Jerry Heller, a veteran music manager who helped introduce N.W.A to the masses and promoted gangsta rap to a mainstream audience, died on Friday in Thousand Oaks, Calif. He was 75.

The Associated Press reported that Mr. Heller’s cousin, Gary Ballen, said he died in a hospital after he had a heart attack while driving.

Mr. Heller and Eric Wright, the rapper known as Eazy-E, founded Ruthless Records in 1987. A year later, the label released “Straight Outta Compton,” the debut album by the rap group N.W.A, whose members, in addition to Eazy-E, were Dr. Dre and Ice Cube, soon to become major figures in hip-hop, as well as DJ Yella and MC Ren.

The album was a hit and helped propel West Coast gangsta rap into the national spotlight — and into the center of controversy. Some people said the lyrics of N.W.A and other gangsta rappers glorified violence, while others said they simply reflected the reality of black urban life.