Released in 1986 as the B-side of "Dog 'n the Wax (Ya Don't Quit-Part II)", the song is considered to be one of the defining tracks of the gangsta rap genre.

[1][2] The song was produced by Compton's Most Wanted associate the Unknown DJ.

A version of the song was later recorded by the Tennessee horrorcore group Three 6 Mafia on its Chapter 2: World Domination album, and was aptly renamed "3-6 in the Mornin'" and features occasional samples from the original.

The song was re-recorded by Ice T for the 2020 Body Count album Carnivore.

In the documentary series Hip-Hop Evolution, Ice-T explains that he was inspired by the rapper Schoolly D and his 1985 song P.S.K.