 79 00:03:55,652 --> 00:03:58,655 [narrator]: Gangster rap is now big business. 80 00:03:58,821 --> 00:04:03,576 And Ice Cube agrees that the time is right for a reunion. 81 00:04:03,701 --> 00:04:05,912 If NWA had reformed in Eazy-E's lifetime, 82 00:04:06,079 --> 00:04:09,082 it would have been the biggest phenomena in popular music. 83 00:04:13,878 --> 00:04:15,588 Just four months before his death, 84 00:04:15,713 --> 00:04:18,591 Eazy appeared to be fit and healthy. 85 00:04:18,758 --> 00:04:21,094 He was not showing any outward symptoms 86 00:04:21,261 --> 00:04:24,222 commonly associated with AIDS, such as skin rashes, 87 00:04:24,389 --> 00:04:27,350 or dramatic weight loss. 88 00:04:27,475 --> 00:04:30,436 So, I wanna know more about Eazy's past, 89 00:04:30,603 --> 00:04:32,647 to see if there was any sign that he was living 90 00:04:32,814 --> 00:04:35,942 with a serious illness. 91 00:04:36,067 --> 00:04:37,610 [music] 92 00:04:37,777 --> 00:04:42,699 [narrator]: Eric "Eazy-E" Wright was born on September 7th, 1964. 93 00:04:42,824 --> 00:04:46,828 In Compton, a part of South Central, Los Angeles. 94 00:04:46,995 --> 00:04:48,788 [Donnell]: His father worked at the post office, 95 00:04:48,913 --> 00:04:50,206 and his mother was an administrator 96 00:04:50,373 --> 00:04:51,916 at the local high school. 97 00:04:52,083 --> 00:04:55,586 So, he comes from a background of not the extreme poverty 98 00:04:55,753 --> 00:04:57,839 that you might expect. 99 00:04:57,964 --> 00:04:59,757 [Arabian Prince]: You had two sides of Compton. 100 00:04:59,924 --> 00:05:02,927 You had a nice side, more neighborhood, family. 101 00:05:03,052 --> 00:05:06,556 But you also had this gang side, a hood side. 102 00:05:06,723 --> 00:05:11,102 [music] 103 00:05:11,227 --> 00:05:13,104 [narrator]: Eazy grew up watching 104 00:05:13,229 --> 00:05:15,189 his neighborhood transform. 105 00:05:15,314 --> 00:05:16,899 [Donnell]: Kids stopped playing outside. 106 00:05:17,025 --> 00:05:18,443 That's what I noticed. 107 00:05:18,568 --> 00:05:21,321 Because gang violence was epidemic. 108 00:05:21,446 --> 00:05:23,990 [Tracy]: You were affiliated with whatever the gang was 109 00:05:24,157 --> 00:05:27,201 that was for that neighborhood. Whether you were in it or not. 110 00:05:27,326 --> 00:05:29,787 So, Eazy was attached to a gang, 111 00:05:29,954 --> 00:05:33,333 but he wasn't in a gang, type of thing. 112 00:05:33,458 --> 00:05:36,627 [narrator]: At the age of 16, Eazy quit high school 113 00:05:36,753 --> 00:05:39,589 with very few prospects. 114 00:05:39,756 --> 00:05:41,507 [Donnell]: If you're a tenth grade drop-out, 115 00:05:41,674 --> 00:05:43,051 and you're Black in Los Angeles, 116 00:05:43,176 --> 00:05:45,178 there weren't a lot of opportunities back there. 117 00:05:45,303 --> 00:05:47,722 [music] 118 00:05:47,847 --> 00:05:50,975 [record scratch] 119 00:05:51,142 --> 00:05:53,811 [narrator]: But for a budding entrepreneur like Eazy, 120 00:05:53,936 --> 00:05:55,938 one business was booming. 121 00:05:56,064 --> 00:05:57,982 Crack cocaine. 122 00:05:58,149 --> 00:05:59,942 [Big Hutch]: In the '80s, bein' a drug dealer 123 00:06:00,109 --> 00:06:03,780 was like bein' a Wall Street stock broker. 124 00:06:03,905 --> 00:06:07,367 You know, because you make money 24/7, 125 00:06:07,533 --> 00:06:10,328 and the money is definitely addicting. 126 00:06:10,495 --> 00:06:13,122 [narrator]: Eazy's first career choice was lucrative. 127 00:06:13,247 --> 00:06:14,540 [police sirens] 128 00:06:14,707 --> 00:06:15,958 [footsteps] 129 00:06:16,084 --> 00:06:18,419 [narrator]: But the risks were high. 130 00:06:18,586 --> 00:06:22,298 One of his homeboys that was really close to him got killed. 131 00:06:22,423 --> 00:06:25,301 [narrator]: Already a father by the age of 22, 132 00:06:25,426 --> 00:06:29,055 Eazy knew his future as a drug dealer was limited. 133 00:06:29,180 --> 00:06:32,100 Eazy wanted to stop doing what he was doing, 134 00:06:32,266 --> 00:06:34,519 and do something a little bit more legitimate. 135 00:06:34,644 --> 00:06:36,562 [music] 136 00:06:36,687 --> 00:06:38,606 [narrator]: For LA's Black youth, 137 00:06:38,731 --> 00:06:41,025 a new opportunity was emerging. 138 00:06:41,192 --> 00:06:42,527 Rap music. 139 00:06:42,693 --> 00:06:44,237 [Big Hutch]: When hip-hop came along, 140 00:06:44,403 --> 00:06:47,240 we didn't really have a voice on the West like that. 141 00:06:47,406 --> 00:06:49,784 Eazy looked at the game, and he thought, 142 00:06:49,909 --> 00:06:51,911 "Okay, there's something about this music 143 00:06:52,036 --> 00:06:54,997 that can change our lives." 144 00:06:55,123 --> 00:06:57,208 [narrator]: With money made from drug dealing, 145 00:06:57,375 --> 00:06:59,418 Eazy set up Ruthless Records, 146 00:06:59,585 --> 00:07:02,255 and started signing local artists. 147 00:07:02,380 --> 00:07:04,757 He had the means to do it, he had the money, 148 00:07:04,924 --> 00:07:07,969 and most of all, the vision. 149 00:07:08,094 --> 00:07:10,221 [narrator]: But it was when one of his acts walked out 150 00:07:10,388 --> 00:07:11,681 on a recording session 151 00:07:11,848 --> 00:07:13,933 that forced Eazy behind the mic. 152 00:07:14,100 --> 00:07:17,228 And changed the course of rap music. 153 00:07:17,395 --> 00:07:18,646 Eazy wasn't a rapper. 154 00:07:18,813 --> 00:07:21,023 No, he never professed to be a rapper. 155 00:07:21,190 --> 00:07:22,525 [Eazy]: Want me to scream? 156 00:07:22,650 --> 00:07:24,777 To put out hits! 157 00:07:24,902 --> 00:07:27,613 [Donnell]: And he did it so poorly, so offbeat, 158 00:07:27,738 --> 00:07:29,866 that he had to be punched in, line by line, 159 00:07:30,032 --> 00:07:32,160 - to make him sound credible. - [Eazy]: Like that. 160 00:07:32,285 --> 00:07:34,704 Now before I turn up... Ah, [bleep], man. 161 00:07:34,871 --> 00:07:37,999 Now before I turn up... Ah, [bleep], ahh!! 162 00:07:38,124 --> 00:07:39,584 [narrator]: The struggle paid off. 163 00:07:39,709 --> 00:07:42,295 Eazy's natural charisma made first single, 164 00:07:42,461 --> 00:07:45,548 "Boyz-n-the-Hood", an underground sensation. 165 00:07:45,673 --> 00:07:47,508 [Arabian Prince]: Once he heard himself on the track, 166 00:07:47,633 --> 00:07:49,635 he was like, "Oh, yeah. I can do this." 167 00:07:49,760 --> 00:07:51,095 [Donnell]: He was a street outlaw. 168 00:07:51,262 --> 00:07:53,431 And that sort of notoriety led to the development 169 00:07:53,556 --> 00:07:55,057 of, like, a gangster superhero. 170 00:07:55,183 --> 00:07:56,642 [gun cocking] 171 00:07:56,767 --> 00:07:59,145 [narrator]: For his next record, the musical gangster was joined 172 00:07:59,312 --> 00:08:01,647 by a posse of local talent. 173 00:08:01,814 --> 00:08:03,816 Friend and producer, Dr. Dre, 174 00:08:03,941 --> 00:08:06,152 pulled in a group of aspiring rappers, 175 00:08:06,319 --> 00:08:10,031 including young prodigy, Ice Cube. 176 00:08:10,156 --> 00:08:12,074 They took a lot of different talents, 177 00:08:12,241 --> 00:08:14,619 and melded them into an entity that hadn't existed 178 00:08:14,785 --> 00:08:16,162 anywhere in hip-hop. 179 00:08:16,287 --> 00:08:18,164 [interviewer]: What, what is your group now? 180 00:08:18,331 --> 00:08:19,582 NWA. 181 00:08:19,707 --> 00:08:21,125 [interviewer]: And what does that stand for? 182 00:08:21,292 --> 00:08:22,502 [bleep] With Attitudes. 183 00:08:22,627 --> 00:08:24,337 ♪ Eazy is his name, and his boys come ♪ 184 00:08:24,504 --> 00:08:26,297 ♪ Straight outta Compton! Is a brother that'll... ♪ 185 00:08:26,464 --> 00:08:28,341 [narrator]: Debut album, Straight Outta Compton, 186 00:08:28,507 --> 00:08:30,593 exploded onto the music scene. 187 00:08:30,718 --> 00:08:32,011 [Eazy-E]: ♪ Raises hell ♪ 188 00:08:32,136 --> 00:08:33,804 ♪ and if ever I get caught, I make bail ♪ 189 00:08:33,930 --> 00:08:35,223 ♪ See, I don't give a -- ♪ 190 00:08:35,389 --> 00:08:38,392 [Tracy]: Oh, my God. Like, did they really just say that? 191 00:08:38,559 --> 00:08:40,311 [Eazy-E]: ♪ Drivin' But don't know where ♪ 192 00:08:40,478 --> 00:08:41,771 ♪ the -- he's goin' just rollin ♪' 193 00:08:41,896 --> 00:08:43,481 [Donnell]: It sounds unlike anything that was was 194 00:08:43,648 --> 00:08:46,275 ever on the radio, wasn't on the radio, believe me. 195 00:08:46,400 --> 00:08:47,652 [narrator]: Their explicit lyrics about 196 00:08:47,818 --> 00:08:50,154 sex, violence, and police brutality 197 00:08:50,279 --> 00:08:53,324 ensured that NWA didn't get radio play. 198 00:08:53,491 --> 00:08:57,286 But the album still sold over three million copies. 199 00:08:57,453 --> 00:09:00,998 That's the way it goes in the city of Compton, boy. 200 00:09:01,165 --> 00:09:05,002 Basically, gangster rap I guess is like, tellin' it real, 201 00:09:05,169 --> 00:09:06,546 not holdin' back. 202 00:09:06,712 --> 00:09:10,174 Givin' up, you know, the reality from the street point of view. 203 00:09:10,341 --> 00:09:12,051 [Edie]: It was shocking, it was revolutionary, 204 00:09:12,176 --> 00:09:14,971 it was different. It was very controversial. 205 00:09:15,137 --> 00:09:18,516 [narrator]: So controversial, that the FBI issued a warning 206 00:09:18,683 --> 00:09:20,142 to the record label. 207 00:09:20,268 --> 00:09:23,813 For Eazy, it was free publicity. 208 00:09:23,938 --> 00:09:26,482 "All press is good press." 209 00:09:26,607 --> 00:09:29,694 That's what Eazy said. 210 00:09:29,819 --> 00:09:32,905 [narrator]: NWA's second album for Ruthless Records 211 00:09:33,072 --> 00:09:37,743 was the first gangster rap LP to hit the Billboard Number One. 212 00:09:37,868 --> 00:09:39,370 They were making ten million dollars 213 00:09:39,537 --> 00:09:41,539 in months at the height of all these records. 214 00:09:41,664 --> 00:09:42,915 [music] 215 00:09:43,082 --> 00:09:44,292 [gun cocking] 216 00:09:46,419 --> 00:09:49,297 [music] 217 00:09:49,422 --> 00:09:51,424 [narrator]: December, 1994. 218 00:09:51,591 --> 00:09:53,634 Topanga Canyon, Los Angeles. 219 00:09:53,801 --> 00:09:57,430 Three and a half months before Eazy's death. 220 00:09:57,596 --> 00:10:01,058 Eazy is back home after his promotional trip. 221 00:10:01,225 --> 00:10:02,560 [coughing] 222 00:10:02,685 --> 00:10:04,437 [narrator]: But he appears to have picked up a cold 223 00:10:04,604 --> 00:10:06,814 - while in New York. - [coughing] 224 00:10:06,981 --> 00:10:08,941 [Dr. Hunter]: There's evidence of Eazy's cough 225 00:10:09,066 --> 00:10:13,154 in a recorded interview he gave in early 1995. 226 00:10:13,279 --> 00:10:14,905 [Eazy-E]: It's all about know-how, 227 00:10:15,031 --> 00:10:16,449 and everything else. Timing... 228 00:10:16,574 --> 00:10:17,867 [throat clearing] 229 00:10:17,992 --> 00:10:20,494 - You know, I... - [coughing] 230 00:10:20,620 --> 00:10:21,954 Marketing, promotion. 231 00:10:22,079 --> 00:10:24,540 [coughing] [unintelligible] 232 00:10:24,665 --> 00:10:28,794 This simple cough could be the first sign he contracted HIV. 233 00:10:28,919 --> 00:10:31,630 The virus that causes AIDS. 234 00:10:31,756 --> 00:10:35,468 HIV, or Human Immunodeficiency Virus, 235 00:10:35,634 --> 00:10:37,595 attacks the body's white blood cells, 236 00:10:37,762 --> 00:10:41,766 which are a vital part of the immune system. 237 00:10:41,891 --> 00:10:45,186 The virus gets inside the cell, makes copies of itself, 238 00:10:45,353 --> 00:10:48,648 and then kills the white blood cells. 239 00:10:48,814 --> 00:10:52,610 The new HIV copies then find more healthy white blood cells, 240 00:10:52,735 --> 00:10:56,781 and continue this destructive cycle. 241 00:10:56,947 --> 00:10:59,325 When the HIV virus is first contracted, 242 00:10:59,492 --> 00:11:02,036 the patient will typically experience a bought of 243 00:11:02,203 --> 00:11:06,374 flu-like symptoms, and this may last a week or two. 244 00:11:06,540 --> 00:11:07,708 [coughing] 245 00:11:07,875 --> 00:11:10,002 [Tracy]: Eric told me that he didn't feel well. 246 00:11:10,127 --> 00:11:12,463 What he was explaining to me sounded just kinda like 247 00:11:12,630 --> 00:11:16,342 flu and cold symptoms. 248 00:11:16,509 --> 00:11:18,511 [Dr. Hunter]: However, after this initial sickness, 249 00:11:18,677 --> 00:11:21,097 the virus typically becomes latent. 250 00:11:21,222 --> 00:11:23,307 Living in the body and continuing to damage 251 00:11:23,432 --> 00:11:25,559 the immune system for up to ten years, 252 00:11:25,726 --> 00:11:28,896 without producing additional symptoms. 253 00:11:29,063 --> 00:11:31,607 The fact that Eazy was dead just months later, 254 00:11:31,732 --> 00:11:33,401 indicates that his flu-like symptoms 255 00:11:33,526 --> 00:11:37,196 were most likely a result of his compromised immune system, 256 00:11:37,363 --> 00:11:41,617 and he'd been living with undiagnosed HIV for years. 257 00:11:46,622 --> 00:11:49,458 [narrator]: February 1st, 1995. 258 00:11:49,583 --> 00:11:53,629 Topanga Canyon, Los Angeles. 259 00:11:53,754 --> 00:11:56,173 Eight weeks before Eazy's death. 260 00:11:56,298 --> 00:11:58,467 He makes a call to Tracy Jernagin, 261 00:11:58,634 --> 00:12:03,305 the mother of his three year old daughter, Ebie. 262 00:12:03,472 --> 00:12:06,475 [Tracy]: We weren't in a relationship anymore, 263 00:12:06,600 --> 00:12:10,396 but it didn't matter, he was still my best friend. 264 00:12:10,521 --> 00:12:13,816 We were still co-parenting. 265 00:12:13,941 --> 00:12:16,318 And he was gonna pick up Ebie for the weekend, 266 00:12:16,444 --> 00:12:18,696 you know, he was gonna keep her. 267 00:12:18,863 --> 00:12:21,866 [narrator]: But Eazy is still feeling sick. 268 00:12:22,032 --> 00:12:23,200 [coughing] 269 00:12:23,325 --> 00:12:24,744 [Tracy]: He wouldn't have just said, 270 00:12:24,910 --> 00:12:26,579 "I'm gonna go to the hospital." You know? 271 00:12:26,704 --> 00:12:30,040 He definitely was one of those type of people that was, 272 00:12:30,207 --> 00:12:33,919 "I'm a strong, healthy guy. You know, I'll kick this." 273 00:12:34,086 --> 00:12:35,379 And I was like, "Okay, well, 274 00:12:35,504 --> 00:12:37,256 call me and let me know" type of thing. 275 00:12:37,381 --> 00:12:39,049 And he was joking again, and he said, 276 00:12:39,216 --> 00:12:41,469 "Don't worry, even if I die, I'll call you." 277 00:12:41,594 --> 00:12:42,887 And you know, that, 278 00:12:43,053 --> 00:12:45,264 that has always just stuck with me. 279 00:12:45,389 --> 00:12:47,933 [music] 280 00:12:48,100 --> 00:12:50,811 [coughing] 281 00:12:53,355 --> 00:12:56,150 Despite having symptoms for over four weeks, 282 00:12:56,275 --> 00:12:58,068 Eazy didn't go to the hospital. 283 00:12:58,235 --> 00:13:00,613 And I found something in his medical history 284 00:13:00,779 --> 00:13:04,241 that explains why he didn't consider his illness unusual. 285 00:13:04,366 --> 00:13:07,286 He had a history of bronchitis. 286 00:13:07,453 --> 00:13:10,247 I wanna know, did Eazy's bronchitis 287 00:13:10,372 --> 00:13:12,166 play a role in his death? 288 00:13:12,291 --> 00:13:15,628 [coughing] 289 00:13:20,090 --> 00:13:22,218 [narrator]: On March 26th, 1995, 290 00:13:22,384 --> 00:13:25,721 rap icon, Eazy-E, died at the age of 30. 291 00:13:25,846 --> 00:13:30,434 From pneumonia caused by the AIDS virus. 292 00:13:30,559 --> 00:13:32,812 Now, world-renowned forensic pathologist, 293 00:13:32,937 --> 00:13:38,067 Dr. Michael Hunter, is investigating his death. 294 00:13:38,234 --> 00:13:41,862 Eazy had flu-like symptoms in the months prior to his death. 295 00:13:41,987 --> 00:13:45,074 I suspect he'd been living with HIV virus for years 296 00:13:45,199 --> 00:13:47,201 without knowing it, and his immune system 297 00:13:47,326 --> 00:13:49,662 had become severely compromised. 298 00:13:49,787 --> 00:13:51,664 The reason he had not been diagnosed 299 00:13:51,789 --> 00:13:55,251 with the virus earlier, could be due to another 300 00:13:55,376 --> 00:13:59,046 chronic condition: bronchitis. 301 00:13:59,213 --> 00:14:01,006 [Big Hutch]: We always knew Eric had bronchitis, 302 00:14:01,173 --> 00:14:02,967 he wasn't shy about that. He would say, 303 00:14:03,092 --> 00:14:04,802 "Yeah, my Bronchitis is bothering me, man. 304 00:14:04,927 --> 00:14:08,764 I gotta go sit down somewhere, I barely can breathe." 305 00:14:08,889 --> 00:14:11,100 [Ebie]: My father's grandfather passed away 306 00:14:11,225 --> 00:14:12,768 from chronic bronchitis. 307 00:14:12,893 --> 00:14:16,522 So, that is something that runs in our family. 308 00:14:16,647 --> 00:14:19,275 I wonder whether Eazy's history of bronchitis 309 00:14:19,400 --> 00:14:22,945 masks the symptoms that are also common with HIV. 310 00:14:26,448 --> 00:14:29,618 [narrator]: February 19th, 1995. 311 00:14:29,743 --> 00:14:31,579 Audio Achievements recording studio, 312 00:14:31,704 --> 00:14:33,330 Los Angeles. 313 00:14:33,497 --> 00:14:36,125 Six weeks before Eazy's death. 314 00:14:36,292 --> 00:14:39,295 Eazy is working on tracks for a double album titled 315 00:14:39,420 --> 00:14:42,089 Temporary Insanity. 316 00:14:42,214 --> 00:14:44,508 [coughing] 317 00:14:44,675 --> 00:14:48,095 [Tracy]: That was the first time that Eazy had got 318 00:14:48,220 --> 00:14:51,432 really taken by this cough, and was having 319 00:14:51,557 --> 00:14:53,017 some breathing issues. 320 00:14:53,142 --> 00:14:55,561 [coughing] 321 00:14:55,686 --> 00:14:57,396 [Tracy]: It scared them, because it was something 322 00:14:57,563 --> 00:14:59,732 that they had never really seen before. 323 00:14:59,857 --> 00:15:04,903 [music] 324 00:15:07,072 --> 00:15:08,866 [narrator]: Eazy is taken to the ER, 325 00:15:09,033 --> 00:15:10,576 at Norwalk Community Hospital. 326 00:15:12,661 --> 00:15:14,038 [Tracy]: When he got there, 327 00:15:14,204 --> 00:15:17,750 they pretty much diagnosed him with bronchitis. 328 00:15:17,875 --> 00:15:21,086 And sent him home. Simple as that. 329 00:15:21,253 --> 00:15:24,214 There was not any other medical history 330 00:15:24,340 --> 00:15:26,884 to make a doctor look further than 331 00:15:27,009 --> 00:15:31,430 just what they saw on the surface. 332 00:15:31,597 --> 00:15:34,183 Bronchitis is characterized by a recurring cough, 333 00:15:34,308 --> 00:15:37,102 lasting for periods of over three months at a time. 334 00:15:39,813 --> 00:15:43,442 Bronchitis is usually brought on by the same viruses that cause 335 00:15:43,567 --> 00:15:46,612 the common cold, or flu infections. 336 00:15:46,737 --> 00:15:48,656 The tissue in the bronchial tubes, 337 00:15:48,781 --> 00:15:50,950 which carry oxygen to and from the lungs, 338 00:15:51,075 --> 00:15:54,495 become enflamed. And this creates an increase 339 00:15:54,662 --> 00:16:00,376 in the production of mucus, resulting in a persistent cough. 340 00:16:00,501 --> 00:16:03,087 People with HIV have a damaged immune system, 341 00:16:03,253 --> 00:16:05,631 and will experience greater vulnerability to 342 00:16:05,756 --> 00:16:07,883 illnesses like bronchitis. 343 00:16:08,008 --> 00:16:11,220 But Eazy's lung infection was likely attributed 344 00:16:11,345 --> 00:16:13,305 to something else. 345 00:16:13,472 --> 00:16:16,058 I've discovered he also smoked marijuana. 346 00:16:22,356 --> 00:16:24,525 [narrator]: In December, 1992, 347 00:16:24,650 --> 00:16:28,779 ex NWA producer, Dr. Dre, released his first solo album 348 00:16:28,904 --> 00:16:32,991 on Death Row Records, Eazy's new rivals. 349 00:16:33,117 --> 00:16:36,495 The Chronic, which opens with a track dissing Eazy, 350 00:16:36,662 --> 00:16:39,164 took the pop world by storm. 351 00:16:39,289 --> 00:16:41,583 ♪ Don't even respect yo ass, that's why it's time ♪ 352 00:16:41,709 --> 00:16:44,211 ♪ for the Doctor to check your ass ♪ 353 00:16:44,378 --> 00:16:47,005 ♪ used to be my homie, used to be my ace ♪ 354 00:16:47,172 --> 00:16:48,632 They made fun of him 355 00:16:48,799 --> 00:16:51,343 on the biggest records of the decade. 356 00:16:51,468 --> 00:16:53,387 And he's just been portrayed as this sort of 357 00:16:53,512 --> 00:16:55,556 - ghetto clown figure. - ♪ Don't think I forgot ♪ 358 00:16:55,723 --> 00:16:58,225 No one saw him as the creative equal of Dr. Dre, 359 00:16:58,350 --> 00:17:00,352 and he certainly didn't have the numbers that were matching 360 00:17:00,477 --> 00:17:02,855 in terms of sales. 361 00:17:02,980 --> 00:17:06,108 [narrator]: Eazy's bitter feud with his one-time best friend, 362 00:17:06,233 --> 00:17:09,028 marked a change in his behavior. 363 00:17:09,153 --> 00:17:13,157 [music] 364 00:17:13,282 --> 00:17:16,368 [Tracy]: He didn't smoke weed early on in his life. 365 00:17:19,788 --> 00:17:23,041 But then in those later years, he really became 366 00:17:23,208 --> 00:17:25,669 an avid weed smoker. 367 00:17:25,836 --> 00:17:27,880 He could smoke like a choo-choo train. 368 00:17:31,550 --> 00:17:33,510 [Dr. Papadapoulos]: People in his life, they were kind of 369 00:17:33,635 --> 00:17:35,137 leaving him behind, they were kind of 370 00:17:35,304 --> 00:17:37,848 having more success than he is, so that's gonna have an impact. 371 00:17:37,973 --> 00:17:41,852 And I think medicating through marijuana, or alcohol, 372 00:17:42,019 --> 00:17:43,353 or drugs, or anything else, 373 00:17:43,479 --> 00:17:46,732 becomes that very dysfunctional way to cope. 374 00:17:46,857 --> 00:17:49,735 [music] 375 00:17:54,073 --> 00:17:58,452 To start smoking as much weed as he was smoking, 376 00:17:58,619 --> 00:18:02,706 that definitely to me could have contributed to 377 00:18:02,873 --> 00:18:06,001 aggravating and bringing out the bronchitis. 378 00:18:09,171 --> 00:18:10,589 [Dr. Hunter]: Eazy's smoking habit, 379 00:18:10,714 --> 00:18:13,926 plus a history of bronchitis, may explain why his HIV 380 00:18:14,051 --> 00:18:17,012 lay undetected for so long. 381 00:18:17,179 --> 00:18:19,264 But I've discovered his smoking may have had 382 00:18:19,431 --> 00:18:21,850 another adverse effect. 383 00:18:21,975 --> 00:18:24,436 A recent study shows that HIV patients who 384 00:18:24,603 --> 00:18:28,106 smoke marijuana are more likely to suffer pulmonary diseases, 385 00:18:28,232 --> 00:18:30,984 and chronic bronchitis, than those who don't. 386 00:18:31,151 --> 00:18:35,405 So, not only did Eazy's smoking hide the symptoms of HIV, 387 00:18:35,531 --> 00:18:39,243 it may have also inadvertently accelerated its effects. 388 00:18:44,206 --> 00:18:46,667 [narrator]: Late February, 1995. 389 00:18:46,792 --> 00:18:50,462 Topanga Canyon, Los Angeles. 390 00:18:50,629 --> 00:18:54,133 Four weeks before his death. 391 00:18:54,258 --> 00:18:56,677 Eazy's current girlfriend, Tomica Woods, 392 00:18:56,802 --> 00:18:59,471 has moved into his house, and is helping him recover 393 00:18:59,638 --> 00:19:02,057 from his bronchitis. 394 00:19:02,182 --> 00:19:05,227 Tomica and Eazy already have a child together, 395 00:19:05,352 --> 00:19:08,647 and she's pregnant with their second. 396 00:19:08,814 --> 00:19:12,234 Five days after his visit to Norwalk Hospital, 397 00:19:12,359 --> 00:19:14,778 he needs medical attention again. 398 00:19:14,903 --> 00:19:18,866 [music] 399 00:19:19,032 --> 00:19:20,325 [Big Hutch]: When he ended up 400 00:19:20,492 --> 00:19:21,702 getting admitted to another hospital, 401 00:19:21,869 --> 00:19:23,579 we thought it was just to run a test. 402 00:19:23,704 --> 00:19:25,747 We didn't even know it was that serious. 403 00:19:32,296 --> 00:19:35,340 [narrator]: February 24th, 1995. 404 00:19:35,465 --> 00:19:39,011 Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles. 405 00:19:39,136 --> 00:19:41,263 Eazy checks himself into the hospital, 406 00:19:41,388 --> 00:19:44,516 under an assumed name. 407 00:19:44,641 --> 00:19:47,686 He's administered antibiotics for his bronchitis, 408 00:19:47,853 --> 00:19:49,563 and is kept under observation 409 00:19:49,730 --> 00:19:52,816 while doctors run a full set of blood tests. 410 00:19:52,941 --> 00:19:56,069 [music] 411 00:19:56,236 --> 00:19:59,615 [narrator]: The results are earth-shattering. 412 00:19:59,740 --> 00:20:03,994 He did have bronchitis. So it wasn't a misdiagnosis. 413 00:20:04,119 --> 00:20:07,372 It was just that, apparently, there was more going on. 414 00:20:12,836 --> 00:20:15,213 Rapper Eazy-E has died in Los Angeles, 415 00:20:15,213 --> 00:20:16,798 after a battle with AIDS. 416 00:20:16,924 --> 00:20:18,634 [narrator]: World-renowned medical examiner, 417 00:20:18,759 --> 00:20:21,428 Dr. Michael Hunter, is investigating the death 418 00:20:21,553 --> 00:20:25,849 - of celebrated rapper, Eazy-E. - [Dr. Hunter]: I've discovered 419 00:20:26,016 --> 00:20:28,602 that Eazy-E had a history of bronchitis. 420 00:20:28,769 --> 00:20:30,395 [coughing] 421 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:32,356 [Dr. Hunter]: And the similarity of symptoms 422 00:20:32,481 --> 00:20:36,777 between that and an early HIV-associated infection, 423 00:20:36,944 --> 00:20:39,029 may explain why he lived so long 424 00:20:39,196 --> 00:20:41,448 without knowing he was HIV positive. 425 00:20:45,369 --> 00:20:48,538 [narrator]: February 25th, 1995. 426 00:20:48,664 --> 00:20:52,417 Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles. 427 00:20:52,584 --> 00:20:56,129 29 days before Eazy's death. 428 00:20:56,255 --> 00:21:01,718 His bronchitis is so bad, he's struggling to breathe. 429 00:21:01,885 --> 00:21:04,930 But results from a blood test show something far more 430 00:21:05,097 --> 00:21:08,850 concerning than a lung infection. 431 00:21:08,976 --> 00:21:14,815 [Tracy]: That's where they said he was HIV positive. 432 00:21:14,940 --> 00:21:18,694 He must have been genuinely super shocked. 433 00:21:18,819 --> 00:21:21,989 I know he had no idea that that was a possibility. 434 00:21:24,825 --> 00:21:27,077 That would be the last thing that we'd be thinkin' about. 435 00:21:27,202 --> 00:21:29,454 Like, oh, HIV/AIDS? 436 00:21:29,579 --> 00:21:31,915 That don't happen on this side of the tracks. 437 00:21:37,254 --> 00:21:40,590 Eazy was diagnosed 11 years after the HIV virus 438 00:21:40,757 --> 00:21:42,592 was first identified. 439 00:21:42,759 --> 00:21:46,305 But in 1995, there was still a lot of misunderstandings 440 00:21:46,471 --> 00:21:48,849 around the disease. 441 00:21:48,974 --> 00:21:51,309 [Donnell]: Eazy was so surrounded by these ideas 442 00:21:51,435 --> 00:21:52,769 of misinformation. 443 00:21:52,936 --> 00:21:54,813 I mean, there was no difference in people's mind 444 00:21:54,980 --> 00:21:57,899 between HIV and AIDS. 445 00:21:58,025 --> 00:21:59,943 [Dr. Hunter]: HIV is the name of the virus, 446 00:22:00,068 --> 00:22:03,113 and AIDS, or Autoimmune Deficiency Syndrome, 447 00:22:03,280 --> 00:22:05,782 is a term that is applied once the virus has done 448 00:22:05,907 --> 00:22:07,826 so much damage to the immune system, 449 00:22:07,993 --> 00:22:11,830 that the body can no longer fight off common infections. 450 00:22:11,955 --> 00:22:16,960 Eazy was initially diagnosed with having the HIV virus. 451 00:22:17,085 --> 00:22:19,129 There were so many questions. 452 00:22:19,254 --> 00:22:22,424 And I think people began wondering how he got it. 453 00:22:28,221 --> 00:22:31,183 The virus is transmitted when infected body fluids, 454 00:22:31,308 --> 00:22:35,270 such as blood and semen, carry the virus directly into 455 00:22:35,395 --> 00:22:38,440 the bloodstream of an uninfected person. 456 00:22:38,607 --> 00:22:40,901 The most common method of transmission are 457 00:22:41,026 --> 00:22:44,696 sexual intercourse, and intravenous drug use. 458 00:22:44,821 --> 00:22:48,075 Eazy had a history of drug dealing and street life. 459 00:22:48,241 --> 00:22:51,536 And it begs the question, did Eazy contract HIV 460 00:22:51,661 --> 00:22:53,455 through an infected syringe? 461 00:22:56,041 --> 00:22:59,336 [narrator]: During the 1980s, Eazy's Compton neighborhood 462 00:22:59,503 --> 00:23:01,213 was flooded with a highly addictive 463 00:23:01,380 --> 00:23:04,049 new form of cocaine. 464 00:23:04,174 --> 00:23:06,134 [Big Hutch]: Crack cocaine took over so fast 465 00:23:06,259 --> 00:23:08,178 in southern California. 466 00:23:08,303 --> 00:23:10,680 Before we even looked up, you know, we all got hit. 467 00:23:10,847 --> 00:23:12,391 You know, whether you were doing it, 468 00:23:12,516 --> 00:23:16,103 or you got caught up in it. Drug trading. 469 00:23:16,228 --> 00:23:17,854 [Dr. Hunter]: Crack is powdered cocaine, 470 00:23:18,021 --> 00:23:19,898 combined with water and baking soda, 471 00:23:20,065 --> 00:23:22,317 which is cooked to form rocks. 472 00:23:22,442 --> 00:23:25,779 These are most commonly smoked, though crack can also be 473 00:23:25,904 --> 00:23:30,075 injected and elicits a short, intense feeling of euphoria. 474 00:23:30,242 --> 00:23:34,246 It's more concentrated, cheaper, and more addictive 475 00:23:34,413 --> 00:23:37,290 than powdered cocaine. 476 00:23:37,415 --> 00:23:40,127 [narrator]: Access to crack presented the young Eazy 477 00:23:40,293 --> 00:23:42,295 with a dangerous opportunity. 478 00:23:42,462 --> 00:23:43,839 [Arabian Prince]: Everybody knew Eazy-E. 479 00:23:43,964 --> 00:23:47,300 And nobody messed with Eazy-E, so he had his little reputation. 480 00:23:50,137 --> 00:23:52,264 [Dr. Hunter]: Intravenous injection with infected blood 481 00:23:52,389 --> 00:23:55,433 is the most efficient way of transmitting HIV 482 00:23:55,600 --> 00:23:57,519 from person to person. 483 00:23:57,644 --> 00:24:00,605 However, according to Eazy's friends and family, 484 00:24:00,772 --> 00:24:04,442 he never used crack cocaine himself. 485 00:24:04,568 --> 00:24:06,736 [Big Hutch]: Eric was never involved in getting high 486 00:24:06,903 --> 00:24:08,113 off his own supply. 487 00:24:08,238 --> 00:24:10,615 He was a solid businessman in the streets. 488 00:24:10,740 --> 00:24:13,702 If he was doin' crack cocaine, if he was a baser head, 489 00:24:13,827 --> 00:24:17,581 he wouldn't be respected. 490 00:24:17,747 --> 00:24:19,833 It appears Eazy did not contract HIV 491 00:24:19,958 --> 00:24:21,418 through intravenous drug use. 492 00:24:21,543 --> 00:24:23,920 So, the most likely method of transmission 493 00:24:24,045 --> 00:24:26,756 was through unprotected sex. 494 00:24:26,923 --> 00:24:30,844 [Tracy]: Most people identified with it as bein' 495 00:24:30,969 --> 00:24:33,555 a homosexual disease. 496 00:24:33,680 --> 00:24:37,559 And, yes, I was one of those people as well. 497 00:24:37,684 --> 00:24:40,479 [Dr. Hunter]: The misconception that AIDS was a "gay disease" 498 00:24:40,645 --> 00:24:43,398 may have contributed to a false sense of security 499 00:24:43,565 --> 00:24:46,484 among heterosexuals, who were, as a group, 500 00:24:46,610 --> 00:24:49,029 slower to adopt safe sex practices 501 00:24:49,196 --> 00:24:51,948 than the gay community. 502 00:24:52,073 --> 00:24:55,202 [narrator]: In 1993, the rapper addressed the dangers 503 00:24:55,368 --> 00:24:58,914 of unsafe sex on Howard Stern's radio show. 504 00:24:59,039 --> 00:25:00,957 [Howard Stern]: Do you wear condoms when you have sex? 505 00:25:01,082 --> 00:25:02,334 [Eazy-E]: Nah. 506 00:25:02,459 --> 00:25:03,877 [Howard Stern]: You never wear a condom? 507 00:25:04,002 --> 00:25:05,420 - [Eazy-E]: Nah. - [Hostess]: Have you heard 508 00:25:05,545 --> 00:25:06,963 about AIDS? 509 00:25:07,130 --> 00:25:09,049 [Eazy-E]: Yeah, but the people I mess with don't... 510 00:25:09,174 --> 00:25:11,051 'Cause I'd have it myself if I would have, 511 00:25:11,176 --> 00:25:12,594 if they would have had it already. 512 00:25:12,719 --> 00:25:14,638 [music]: ♪ I know I'm great I'm a dog ♪ 513 00:25:14,763 --> 00:25:17,098 [narrator]: With the release of Straight Outta Compton in 1988, 514 00:25:17,224 --> 00:25:20,352 NWA's sudden rise to national notoriety 515 00:25:20,477 --> 00:25:24,397 opened the doors to a rockstar lifestyle. 516 00:25:24,522 --> 00:25:26,358 It was like Beetle Mania or somethin'. 517 00:25:26,483 --> 00:25:29,110 I'm talkin', like, kids crawlin' all over us, like, "Ahh!" 518 00:25:29,277 --> 00:25:31,988 That security had to push everybody outta the way. 519 00:25:32,113 --> 00:25:34,908 When you get to the hotel lobby, it's a madhouse. 520 00:25:35,075 --> 00:25:36,785 [narrator]: Eazy's music celebrated 521 00:25:36,910 --> 00:25:39,246 a highly sexual lifestyle. 522 00:25:39,371 --> 00:25:40,789 - ♪ Hey, Eazy! - ♪ What's up? ♪ 523 00:25:40,956 --> 00:25:42,707 ♪ Why do you wear your pants like that? ♪ 524 00:25:42,832 --> 00:25:47,170 ♪ I weat my pants like this for the easy access, baby. ♪ 525 00:25:47,337 --> 00:25:48,588 [Donnell]: He was promiscuous. 526 00:25:48,713 --> 00:25:50,799 And I think he wasn't the first person to realize 527 00:25:50,924 --> 00:25:55,053 that success in Hollywood means access to lots of women. 528 00:25:55,220 --> 00:25:57,639 [narrator]: The band reveled in their success, 529 00:25:57,764 --> 00:25:58,932 throwing pool parties, 530 00:25:59,099 --> 00:26:02,352 notorious for their displays of debauchery. 531 00:26:02,519 --> 00:26:05,814 [Big Hutch]: I will tell you them parties was 80% groupies. 532 00:26:05,939 --> 00:26:09,818 And there were 80% potentially baby mamas, and wives. 533 00:26:09,985 --> 00:26:13,738 And it was normal to be with multiple women 534 00:26:13,863 --> 00:26:15,740 in that business. 535 00:26:15,907 --> 00:26:17,909 [narrator]: Eazy fathered 11 children, 536 00:26:18,076 --> 00:26:20,704 with eight different partners. 537 00:26:20,870 --> 00:26:22,163 [Donnell]: He had eight different women 538 00:26:22,289 --> 00:26:23,707 give him 11 children? 539 00:26:23,873 --> 00:26:25,542 That's remarkable. 540 00:26:25,667 --> 00:26:27,877 For the short amount of time that he was on this planet, 541 00:26:28,044 --> 00:26:29,379 that's remarkable. 542 00:26:29,504 --> 00:26:31,589 [Big Hutch]: I don't really think any of us was livin' 543 00:26:31,715 --> 00:26:34,509 like nothin' but "Today could be our last day." 544 00:26:34,634 --> 00:26:36,678 I think it's because of the way we came up. 545 00:26:36,803 --> 00:26:39,264 Like, we were so blessed to have an opportunity to live 546 00:26:39,389 --> 00:26:41,433 the best outta life, drive the finest things, 547 00:26:41,558 --> 00:26:44,477 eat the finer foods, party like rockstars. 548 00:26:44,644 --> 00:26:46,229 You know, when two years ago, 549 00:26:46,354 --> 00:26:48,565 we was in the ghetto, sellin' drugs. 550 00:26:48,732 --> 00:26:50,817 And he just felt like, "Oh, I'm just gonna live 551 00:26:50,942 --> 00:26:53,445 this lifestyle until I can't live it no more." 552 00:26:53,570 --> 00:26:56,823 [music] 553 00:26:56,990 --> 00:26:59,117 [Dr. Hunter]: However Eazy contracted the virus, 554 00:26:59,242 --> 00:27:01,453 HIV is no longer the death sentence 555 00:27:01,578 --> 00:27:04,372 it was initially considered to be. 556 00:27:04,497 --> 00:27:07,917 And even by the early '90s, there was treatment available 557 00:27:08,084 --> 00:27:11,379 that helped to extend life expectancy. 558 00:27:11,504 --> 00:27:14,382 So, I wanna know why Eazy died so soon after 559 00:27:14,507 --> 00:27:15,967 entering the hospital. 560 00:27:19,637 --> 00:27:22,724 [narrator]: February 25th, 1995. 561 00:27:22,849 --> 00:27:25,810 Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles. 562 00:27:25,935 --> 00:27:29,022 29 days before his death. 563 00:27:29,147 --> 00:27:33,568 Eazy is provided with 'round the clock care. 564 00:27:33,693 --> 00:27:35,570 [Dr. Hunter]: There's no record as to what treatment 565 00:27:35,695 --> 00:27:37,447 Eazy received for his HIV, 566 00:27:37,572 --> 00:27:41,743 but it's likely he was given an antiretroviral drug. 567 00:27:41,868 --> 00:27:44,537 Now, the first drug to be approved for HIV treatment 568 00:27:44,663 --> 00:27:46,498 was called AZT. 569 00:27:46,664 --> 00:27:48,541 Although other drugs were were starting to become 570 00:27:48,666 --> 00:27:50,794 available in the early 1990s, 571 00:27:50,919 --> 00:27:56,132 AZT was still the most commonly prescribed. 572 00:27:56,257 --> 00:27:59,678 AZT acts on HIV by blocking enzymes 573 00:27:59,844 --> 00:28:02,389 the virus needs in order to replicate. 574 00:28:02,555 --> 00:28:06,434 Thereby reducing the number of viral particles in the body. 575 00:28:06,559 --> 00:28:08,770 It's not a cure, but aims to slow down 576 00:28:08,895 --> 00:28:12,607 the damage caused by HIV. 577 00:28:12,732 --> 00:28:15,819 Today, there are many alternative drugs available, 578 00:28:15,985 --> 00:28:18,780 and HIV's managed with a cocktail of treatments, 579 00:28:18,905 --> 00:28:21,491 which might include AZT. 580 00:28:21,616 --> 00:28:24,744 But in isolation, AZT is not always effective. 581 00:28:24,911 --> 00:28:27,705 And after a certain point, the virus can develop resistance 582 00:28:27,872 --> 00:28:30,750 to the drug. 583 00:28:30,875 --> 00:28:34,754 [narrator]: February 26th, 1995. 584 00:28:34,879 --> 00:28:38,508 Members of the religious organization The Nation of Islam 585 00:28:38,675 --> 00:28:42,387 are maintaining security outside Eazy's ward. 586 00:28:42,554 --> 00:28:44,597 And current girlfriend, Tomica Woods, 587 00:28:44,722 --> 00:28:48,059 keeps a vigil at his bedside. 588 00:28:48,184 --> 00:28:49,811 [Ebie]: When my father was in the hospital, 589 00:28:49,936 --> 00:28:52,856 There was a lot of rumors goin' around. 590 00:28:52,981 --> 00:28:55,024 But no one really knew anything. 591 00:28:55,191 --> 00:29:00,071 Not even his closest people that were down in the lobby. 592 00:29:00,196 --> 00:29:03,491 [narrator]: His lung infection shows no sign of improvement. 593 00:29:03,616 --> 00:29:06,786 And less than a week after he was admitted to the hospital, 594 00:29:06,911 --> 00:29:10,415 he receives news that strikes a massive blow 595 00:29:10,540 --> 00:29:12,459 to his hopes of recovery. 596 00:29:21,926 --> 00:29:23,428 [Dr. Hunter]: Four weeks before his death, 597 00:29:23,553 --> 00:29:26,973 rapper Eazy-E was hospitalized with bronchitis. 598 00:29:27,140 --> 00:29:30,894 And subsequently found out he was HIV positive. 599 00:29:31,019 --> 00:29:32,520 HIV is manageable, 600 00:29:32,687 --> 00:29:34,481 and with the right combination of drugs, 601 00:29:34,606 --> 00:29:37,525 its effects can be controlled. 602 00:29:37,650 --> 00:29:40,570 But Eazy's treatment was barely begun when his condition 603 00:29:40,737 --> 00:29:45,033 was found to have advanced, and he was diagnosed with AIDS. 604 00:29:45,158 --> 00:29:46,534 [Tracy]: People were sayin', like, 605 00:29:46,659 --> 00:29:48,453 "Oh, you heard Eazy-E's in the hospital? 606 00:29:48,578 --> 00:29:49,871 They sayin' he has AIDS." 607 00:29:49,996 --> 00:29:52,582 They say you die from this. There's no cure for this. 608 00:29:52,749 --> 00:29:55,168 It was very scary. 609 00:29:55,293 --> 00:29:57,712 AIDS is late-stage HIV. 610 00:29:57,837 --> 00:29:59,714 When a patient develops a chronic disease 611 00:29:59,839 --> 00:30:02,884 that a healthy immune system would be able to handle. 612 00:30:03,009 --> 00:30:07,305 The change in Eazy's status from having HIV to AIDS 613 00:30:07,472 --> 00:30:08,890 was very quick. 614 00:30:09,015 --> 00:30:10,767 [Tracy]: January, I'm on the phone with him. 615 00:30:10,892 --> 00:30:12,268 He's laughin' and jokin'. 616 00:30:12,393 --> 00:30:14,938 Within a few weeks, he has full-blown AIDS. 617 00:30:15,104 --> 00:30:16,439 [coughing] 618 00:30:16,606 --> 00:30:18,942 I suspect the AIDS diagnosis came once doctors recognized 619 00:30:19,067 --> 00:30:20,818 Eazy had developed pneumonia. 620 00:30:25,657 --> 00:30:27,992 [narrator]: March, 1995. 621 00:30:28,117 --> 00:30:31,037 Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles. 622 00:30:31,204 --> 00:30:33,122 Two weeks before Eazy's death. 623 00:30:36,376 --> 00:30:38,127 Eazy is still being closely guarded 624 00:30:38,253 --> 00:30:43,091 by a small group of friends and employees. 625 00:30:43,258 --> 00:30:45,677 [Tracy]: When I got there, 626 00:30:45,844 --> 00:30:49,514 no one could go talk to him, you're not getting in the room. 627 00:30:49,681 --> 00:30:52,392 You're barely even gonna know what room he's in. 628 00:30:52,517 --> 00:30:54,644 It was all this secrecy. 629 00:30:56,896 --> 00:31:00,108 [narrator]: Despite the advanced nature of Eazy's condition, 630 00:31:00,233 --> 00:31:02,318 rumors emerged that his security guards 631 00:31:02,443 --> 00:31:03,820 are trying to cure him. 632 00:31:03,987 --> 00:31:05,488 [heart monitor beeping] 633 00:31:05,655 --> 00:31:07,907 [narrator]: They have acquired an unapproved drug, 634 00:31:08,074 --> 00:31:11,369 by the name of Kemron. 635 00:31:11,494 --> 00:31:13,913 [Dr. Hunter]: In the 1980s, and early '90s, 636 00:31:14,038 --> 00:31:16,207 AIDS patients, frustrated at the lack 637 00:31:16,332 --> 00:31:19,377 of legal drugs in the U.S., would often seek medicines 638 00:31:19,544 --> 00:31:21,421 from other countries. 639 00:31:21,546 --> 00:31:24,507 Kemron was developed in Kenya, and was reported to 640 00:31:24,674 --> 00:31:26,676 greatly increase the functionality 641 00:31:26,801 --> 00:31:30,054 of the immune system in HIV patients. 642 00:31:30,179 --> 00:31:31,931 Not only that, it was claimed that 643 00:31:32,098 --> 00:31:36,436 over 10% of patients became HIV negative after treatment. 644 00:31:39,814 --> 00:31:42,483 [narrator]: Eazy's security staff claimed the Kemron 645 00:31:42,609 --> 00:31:47,572 showed some effect in perking him up. 646 00:31:47,697 --> 00:31:50,408 But two weeks after his hospitalization, 647 00:31:50,575 --> 00:31:55,121 Eazy's condition has significantly worsened. 648 00:31:55,246 --> 00:31:57,749 Looking into later reports on Kemron, 649 00:31:57,874 --> 00:32:00,710 the World Health Organization found it to be 650 00:32:00,835 --> 00:32:03,880 no more effective than a placebo. 651 00:32:04,047 --> 00:32:05,757 And the drug was never approved. 652 00:32:09,677 --> 00:32:12,639 [narrator]: March 14th, 1995. 653 00:32:12,805 --> 00:32:16,100 12 days before Eazy's death. 654 00:32:16,225 --> 00:32:18,895 In a move that causes great controversy, 655 00:32:19,020 --> 00:32:21,272 Eazy hastily marries Tomica Woods 656 00:32:21,439 --> 00:32:23,149 in his hospital room. 657 00:32:23,316 --> 00:32:24,776 [Tracy]: Attorneys are in there, 658 00:32:24,901 --> 00:32:27,445 with their briefcases and paperwork. 659 00:32:27,612 --> 00:32:30,073 [narrator]: His will grants Tomica ownership 660 00:32:30,239 --> 00:32:32,033 of Ruthless Records. 661 00:32:32,158 --> 00:32:35,036 Anybody who wants to play devil's advocate will say 662 00:32:35,161 --> 00:32:36,996 "Well, maybe he might die. 663 00:32:37,121 --> 00:32:41,292 So, let's hurry up and get his affairs in order." 664 00:32:41,459 --> 00:32:43,920 But I will say this. 665 00:32:44,045 --> 00:32:46,839 How does he have the capacity to do that? 666 00:32:50,468 --> 00:32:53,846 [narrator]: March 16th, 1995. 667 00:32:53,971 --> 00:32:57,308 Ten days before Eazy's death. 668 00:32:57,433 --> 00:33:00,061 His breathing difficulties are so acute, 669 00:33:00,228 --> 00:33:03,898 he has been placed in an induced coma. 670 00:33:04,065 --> 00:33:06,484 His condition is finally made public, 671 00:33:06,609 --> 00:33:08,027 with a prepared statement, 672 00:33:08,194 --> 00:33:11,072 read to the press by his attorney. 673 00:33:11,197 --> 00:33:14,158 I would like to turn my own problem 674 00:33:14,325 --> 00:33:18,413 into something good that will reach out to all my homeboys. 675 00:33:18,579 --> 00:33:20,456 [Big Hutch]: When we first heard the news about Eazy 676 00:33:20,623 --> 00:33:22,917 really, really bein' sick, that he was clingin' to his life, 677 00:33:23,084 --> 00:33:27,046 was when Tomica and her attorneys came on ABC News. 678 00:33:27,213 --> 00:33:29,924 I just feel that I got thousands and thousands 679 00:33:30,049 --> 00:33:31,801 of young fans, 680 00:33:31,968 --> 00:33:34,303 that have to learn about what's real 681 00:33:34,470 --> 00:33:36,681 when it comes to AIDS. 682 00:33:36,806 --> 00:33:38,891 [Tracy]: It was huge news. 683 00:33:39,058 --> 00:33:41,269 Everybody was in shock. 684 00:33:41,394 --> 00:33:43,813 [narrator]: Cedars-Sinai Hospital is immediately 685 00:33:43,938 --> 00:33:47,108 inundated with phone calls from distressed fans. 686 00:33:47,233 --> 00:33:50,528 They had had more phone calls than any celebrity ever, 687 00:33:50,695 --> 00:33:52,488 including Lucille Ball. 688 00:33:52,613 --> 00:33:54,282 [interviewer]: Are you gonna change your behavior now, 689 00:33:54,407 --> 00:33:55,742 because of this? 690 00:33:55,908 --> 00:33:57,201 Most definitely. Most definitely. 691 00:33:57,368 --> 00:33:58,995 [news caster]: By going public with his disease, 692 00:33:59,120 --> 00:34:01,873 Eric Wright may have changed the hardened face of rap, 693 00:34:01,998 --> 00:34:03,958 and whether you care for the music or not, 694 00:34:04,083 --> 00:34:07,336 the message he is now spreading is hard to ignore. 695 00:34:07,503 --> 00:34:10,339 [heart monitor beeping] 696 00:34:10,465 --> 00:34:11,632 [narrator]: With the secrecy 697 00:34:11,799 --> 00:34:13,760 around Eric's condition now lifted, 698 00:34:13,926 --> 00:34:15,887 friends are allowed in to see him. 699 00:34:16,054 --> 00:34:17,263 [heart monitor beeping] 700 00:34:17,388 --> 00:34:20,850 [Tracy]: At this point, he's in the coma. 701 00:34:21,017 --> 00:34:23,311 And I'm holdin' his hand, and, you know, 702 00:34:23,436 --> 00:34:27,231 his body's warm, you know, he's still here with us. 703 00:34:27,356 --> 00:34:29,650 I just start talkin' to him and tell him I love him, 704 00:34:29,817 --> 00:34:31,360 and Ebie loves him, and we have 705 00:34:31,527 --> 00:34:33,738 a beautiful daughter. And, you know, just, like, 706 00:34:33,863 --> 00:34:36,115 "Get through this, and you're gonna be okay." 707 00:34:36,240 --> 00:34:38,242 [heart monitor beeping] 708 00:34:42,330 --> 00:34:44,916 [narrator]: March 26th, 1995. 709 00:34:48,127 --> 00:34:50,922 11 days after being put on life support, 710 00:34:51,047 --> 00:34:56,302 Eazy-E's respiratory problems become insurmountable. 711 00:34:56,469 --> 00:35:00,181 And at 6:35pm, he's pronounced dead. 712 00:35:05,686 --> 00:35:08,439 Rapper Eazy-E has died in Los Angeles, 713 00:35:08,564 --> 00:35:10,399 after a battle with AIDS. 714 00:35:12,693 --> 00:35:14,445 [Tracy]: I didn't want to believe it. 715 00:35:14,570 --> 00:35:17,824 It was like, the news I did not wanna get. 716 00:35:17,949 --> 00:35:21,119 That I didn't ever want to hear. 717 00:35:21,285 --> 00:35:24,539 [Big Hutch]: I honestly, my life stopped. 718 00:35:24,705 --> 00:35:26,749 You know, 'cause what am I gonna do now? 719 00:35:26,916 --> 00:35:28,584 We don't have a leader anymore. 720 00:35:28,709 --> 00:35:30,378 Somebody that I've been around 721 00:35:30,503 --> 00:35:34,423 80% of my life, is gone. 722 00:35:34,590 --> 00:35:37,552 I don't know why he's gone. 723 00:35:37,718 --> 00:35:40,179 [Tracy]: I didn't burst into tears or cry right away, 724 00:35:40,304 --> 00:35:41,806 because I think I was in shock. 725 00:35:41,931 --> 00:35:46,310 And never in a million years had I expected or thought 726 00:35:46,477 --> 00:35:48,729 that this man was gonna actually die. 727 00:35:56,237 --> 00:35:58,239 [Dr. Hunter]: According to his death certificate, 728 00:35:58,364 --> 00:36:01,868 Eazy died of Pneumocystis Pneumonia. 729 00:36:01,993 --> 00:36:05,037 Also known as PCP, it's caused by a fungus 730 00:36:05,204 --> 00:36:07,331 known as Pneumocystis Carinii. 731 00:36:07,456 --> 00:36:09,834 Now, this fungus is frequently found 732 00:36:10,001 --> 00:36:12,712 in healthy lungs without causing symptoms. 733 00:36:12,837 --> 00:36:15,798 But in people with severely compromised immune systems, 734 00:36:15,965 --> 00:36:18,384 the fungus causes a deep infection in 735 00:36:18,509 --> 00:36:19,927 the lung's air sacs. 736 00:36:20,094 --> 00:36:22,221 Now, this inhibits oxygen intake, 737 00:36:22,388 --> 00:36:25,516 and will eventually lead to respiratory failure. 738 00:36:25,683 --> 00:36:29,979 It was a common cause of death among AIDS patients. 739 00:36:30,104 --> 00:36:32,356 But in Eazy's case, many people suspected 740 00:36:32,523 --> 00:36:35,776 the official version of his death was either incomplete, 741 00:36:35,943 --> 00:36:38,321 or incorrect. 742 00:36:38,487 --> 00:36:41,866 Everybody's still questioning things 20 plus years later. 743 00:36:46,245 --> 00:36:48,080 [narrator]: Adding to the disbelieve, 744 00:36:48,247 --> 00:36:50,791 were the test results of anxious girlfriends, 745 00:36:50,917 --> 00:36:53,336 partners, and their children. 746 00:36:53,461 --> 00:36:56,339 All of the mothers and kids were tested, no one had it. 747 00:36:56,464 --> 00:36:59,967 I did go get tested. I was negative. 748 00:37:00,134 --> 00:37:02,261 [Ebie]: Tomica Woods was actually pregnant, 749 00:37:02,428 --> 00:37:05,848 she had a daughter some months after my father's passing. 750 00:37:06,015 --> 00:37:07,558 She didn't have it. 751 00:37:07,683 --> 00:37:11,771 You know, nobody had it. 752 00:37:11,896 --> 00:37:14,440 Many people considered it highly irregular that 753 00:37:14,565 --> 00:37:17,568 none of Eazy's girlfriends tested positive. 754 00:37:17,735 --> 00:37:20,363 However, the odds of a woman contracting the virus 755 00:37:20,529 --> 00:37:23,824 from an infected man through unprotected sexual intercourse 756 00:37:23,950 --> 00:37:26,827 are estimated to be one in over a thousand. 757 00:37:26,953 --> 00:37:30,122 So, even though Eazy was unknowingly putting a lot 758 00:37:30,248 --> 00:37:32,667 of women at risk, it's not such an anomaly 759 00:37:32,792 --> 00:37:35,586 that his girlfriends didn't contract it. 760 00:37:35,753 --> 00:37:37,505 [narrator]: During a recent TV investigation 761 00:37:37,672 --> 00:37:40,675 into Eazy's death, one doctor did claim 762 00:37:40,841 --> 00:37:43,803 to have patients who were HIV positive 763 00:37:43,928 --> 00:37:46,555 as a result of sleeping with Eazy-E. 764 00:37:46,681 --> 00:37:48,266 So, they were indeed infected? 765 00:37:48,432 --> 00:37:49,767 Yeah. Oh, yeah. They were infected. 766 00:37:49,934 --> 00:37:51,102 Okay, okay. 767 00:37:51,268 --> 00:37:53,729 Something says that they got infected from him. 768 00:37:53,854 --> 00:37:56,983 [interviewer]: Okay. 769 00:37:57,108 --> 00:37:59,652 [Dr. Hunter]: I can find no evidence to back up suggestions 770 00:37:59,819 --> 00:38:02,947 that Eazy-E was misdiagnosed with AIDS. 771 00:38:03,072 --> 00:38:04,824 But in the aftermath of his death, 772 00:38:04,949 --> 00:38:07,284 the question of how he contracted the disease 773 00:38:07,410 --> 00:38:10,079 inspired increasingly wild theories. 774 00:38:10,204 --> 00:38:12,415 Including murder. 775 00:38:12,581 --> 00:38:16,252 [narrator]: Rumors of foul play hit the news in 2003, 776 00:38:16,377 --> 00:38:20,423 When Eazy's notoriously violent business rival, Suge Knight, 777 00:38:20,548 --> 00:38:23,801 joked about using HIV as a murder weapon. 778 00:38:23,926 --> 00:38:26,304 They get blood from somebody with AIDS... 779 00:38:26,429 --> 00:38:27,805 - [Jimmy Kimmel]: Yeah? - Then they shoot you with it. 780 00:38:27,805 --> 00:38:28,556 Yeah. 781 00:38:28,723 --> 00:38:30,725 Just Eazy-E that, you know what I mean? 782 00:38:36,105 --> 00:38:37,523 Rapper Eazy-E has died in Lost Angeles, 783 00:38:37,523 --> 00:38:38,858 after a battle with AIDS. 784 00:38:38,858 --> 00:38:42,611 [music] 785 00:38:42,778 --> 00:38:44,280 [Dr. Hunter]: Eazy-E's shocked death 786 00:38:44,447 --> 00:38:47,408 triggered alternative theories that challenged the official 787 00:38:47,575 --> 00:38:49,493 report he died from AIDS. 788 00:38:49,660 --> 00:38:52,163 Despite doubts to the contrary, 789 00:38:52,288 --> 00:38:55,708 I believe this diagnosis was correct. 790 00:38:55,833 --> 00:38:57,418 However, many people have come forward, 791 00:38:57,543 --> 00:39:02,089 claiming that he died in suspicious circumstances. 792 00:39:02,214 --> 00:39:05,676 [music] 793 00:39:05,801 --> 00:39:08,929 [Donnell]: Even after Eazy left that hood, 794 00:39:09,096 --> 00:39:11,807 He affiliated himself with really strong gangsters. 795 00:39:11,974 --> 00:39:14,643 He was surrounded by people who would love to 796 00:39:14,810 --> 00:39:16,687 make their name off of Los Angeles' 797 00:39:16,854 --> 00:39:19,148 most famous gangster. 798 00:39:19,315 --> 00:39:23,277 [narrator]: In 2015, Eazy's son, Lil Eazy-E, 799 00:39:23,444 --> 00:39:25,529 claimed that his father was murdered by one of 800 00:39:25,696 --> 00:39:28,908 his most notorious rivals, record label executive 801 00:39:29,033 --> 00:39:32,078 and convicted felon, Suge Knight. 802 00:39:32,203 --> 00:39:34,288 What is Suge Knight, if not a gangster? 803 00:39:38,250 --> 00:39:42,546 [narrator]: By the end of 1991, Dr. Dre was growing dissatisfied 804 00:39:42,713 --> 00:39:45,966 with his cut of NWA's profits. 805 00:39:46,092 --> 00:39:50,137 Security guard, Suge Knight, pursuaded him to leave NWA, 806 00:39:50,262 --> 00:39:54,725 and form their own company, to rival Ruthless Records. 807 00:39:54,892 --> 00:39:57,103 Suge arranged a meeting with Eazy, 808 00:39:57,228 --> 00:39:59,063 to talk him into releasing Dr. Dre 809 00:39:59,230 --> 00:40:01,148 from his contract with Ruthless. 810 00:40:03,859 --> 00:40:08,447 [Donnell]: There were threats with weapons. 811 00:40:08,572 --> 00:40:11,826 He got Eazy to sign the contract to let Dr. Dre go to 812 00:40:11,951 --> 00:40:14,078 a new company that Suge was forming, 813 00:40:14,203 --> 00:40:15,788 called Death Row Records. 814 00:40:18,249 --> 00:40:20,376 [narrator]: Dre was allowed to leave. 815 00:40:20,543 --> 00:40:23,754 But Eazy hung onto a percentage of Dre's earnings. 816 00:40:23,879 --> 00:40:28,384 A situation that Suge Knight grew increasingly bitter about. 817 00:40:28,509 --> 00:40:30,052 [Donnell]: Hip-hop fans thought, 818 00:40:30,219 --> 00:40:34,056 "This guy can do anything." 819 00:40:34,223 --> 00:40:35,808 They thought he could kill Eazy-E. 820 00:40:35,975 --> 00:40:39,854 [muffled screaming] 821 00:40:40,020 --> 00:40:43,274 Eazy's son, for example, believes that this is true. 822 00:40:43,399 --> 00:40:45,234 [narrator]: When Suge Knight appeared on 823 00:40:45,359 --> 00:40:46,735 Jimmy Kimmel's talk show, 824 00:40:46,902 --> 00:40:49,613 just days after being released from prison for assault, 825 00:40:49,780 --> 00:40:52,575 he seemed to acknowledge the rumors. 826 00:40:52,700 --> 00:40:55,244 They get blood from somebody with AIDS... 827 00:40:55,411 --> 00:40:56,620 [Jimmy Kimmel]: Yeah? 828 00:40:56,787 --> 00:40:58,164 And then they shoot you with it. 829 00:40:58,289 --> 00:41:00,040 - Oh, well, that seems bad. - Cause a slow death. 830 00:41:00,166 --> 00:41:01,917 Gonna Eazy-E that, you know what I mean? 831 00:41:02,042 --> 00:41:04,253 Yeah. Oh, no. 832 00:41:04,378 --> 00:41:06,255 He said that the new way that people are killing, 833 00:41:06,380 --> 00:41:08,924 is to use a needle tainted with HIV, 834 00:41:09,049 --> 00:41:11,051 and inject it into someone. 835 00:41:11,177 --> 00:41:13,596 And he called it, "the Eazy-E treatment", 836 00:41:13,762 --> 00:41:17,808 or "the Eazy-E method", or something like that. 837 00:41:17,933 --> 00:41:19,643 This is just one of several theories 838 00:41:19,810 --> 00:41:21,896 that sprang up, claiming Eazy-E was 839 00:41:22,021 --> 00:41:25,316 intentionally killed with the HIV virus. 840 00:41:25,483 --> 00:41:28,068 While it is medically possible, 841 00:41:28,194 --> 00:41:32,531 there is one overriding reason why I don't believe any of them. 842 00:41:32,698 --> 00:41:35,201 With a life expectancy of up to 10 years 843 00:41:35,326 --> 00:41:37,161 after contracting the disease, 844 00:41:37,328 --> 00:41:40,289 why would anyone choose to use such a slow-acting 845 00:41:40,414 --> 00:41:43,459 and unreliable method of murder? 846 00:41:43,626 --> 00:41:45,169 [Donnell]: It would be a lot easier 847 00:41:45,294 --> 00:41:46,712 if he had simply been shot. 848 00:41:46,837 --> 00:41:48,797 People would have understood that better. 849 00:41:48,923 --> 00:41:51,842 It's hard to just accept that people lived rough lives, 850 00:41:51,967 --> 00:41:53,636 and now they're not here anymore. 851 00:41:53,802 --> 00:41:56,931 It's easier to chalk it up to magic and conspiracy. 852 00:42:01,435 --> 00:42:03,771 [Dr. Hunter]: The source of Eazy's infection is likely 853 00:42:03,896 --> 00:42:05,606 far more mundane. 854 00:42:05,731 --> 00:42:09,527 And I suspect his infection predates his success. 855 00:42:09,652 --> 00:42:12,404 One of the main reasons HIV became prevalent 856 00:42:12,530 --> 00:42:14,448 among crack users and dealers, 857 00:42:14,573 --> 00:42:17,743 was down to unsafe sex practices. 858 00:42:17,910 --> 00:42:20,329 There is a strong statistical link between 859 00:42:20,496 --> 00:42:23,332 female sex workers exchanging sex with drugs, 860 00:42:23,499 --> 00:42:28,087 and the spread of HIV among the heterosexual population. 861 00:42:28,212 --> 00:42:31,465 So, it is highly plausible that Eazy contracted the virus 862 00:42:31,590 --> 00:42:34,677 from a female drug user, during his crack dealing days. 863 00:42:34,843 --> 00:42:37,471 At a time when there was far less understanding 864 00:42:37,638 --> 00:42:40,391 and information about how the disease was spread. 865 00:42:44,395 --> 00:42:46,772 Eazy showed no symptoms for years, 866 00:42:46,897 --> 00:42:48,732 while the virus was slowly destroying 867 00:42:48,857 --> 00:42:50,359 his immune system. 868 00:42:50,484 --> 00:42:53,988 By the time it was detected, he was already approaching 869 00:42:54,113 --> 00:42:56,073 late-stage HIV. 870 00:42:56,240 --> 00:42:58,784 And I suspect a cough which was initially diagnosed 871 00:42:58,909 --> 00:43:00,286 as bronchitis, 872 00:43:00,452 --> 00:43:02,454 may have actually been the first signs 873 00:43:02,621 --> 00:43:04,581 of a fungal infection of the lungs, 874 00:43:04,748 --> 00:43:06,458 which his compromised immune system 875 00:43:06,625 --> 00:43:09,211 couldn't cope with. 876 00:43:09,378 --> 00:43:12,339 The tragedy is, just one year after his death, 877 00:43:12,464 --> 00:43:15,759 highly effective antiviral medicine became available, 878 00:43:15,884 --> 00:43:19,305 making the life expectancy for HIV patients far longer. 879 00:43:23,434 --> 00:43:25,728 [music] 880 00:43:25,853 --> 00:43:27,396 [Dr. Hunter]: It's hard not to imagine 881 00:43:27,521 --> 00:43:29,523 how things might have played out for Eazy-E, 882 00:43:29,690 --> 00:43:34,111 if the virus had been detected before he became sick. 883 00:43:34,236 --> 00:43:37,281 What he left behind is a remarkable legacy. 884 00:43:37,448 --> 00:43:39,241 And a cautionary tale. 885 00:43:41,827 --> 00:43:43,245 [Donnell]: He was an underdog. 886 00:43:43,370 --> 00:43:45,414 The guy who started at the bottom, 887 00:43:45,581 --> 00:43:47,458 and made it to the top. 888 00:43:47,625 --> 00:43:49,668 He showed white kids, and Black kids, 889 00:43:49,835 --> 00:43:52,296 the fun of being a contrarian bad boy. 890 00:43:55,049 --> 00:43:59,011 [Tracy]: He just had big dreams, and he accomplished it. 891 00:43:59,178 --> 00:44:01,138 Speakin' for the people. 892 00:44:01,263 --> 00:44:06,352 Pioneering a whole genre of music called gangster rap, 893 00:44:06,477 --> 00:44:10,314 that flourished and extended into artists of today. 894 00:44:13,484 --> 00:44:14,902 [Ebie]: I feel so proud 895 00:44:15,027 --> 00:44:17,821 when I hear my father's music, when I see my father's face 896 00:44:17,988 --> 00:44:21,325 on a tee shirt. 897 00:44:21,492 --> 00:44:25,454 I still don't feel he gets the full recognition he deserves. 898 00:44:25,579 --> 00:44:28,499 But I'm hoping we're on the way. 899 00:44:28,666 --> 00:44:29,500 [camera shutter]