Gangsta rap or gangster rap, initially called reality rap, emerged in the mid- to late 1980s as a controversial hip-hop subgenre whose lyrics assert the culture and values typical of American street gangs and street hustlers. Many gangsta rappers flaunt associations with real street gangs, like the

Crips The Crips is an alliance of street gangs that is based in the coastal regions of Southern California. Founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1969, mainly by Raymond Washington and Stanley Williams, the Crips were initially a single alliance ...

and

Bloods The Bloods are a primarily African-American street gang founded in Los Angeles, California. The gang is widely known for its rivalry with the Crips. It is identified by the red color worn by its members and by particular gang symbols, includ ...

. Gangsta rap's pioneers Ice-T in 1986, and especially N.W.A in

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

and the rise of Tupac Amaru Shakur in 1992. In 1992, via record producer Dr. Dre, rapper Snoop Dogg, and their

G-funk G-funk, short for gangsta funk, is a sub-genre of gangsta rap that emerged from the West Coast scene in the late 1980s. The genre is heavily influenced by 1970s psychedelic funk (P-funk) sound of artists such as Parliament-Funkadelic. Charac ...

sound, gangsta rap took the rap genre's lead and became mainstream, popular music. Gangsta rap has been recurrently accused of promoting disorderly conduct and broad criminality, especially assault, homicide, and drug dealing, as well as misogyny, promiscuity, and materialism. Gangsta rap's defenders have variously characterized it as artistic depictions but not literal endorsements of real life in American ghettos, or suggested that some lyrics voice rage against social oppression or police brutality, and have often accused critics of hypocrisy and racial bias. Still, gangsta rap has been assailed even by some black public figures, including Spike Lee, pastor

Calvin Butts Calvin Otis Butts III (July 19, 1949 – October 28, 2022) was an American academic administrator and a senior pastor of the Abyssinian Baptist Church, which historically was the largest black church in New York City. He led the Abyssinian Devel ...

and activist C. Delores Tucker.

1985–1988: Origins and early years

Schoolly D and Ice-T

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

rapper Schoolly D is generally considered the first "gangsta rapper" or one of the first "gangsta rappers", significantly influencing the more popular early gangsta rap originator, Ice-T. Ice-T was born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

where he rose to prominence in the West Coast hip hop scene. In 1986, Ice-T released " 6 in the Mornin'", which is regarded as one of the first gangsta rap songs. Ice-T had been MCing since the early '80s, but first turned to gangsta rap themes after being influenced by

rapper Schoolly D and his 1985 album '' Schoolly D''. In an interview with PROPS magazine, Ice-T said: :Here's the exact chronological order of what really went down: The first record that came out along those lines was Schoolly D's " P.S.K." Then the syncopation of that rap was used by me when I made "6 in the Mornin'". The vocal delivery was the same: ' ... P.S.K. is makin' that green', ' ... six in the morning, police at my door'. When I heard that record I was like "Oh shit!" and call it a bite or what you will but I dug that record. My record didn't sound like P.S.K., but I liked the way he was flowing with it. P.S.K. was talking about Park Side Killers but it was very vague. That was the only difference, when Schoolly did it, it was "... one by one, I'm knockin' em out." All he did was represent a gang on his record. I took that and wrote a record about guns, beating people down and all that with "6 in the Mornin'". At the same time my single came out,

Boogie Down Productions Boogie Down Productions (BDP) was an American hip hop group originally composed of KRS-One, D-Nice, and DJ Scott La Rock. DJ Scott La Rock was murdered on August 27, 1987, five months after the release of BDP's debut album, '' Criminal Minde ...

hit with ''

Criminal Minded ''Criminal Minded'' is the debut studio album by hip-hop group Boogie Down Productions, released on March 3, 1987 by B-Boy Records. It is considered a highly influential hip hop album and one of the first in the gangsta rap genre. Since its rele ...

'', which was a gangster-based album. It wasn't about messages or "You Must Learn", it was about gangsterism. In 2011, Ice-T repeated in his autobiography that Schoolly D was his inspiration for gangsta rap. Ice-T continued to release gangsta albums for the remainder of the 1980s: ''

Rhyme Pays ''Rhyme Pays'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Ice-T, released on July 28, 1987, by Sire Records. The album peaked at number 93 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and number 23 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts, and was certified gold b ...

'' in 1987, ''

Power Power most often refers to: * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events ** Abusive power Power may a ...

'' in 1988 and '' The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech...Just Watch What You Say'' in 1989. Ice-T's lyrics also contained strong political commentary, and often played the line between glorifying the gangsta lifestyle and criticizing it as a no-win situation. Schoolly D's debut album, ''Schoolly D'', and especially the song " P.S.K. What Does It Mean?", would heavily influence not only Ice-T, but also Eazy-E and N.W.A (most notably in the song "

Boyz-n-the-Hood "Boyz-n-the-Hood" is the debut single by Eazy-E, then leader of a new rap group, N.W.A. Released in March 1987, the single was a local hit, reissued, by year's end, on N.W.A's EP titled ''N.W.A.'' and on the unauthorized compilation album '' N.W. ...

") as well as the Beastie Boys on their seminal hardcore hip hop inspired album ''

Licensed to Ill ''Licensed to Ill'' is the debut studio album by American rap rock group Beastie Boys. It was released on November 15, 1986, by Def Jam and Columbia Records, and became the first rap LP to top the ''Billboard'' album chart. It is one of Columbia ...

'' (1986).

Boogie Down Productions

released their first single, "Say No Brother (Crack Attack Don't Do It)", in 1986. It was followed by "South-Bronx/P is Free" and "9mm Goes Bang" in the same year. The latter is the most gangsta-themed song of the three; in it, KRS-One boasts about shooting a crack dealer and his posse to death (in self-defense). The album ''

'' followed in 1987, and was the first rap album to have firearms on its cover. Shortly after the release of this album, BDP's DJ, Scott LaRock was shot and killed. After this, BDP's subsequent records were more focused with the inadequate rationale removed.

Other early influences

The New York-based Run-DMC and LL Cool J, though originating prior to the establishment of "gangsta rap" as a cohesive genre, were influential in the formation of gangsta rap, often producing early aggressive

hardcore hip hop Hardcore hip hop (also hardcore rap) is a genre of hip hop music that developed through the East Coast hip hop scene in the 1980s. Pioneered by such artists as Run-DMC, Schoolly D, Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy, it is generally ch ...

songs and being among the first rappers to dress in gang-like street clothing. The seminal Long Island-based group

Public Enemy "Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe ...

featured aggressive, politically charged lyrics, which had an especially strong influence on gangsta rappers such as Ice Cube. The duo Eric B. & Rakim would further influence gangsta rap with aggressive, street-oriented raps, especially on the 1987 album '' Paid In Full''. The hip hop group Beastie Boys also influenced the gangsta rap genre with their 1986 album ''

'', with an early reference to being a "gangster" mentioned in the song "Slow Ride". In 1986, the Los Angeles-based group

C.I.A. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

(consisting of Ice Cube, K-Dee, Sir Jinks) rapped over the Beastie Boys' tracks for songs such as "My Posse" and "Ill-Legal", and the Beastie Boys' influence can be seen significantly in N.W.A's early albums. The Beastie Boys had started out as a

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...

band, but after introduction to producer

Rick Rubin Frederick Jay Rubin (; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer. He is the co-founder (alongside Russell Simmons) of Def Jam Recordings, founder of American Recordings, and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin helped popula ...

and the exit of Kate Schellenbach they became a hip hop group. According to ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' Magazine, the Beastie Boys' 1986 album ''

'' is "filled with enough references to guns, drugs and empty sex (including the pornographic deployment of a Wiffleball bat in "

Paul Revere Paul Revere (; December 21, 1734 O.S. (January 1, 1735 N.S.)May 10, 1818) was an American silversmith, engraver, early industrialist, Sons of Liberty member, and Patriot and Founding Father. He is best known for his midnight ride to a ...

") to qualify as a gangsta-rap cornerstone."

1988–1995: Golden age

N.W.A. And Ice Cube

The first blockbuster gangsta rap album was N.W.A's '' Straight Outta Compton'', released in 1988. ''Straight Outta Compton'' established West Coast hip hop as a vital genre, and establish Los Angeles as a legitimate rival to hip hop's long-time capital, New York City. ''Straight Outta Compton'' sparked the first major controversy regarding hip hop lyrics when their song "

Fuck tha Police "Fuck tha Police" is a protest song by American hip hop group N.W.A that appears on the 1988 album ''Straight Outta Compton'' as well as on the ''N.W.A's Greatest Hits'' compilation. The lyrics protest police brutality and racial profiling ...

" earned a letter from FBI Assistant Director, Milt Ahlerich, strongly expressing

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules Rule or ruling may refer to: Education ...

's resentment of the song. Due to the influence of Ice-T, N.W.A, and Ice Cube's early solo career, gangsta rap is often somewhat erroneously credited as being a mostly West Coast phenomenon, despite the contributions of East Coast acts like Boogie Down Productions in shaping the genre and despite Philadelphia rapper Schoolly D being generally regarded as the first gangsta rapper. In the early 1990s, former N.W.A member Ice Cube would further influence gangsta rap with his hardcore, socio-political solo albums, which suggested the potential of gangsta rap as a political medium to give voice to inner-city youth. Ice Cube's early solo albums and EPs, including ''

AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted ''AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Ice Cube, released on May 16, 1990, by Priority Records. It was his first solo album, after an acrimonious split from his former group N.W.A. The album was primarily produc ...

'' (1990), ''

Death Certificate A death certificate is either a legal document issued by a medical practitioner which states when a person died, or a document issued by a government civil registration office, that declares the date, location and cause of a person's death, as ...

'' (1991), the ''

Kill at Will ''Kill at Will'' (titled ''At Will'' in its censored version) is an extended play by American rapper Ice Cube, released in 1990 via Priority Records. It was released soon after '' AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted'' and capitalized on Cube's newfound solo s ...

'' EP (1991) and '' The Predator'' (1992) all contributed significantly to the development of gangsta rap. N.W.A's second album, ''

Efil4zaggin ''Niggaz4Life'' (also known as ''Efil4zaggin'' as per album cover art, stylized in all caps and horizontally mirrored) is the second and final studio album by gangsta rap group N.W.A, released on May 28, 1991. It was their final album, as the grou ...

'' (1991) (released after Ice Cube's departure from the group), broke ground as the first gangsta rap album to reach #1 on the Billboard pop charts.

West, East and South

Aside from N.W.A and Ice-T,

Too Short Todd Anthony Shaw (born April 28, 1966), better known by the stage name Too Short (stylized as Too $hort), is an American rapper and record producer. He became famous in the West Coast hip hop scene in the late 1980s, with lyrics often based on ...

(from

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

Kid Frost Arturo Molina Jr. (born May 31, 1962), better known as Frost (originally Kid Frost), is an American rapper, songwriter and record producer from Los Angeles. He is the father of record producer Scoop DeVille. Early life Molina was born and ra ...

and the South Gate-based Latino group Cypress Hill were pioneering West Coast rappers with gangsta rap songs and themes. Above the Law also played an important role in the gangsta rap movement, as their 1990 debut album '' Livin' Like Hustlers'', as well as their guest appearance on N.W.A's 1991 ''Efil4zaggin'', foreshadowed the dominance of the genre in 1990s starting with Dr. Dre's ''

The Chronic ''The Chronic'' is the debut studio album by the American hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre. It was released on December 15, 1992, by his record label Death Row Records and distributed by Interscope Records. Recording sessions took place in ...

''. East Coast hardcore rappers like

Kool G Rap Nathaniel Thomas Wilson (born July 20, 1968), better known by his stage name Kool G Rap (or simply G Rap), is an American rapper from Queens, New York City. He began his career in the mid-1980s as one half of the group Kool G Rap & DJ Polo and a ...

, Big Daddy Kane,

Slick Rick Richard Martin Lloyd Walters (born January 14, 1965), better known as Slick Rick, is an English-American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence with Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew in the mid-1980s. Their songs " The Show" and " ...

and EPMD also reflected the trend in hip-hop music in the late 1980s towards hard-hitting, angry, aggressive, and politically conscious lyrics, revolving around crime, violence, poverty, war and gunplay. The

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

-based group known as the Geto Boys came out around the late 1980s and made songs containing both gangsta themes of crime and violence. Early 90s, the Geto Boys gained Top 40 hit "Mind Playing Tricks On Me". The group notably released gangsta song "Scarface", a track centered on selling

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Ameri ...

and killing rival gang members. The Geto Boys are also known for being the first rap group to sample from the movie '' Scarface'', a film which became the basis for various mafioso rap samples in the 1990s. Furthermore, the Geto Boys, along with Jam Master J's and

Erick Sermon Erick Sermon (born November 25, 1968) is an American rapper, musician, and record producer. He is best known as one-third—alongside PMD & DJ Scratch—of 1980s/1990s hip hop group EPMD and for his production work. Career Sermon started prof ...

's group

Flatlinerz Flatlinerz is a horrorcore group from New York City. They are responsible for introducing the term "horrorcore" with their 1994 release '' U.S.A. (Under Satan's Authority)''.Prince Paul's and RZA's group Gravediggaz, are often cited as pioneers of "

horrorcore Horrorcore, also called horror hip hop, horror rap, death hip hop, or death rap, is a subgenre of hip hop music based on horror-themed and often darkly transgressive lyrical content and imagery. Its origins derived from certain hardcore hip h ...

" rap, a transgressive and abrasive subgenre of hardcore rap or gangsta rap which focuses on common horror themes, such as the supernatural and the occult, often with gothic or macabre lyrics, satanic imagery and

slasher film A slasher film is a genre of horror films involving a killer stalking and murdering a group of people, usually by use of bladed or sharp tools like knife, chainsaw, scalpel, etc. Although the term "slasher" may occasionally be used informally as ...

splatter film A splatter film is a subgenre of horror films that deliberately focuses on graphic portrayals of wikt:gore, gore and graphic violence. These films, usually through the use of special effects, display a fascination with the vulnerability of the h ...

-like violence.

Ice-T's solo career

Ice-T released one of the seminal albums of the genre, '' OG: Original Gangster'' in 1991. It also contained a song by his new

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...

group Body Count, who released a self-titled album in 1992. Particular controversy surrounded one of its songs " Cop Killer". The rock song was intended to speak from the viewpoint of a police target seeking revenge on racist, brutal cops. Ice-T's rock song gained controversy, with observers ranging from President George H.W Bush and his Vice President

Dan Quayle James Danforth Quayle (; born February 4, 1947) is an American politician who served as the 44th vice president of the United States from 1989 to 1993 under President George H. W. Bush. A member of the Republican Party, Quayle served as a U.S. ...

, the National Rifle Association, police organizations across the nation to various police advocacy groups. Consequently, Time Warner Music refused to release Ice-T's upcoming album ''Home Invasion'' and dropped Ice-T from the label. Ice-T suggested that the furor over the song was an overreaction, telling journalist Chuck Philips "... they've done movies about nurse killers and teacher killers and student killers. Arnold Schwarzenegger blew away dozens of cops as the Terminator. But I don't hear anybody complaining about that." In the same interview, Ice-T suggested to Philips that the misunderstanding of "Cop Killer", the misclassification of it as a rap song (rather than a rock song), and the attempts to censor it had racial overtones: "The Supreme Court says it's OK for a white man to burn a cross in public. But nobody wants a black man to write a record about a cop killer." Ice-T's next album, '' Home Invasion'', was postponed as a result of the controversy, and was finally released in 1993. While it contained gangsta elements, it was his most

political Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...

album to date. After a proposed censoring of the ''Home Invasion'' album cover art, he left Warner Bros. Records. Ice-T's subsequent releases went back to straightforward gangsta rap, but were not as popular as his earlier releases.

G-funk and Death Row Records

In 1992, former N.W.A member Dr. Dre released ''

'', a massive seller (eventually going triple platinum) which showed that explicit gangsta rap could hold as much mass commercial appeal as the pop-oriented rap styles of

MC Hammer Stanley Kirk Burrell (born March 30, 1962), better known by his stage name MC Hammer (or simply Hammer), is an American rapper, dancer, record producer and entrepreneur. He is known for hit songs such as " U Can't Touch This", "2 Legit 2 Quit" ...

, The Fresh Prince and Tone Lōc. The album established the dominance of West Coast gangsta rap and Dre's new post-N.W.A label, Death Row Records (owned by Dr. Dre along with Marion "Suge" Knight), as Dre's album showcased a stable of promising new Death Row rappers. The album also popularized the subgenre of G-funk, a slow, drawled form of hip hop that dominated the rap charts for some time. Extensively sampling P-Funk bands, especially

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

and

Funkadelic Funkadelic was an American funk rock band formed in Plainfield, New Jersey in 1968 and active until 1982. The band and its sister act Parliament, both led by George Clinton, pioneered the funk music culture of the 1970s.John, Bush. Funkade ...

, G-funk was multi-layered, yet simple and easy to dance to. The simple message of its lyrics, that life's problems could be overcome by guns, alcohol and marijuana, endeared it to a teenage audience. The single "

Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" is a song by American rapper Dr. Dre, featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg, on Dre's debut solo album, ''The Chronic'' (1992). The album's first single, "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang," reaching number 2 on the ' ...

" became a crossover hit, with its humorous, ''

House Party A house party is a type of party where people gather at the residence of the party's host. Organization A house party might be organized several months or just a few hours in advance. News of a party may be spread by personal invitations, ...

''-influenced video becoming an MTV staple despite that network's historic orientation towards rock music. Another success was Ice Cube's ''

Predator Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...

'' album, released at about the same time as ''The Chronic'' in 1992. It sold over 5 million copies and was #1 in the charts, propelled by the hit single " It Was a Good Day", despite the fact that Ice Cube was not a Death Row artist. One of the genre's biggest crossover stars was Dre's protégé

Snoop Doggy Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

(''

Doggystyle ''Doggystyle'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Snoop Dogg (then known as Snoop Doggy Dogg). It was released on November 23, 1993, by Death Row Records and Interscope Records. The album was recorded and produced following Snoop's app ...

''), whose exuberant, party-oriented themes made songs such as "

Gin and Juice "Gin and Juice" is a song by American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was released on January 18, 1994, as the second single from his debut album, ''Doggystyle''. Lyrics The lyrics depict a party filled with sexual intercourse, sex, Cannabis (drug), m ...

" club anthems and top hits nationwide. In 1996,

2Pac Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

signed with Death Row and released the multi-platinum double album '' All Eyez on Me''. Not long afterward, his murder brought gangsta rap into the national headlines and propelled his posthumous '' The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory'' album (released under the alias "Makaveli") to the top of the charts.

Warren G Warren Griffin III (born November 10, 1970) is an American rapper and producer known for his role in West Coast rap's 1990s ascent.Steve Huey"Warren G: Biography" ''AllMusic.com'', Netaktion LLC, visited May 8, 2020. Along with Snoop Dogg and ...

and Nate Dogg were other musicians at the forefront of G-funk. Successful G-funk influenced artists also included

Spice 1 Robert Lee Greene, Jr. (born July 2, 1970), better known by his stage name Spice 1 (an acronym for "Sex, Pistols, Indo, Cash and Entertainment"), is an American rapper from Hayward, California. He began releasing albums in 1992. Career Jive Re ...

MC Eiht Aaron Tyler (born May 22, 1971), better known by his stage name MC Eiht (pronounced MC eight), is an American rapper and actor. Many of his songs are based on his life in Compton. His stage name was partly inspired by the numeral in KRS-One's nam ...

and MC Ren, all of them reaching decent positions on the Billboard 100, in spite of not being associated with Death Row.

Mafioso rap

Mafioso rap is a

subgenre founded by

in the late 1980s. East Coast mafioso rap was partially the counterpart of West Coast

rap. Mafioso rap is characterized by references to famous

mobsters A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level of organization a ...

and mafiosi, racketeering and

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

(particularly the Sicilian Mafia, the

Italian-American Mafia The American Mafia, commonly referred to in North America as the Italian American Mafia, the Mafia, or the Mob, is a highly organized Italian American criminal society and organized crime group. The organization is often referred to by its mem ...

African-American organized crime In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, African-American organized crime emerged following the first and second large-scale migration of African-Americans from the South to major cities of the Northeast, Midwest, and later the West Coast. I ...

, and

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...

organized crime or

drug cartel A drug cartel is any criminal organization with the intention of supplying drug trafficking operations. They range from loosely managed agreements among various drug traffickers to formalized commercial enterprises. The term was applied when th ...

s). Though a significant amount of mafioso rap was grittier and more street-oriented, focusing on street-level organized crime, other mafioso rap artists frequently focused on lavish, self-indulgent, materialistic, and luxurious subject matter associated with crime bosses and high-level mobsters, such as expensive drugs, cars, and

champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, ...

. Though the genre died down for several years, it re-emerged in 1995 when

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close aff ...

member

Raekwon Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon The Chef, or simply Raekwon (), is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as a founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which achieved mainstream success ...

released his critically acclaimed solo album, '' Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...'' That year also saw the release of ''

Doe or Die ''Doe or Die'' is the debut studio album by rapper AZ, released October 10, 1995 by EMI Records. The album features guest appearances by artists such as Nas and Miss Jones, and production from N.O. Joe, Pete Rock, L.E.S., and Buckwild, among o ...

'' by Nas' protégé AZ and the release of the album '' 4,5,6'' by subgenre originator Kool G Rap. His album featured other mafioso rap artists, including

MF Grimm Percy Carey (born June 11, 1970), also known by the stage names MF Grimm, Grimm Reaper, GM Grimm and originally Build and Destroy, is an American underground rapper, music producer, CEO, and Eisner Award-nominated comic book writer from New ...

, Nas, and B-1. These three albums brought the genre to mainstream recognition, and inspired other East Coast artists, such as Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G., and Nas to adopt the same themes with their albums ''

Reasonable Doubt Beyond a reasonable doubt is a legal standard of proof required to validate a criminal conviction in most adversarial legal systems. It is a higher standard of proof than the balance of probabilities standard commonly used in civil cases, bec ...

'', '' Life After Death,'' and '' It Was Written'', respectively. East Coast gangsta rap was popular by the late 1990s, and there were more modern mafioso rap albums such as Ghostface Killah's ''

Fishscale ''Fishscale'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah, released March 28, 2006, on Def Jam in the United States. The album features guest appearances from every member of the Wu-Tang Clan, as well as ...

'', Jay-Z's '' American Gangster,'' and

's '' Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt. II''. Many rappers, such as Conejo, Mr Criminal, T.I., Rick Ross,

Fabolous John David Jackson (born November 18, 1977), better known by his stage name Fabolous, is an American rapper. Raised in Brooklyn, he first gained recognition while still a senior in high school, when he performed live on American music executive ...

Jadakiss Jason Terrance Phillips (born May 27, 1975), better known by his stage name Jadakiss, is an American rapper from Yonkers, New York. He began his career in the 1990s as a member of the rap trio The Lox, managed by Ruff Ryders and signed with B ...

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American preacher, political activist and mass murderer. He led the Peoples Temple, a new religious movement, between 1955 and 1978. In what he called "revolutionary suicide ...

, and Cassidy have maintained popularity with lyrics about self-centered urban criminal lifestyles or "hustling". Lil' Kim's mafioso album '' La Bella Mafia'', released in 2003, was a commercial success, receiving platinum certification. In 2020, Belgian rapper CHG Unfadable released the mafioso rap album ''Lifestyle'' featuring Kool G Rap, AZ, and the first Italian-American mob rapper, The Shark. After a long slump in the popularity of mafioso rap, music collective Griselda re-popularised nostalgic mafioso rap and the boom-bap rap style of the '80s and '90s with artists such as Westside Gunn,

Conway the Machine Demond Price (born February 16, 1982), known professionally as Conway the Machine (or simply Conway), is an American rapper. Alongside his paternal half-brother Westside Gunn and cousin Benny the Butcher, Conway was a member of Griselda Record ...

Benny the Butcher Jeremie Damon Pennick (born November 27, 1984), known professionally as Benny the Butcher or simply Benny, is an American rapper. He is part of the hip hop collective Griselda with frequent collaborators and first-cousins Westside Gunn and Co ...

, and

Daringer A derringer is a small handgun that is neither a revolver nor a semi/ fully automatic pistol. It is not to be confused with mini-revolvers or pocket pistols, although some later derringers were manufactured with the pepperbox configuration. ...

East Coast hardcore hip hop and the East Coast–West Coast feud

Meanwhile, rappers from New York City, such as

, Black Moon and

Boot Camp Clik Boot Camp Clik is an American hip hop supergroup from Brooklyn, New York City, which is composed of Buckshot (of Black Moon), Smif-N-Wessun ( Tek and Steele), Heltah Skeltah (Rock and Sean Price) and O.G.C. (Starang Wondah, Top Dog, and Louiev ...

Onyx Onyx primarily refers to the parallel banded variety of chalcedony, a silicate mineral. Agate and onyx are both varieties of layered chalcedony that differ only in the form of the bands: agate has curved bands and onyx has parallel bands. The ...

Big L Lamont Coleman (May 30, 1974February 15, 1999), known professionally as Big L, was an American rapper and record executive. Emerging from Harlem in New York City in 1992, Coleman became known among underground hip-hop fans for his freestyling ...

, Mobb Deep, Nas, The Notorious B.I.G., DMX and

The LOX The Lox (stylized The LOX or The L.O.X.) is an American hip hop group from Yonkers, New York, formed in 1994. The group is composed of East Coast rappers Sheek Louch, Styles P and Jadakiss. They had originally signed to Puff Daddy's Bad Boy ...

, among others, pioneered a grittier sound known as

. In 1994, both Nas and The Notorious B.I.G. released their debut albums ''

Illmatic ''Illmatic'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Nas. It was released on April 19, 1994, by Columbia Records. After signing with the label with the help of MC Serch, Nas recorded the album in 1992 and 1993 at Chung King Studios, D&D Re ...

'' (April 19) and ''

Ready to Die ''Ready to Die'' is the debut studio album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released on September 13, 1994, by Bad Boy Records and Arista Records. The album features productions by Bad Boy founder Sean "Puffy" Combs, Easy Mo Bee, Chuc ...

'' (September 13) respectively, which paved the way for New York City to take back dominance from the West Coast. In an interview for ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'' in 1994, the Wu-Tang Clan's

GZA ''Gary Eldridge Grice'' (born August 22, 1966), better known by his stage names GZA ( ) and The Genius, is an American rapper and songwriter. A founding member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, GZA is the group's "spiritual head", being both ...

commented on the term "gangsta rap" and its association with his group's music and hip hop at the time: It is widely speculated that the ensuing "East/West" battle between Death Row Records and

Bad Boy Records Bad Boy Records (or Bad Boy Entertainment) is an American record label founded in 1993 by rapper Sean "Puffy" Combs. It operates as an imprint of Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. It has been home to many artists, including ...

resulted in the deaths of Death Row Records'

(who was 25 years old) and

' The Notorious B.I.G. (who was 24 years old). Even before the murders, Death Row had begun to unravel, as co-founder Dr. Dre had left earlier in 1996; in the aftermath of 2Pac's death, label owner Suge Knight was sentenced to prison for a parole violation, and Death Row proceeded to sink quickly as most of its remaining artists, including Snoop Dogg, left. Dr. Dre, at the MTV Video Music Awards, claimed that "gangsta rap was dead". While Puff Daddy's Bad Boy Entertainment fared better than its West Coast rival, it eventually began to lose popularity and support by the end of the decade, due to its pursuit of a more mainstream sound, as well as challenges from

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

and New Orleans-based labels, especially,

Master P Percy Robert Miller Sr. (born April 29, 1967), known by his stage name Master P, is an American rapper, record executive, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the founder of the record label No Limit Records, which was relaunched as ...

No Limit No Limit may refer to: Music Record labels *No Limit Records, a record label founded by Master P * No Limit Forever Records, a record label founded by Romeo Miller, son of Master P Albums * ''No Limit'' (Art Pepper album), 1977 * ''No Limit'' ...

stable of popular rappers.

Southern and Midwest gangsta rap

first came on to the national scene in the late 1980s with the violent and disturbing stories told by the Geto Boys, with member Scarface achieving major solo success in the mid-1990s. After the deaths of

Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

and

Biggie Smalls Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...

and the media attention the murders generated, gangsta rap became an even greater commercial force. However, most of the industry's major labels were in turmoil, bankrupt, or creatively stagnant, and new labels representing the rap scenes in new locations sprang up. Master P's No Limit Records label, based out of New Orleans, became quite popular in the late 1990s, though critical success was very scarce, with the exceptions of some later additions like

Mystikal Michael Lawrence Tyler (born September 22, 1970), better known by his stage name Mystikal, is an American rapper. Early life and education Tyler grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana's 12th Ward. His father, who ran a small neighborhood store, d ...

(''

Ghetto Fabulous ''Ghetto fabulous'' is a lifestyle expression that originated among African American communities living in poor urban areas. In the media Ghetto fabulous is a fashion stereotype alluding to individuals living in an affluent materialistic style wh ...

'', 1998). No Limit had begun its rise to national popularity with Master P's '' The Ghetto Is Trying to Kill Me!'' (1994), and had major hits with

Silkk the Shocker Vyshonn King Miller (born June 18, 1975), better known by his stage name Silkk the Shocker, is an American rapper and actor. He originally went under the stage name Silkk, but later adopted Silkk the Shocker after the release of his first album ...

('' Charge It 2 Da Game'', 1998) and

C-Murder Corey Miller (born March 9, 1971), better known by his stage name C-Murder, is an American rapper and songwriter. He initially gained fame in the mid-1990s as a part of his brother Master P's label No Limit Records, primarily as a member of the ...

('' Life or Death'', 1998).

Cash Money Records Cash Money Records is an American record label founded in 1991 by brothers Ronald "Slim" Williams and Bryan "Birdman" Williams. Distributed by Republic, formerly known as Universal Republic, the label has been home to a roster of mostly hip ...

, also based out of New Orleans, had enormous commercial success beginning in the late 1990s with a similar musical style but utilized a quality-over-quantity business approach unlike No Limit.

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

collective Hypnotize Minds, led by

Three 6 Mafia Three 6 Mafia is an American hip hop group from Memphis, Tennessee, formed in 1991. Emerging as a horror-themed underground hip hop group, they would eventually go on to enjoy mainstream success. The group's 1995 debut album ''Mystic Stylez'' ...

and

Project Pat Patrick Earl Houston (born February 8, 1973), better known by his stage name Project Pat, is an American rapper from Memphis, Tennessee. He is the older brother of Juicy J, the co-founder of Three 6 Mafia. Houston was formerly a member of hip h ...

, have taken gangsta rap to some of its darker extremes. Led by in-house producers

DJ Paul Paul Duane Beauregard (born January 12, 1977), better known by his stage name DJ Paul, is an American DJ, record producer, and rapper from Memphis, Tennessee. He is a founding member of hip hop group Three 6 Mafia and uncle of the late rapper ...

and

Juicy J Jordan Michael Houston III (born April 5, 1975), known professionally as Juicy J, is an American rapper and record producer. Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, he is a founding member of the Southern hip hop group Three 6 Mafia, established i ...

, the label became known for its pulsating, menacing beats and uncompromisingly thuggish lyrics. However, in the mid-2000s, the group began attaining more mainstream popularity, eventually culminating in the

winning an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for the song " It's Hard out Here for a Pimp" from '' Hustle & Flow''. The

chopped and screwed Chopped and screwed (also called screwed and chopped or slowed and throwed) is a music genre and technique of remixing music that involves slowing down the tempo and deejaying. It developed in the Houston hip hop scene in the early 1990s by D ...

genre was developed in

, Texas, the location which is still most associated with the style. DJ Screw is credited with the creation of and early experimentation with the genre. DJ Screw began making mixtapes of the slowed-down music in the early 1990s and began the Screwed Up Click. This provided a significant outlet for MCs in the South-Houston area, and helped local rappers such as

Big Moe Kenneth Doniell Moore (August 20, 1974 – October 14, 2007), better known by his stage name Big Moe, was an American rapper from Houston, Texas. Early life Kenneth Doniell Moore was born in Houston, Texas on August 20, 1974, and he grew up ...

, Lil' Flip, E.S.G., UGK,

Lil' Keke Marcus Lakee Edwards (born March 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Lil' Keke, is an American rapper and original member of the Southern hip hop collective Screwed Up Click. Biography Music career Lil' Keke gained national attention with ...

South Park Mexican Carlos Coy (born October 5, 1970), known professionally as SPM (an initialism for South Park Mexican), is an American rapper, songwriter, founder of Dope House Records, and convicted sex offender. His stage name is derived from the South Park ...

, and

Z-Ro Joseph Wayne McVey IV (born January 19, 1977), better known by his stage names Z-Ro and the Mo City Don, is an American rapper from Houston, Texas. He was named one of America's most underrated rappers by ''The New York Times'' in 2007. Early li ...

gain regional and sometimes national prominence.

Narco-rap

Narco-rap is a music scene, similar to the early underground gangsta rap scene, that emerged in north-eastern Mexico and southern

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. Its lyrical content, popular among Latino youth, is violent and focuses on the power of drug cartels and the gruesomeness of the Mexican drug war. Narco-rap emerged in the urban areas of

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

, a Mexican state currently subject to a turf war between Los Zetas and the Gulf Cartel. Narco-rappers sing about the life of mobsters and the reality of the cities under the cartel's rule. Some of the key players of the genre are Cano y Blunt, DemenT and Big Los.

1995–2009: Bling era

Before the late 1990s, gangsta rap, while a huge-selling genre, had been regarded as well outside of the pop mainstream, committed to representing the experience of the inner-city and not "selling out" to the pop charts. However, the rise of Bad Boy Records, propelled by the massive crossover success of Bad Boy head Sean "Puffy" Combs's 1997 ensemble album, '' No Way Out'', on the heels of the media attention generated by the murders of

and The Notorious B.I.G., signaled a major stylistic change in gangsta rap (or as it is referred to on the East Coast, hardcore rap), as it morphed into a new subgenre of hip hop which would become even more commercially successful and popularly accepted. The earlier, somewhat controversial crossover success enjoyed by popular gangsta rap songs like "

" gave way to gangsta rap's becoming a widely accepted staple on the pop charts in the late 1990s. For example, between the release of The Notorious B.I.G.'s debut album ''

'' in 1994 and his follow-up, the posthumous '' Life After Death'' in 1997, his sound changed from a darker, tense production, with lyrics projecting desperation and paranoia, to a cleaner, more laid-back sound, fashioned for popular consumption (though the references to guns, drug dealing and life as a thug on the street remained). R&B-styled hooks and instantly recognizable samples of well-known

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...

and pop songs from the 1970s and 1980s were the staples of this sound, which was showcased primarily in Sean "Puffy" Combs's latter-day production work for The Notorious B.I.G. (" Mo Money, Mo Problems"),

Mase Mason Durell Betha (born August 27, 1975), better known by his mononym Mase (formerly Murda Mase and stylized as Ma$e), is an American rapper and minister. In the late 1990s, he recorded on the Bad Boy Records label alongside its founder Sean ...

(" Feels So Good") and non-Bad Boy artists such as Jay-Z (" Can I Get A...") and Nas (" Street Dreams"). Also achieving similar levels of success with a similar sound at the same time as Bad Boy was

and his No Limit label in New Orleans, as well as the New Orleans upstart Cash Money label. Many of the artists who achieved such mainstream success in the 2000s, such as Jay-Z, DMX, then 50 Cent and G-Unit, originated from the gritty 1990s East Coast rap scene and were influenced by hardcore artists such as The Notorious B.I.G.,

and Nas.

and Cam'ron were typical of a more relaxed, casual flow that became the pop-gangsta norm. By contrast, other rappers like Eminem and DMX enjoyed commercial success in the late 1990s by rapping about ever-more macabre tales of death and violence, maintaining commercial relevance by attempting to be controversial and subversive, growing on the

Horrorcore Horrorcore, also called horror hip hop, horror rap, death hip hop, or death rap, is a subgenre of hip hop music based on horror-themed and often darkly transgressive lyrical content and imagery. Its origins derived from certain hardcore hip h ...

rap style born in the late 1980s.

2009–present: Mainstream decline, rise of drill and trap

By the late 2000s, alternative hip hop had secured its place within the mainstream, due in part to the declining commercial viability of gangsta rap. Industry observers view the sales race between Kanye West's '' Graduation'' and 50 Cent's ''

Curtis Curtis or Curtiss is a common English given name and surname of Anglo-Norman origin from the Old French ''curteis'' ( Modern French ''courtois'') which derived from the Spanish Cortés (of which Cortez is a variation) and the Portuguese and Ga ...

'' as a turning point for hip hop. Kanye West emerged the victor, selling nearly a million copies in the first week alone, proving that innovative rap music could be just as commercially viable as gangsta rap, if not more so. Although he designed it as a melancholic pop album rather than a rap album, Kanye's following ''

808s & Heartbreak ''808s & Heartbreak'' is the fourth studio album by American rapper Kanye West. It was released by Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records on November 24, 2008, having been recorded earlier that year in September and October at Glenwood Studi ...

'' would have a significant effect on hip hop music. While his decision to sing about love, loneliness, and heartache for the entirety of the album was at first heavily criticized by music audiences and the album was predicted to be a flop, its subsequent critical acclaim and commercial success encouraged other mainstream rappers to take greater creative risks with their music. During the release of ''

The Blueprint 3 ''The Blueprint 3'' is the eleventh studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, released September 8, 2009, on Roc Nation, through distribution from Asylum Records and Atlantic Records. It is the third album in the ''Blueprint'' series, preceded by '' ...

'', New York rap mogul Jay-Z revealed that next studio album would be an experimental effort, stating, "... it's not gonna be a #1 album. That's where I'm at right now. I wanna make the most experimental album I ever made." Jay-Z elaborated that like Kanye, he was unsatisfied with contemporary hip hop, was being inspired by indie-rockers like Grizzly Bear, and asserted his belief that the indie rock movement would play an important role in the continued evolution of hip-hop. In the 2010s, a new form of gangsta rap known as drill emerged from the Midwest, gaining popularity via rappers such as Lil Durk, Chief Keef, Lil Reese,

King Von Dayvon Daquan Bennett (August 9, 1994 – November 6, 2020), known professionally as King Von, was an American rapper from Chicago, Illinois. He was signed to Lil Durk's record label Only the Family and Empire Distribution. Early life Benne ...

, Polo G and

G Herbo Herbert Randall Wright III (born October 8, 1995), better known by his stage name G Herbo (formerly Lil Herb), is an American rapper from Chicago. G Herbo is signed to Machine Entertainment Group. He has released the mixtapes '' Welcome to Faz ...

. West Coast rapper

Vince Staples Vincent Jamal Staples (born July 2, 1993) is an American rapper and singer. Staples was once a close associate of Odd Future, Mike G and Earl Sweatshirt in particular. He is currently signed to Motown and Blacksmith Records. Staples rose to ...

is part of the new generation of rappers that is influenced by G-funk. Being from the same area as Snoop himself, Staples has a sound that is lyrically in comparison to gangsta rap, though also containing elements of

conscious rap Political hip hop is a subgenre of hip hop music that was developed in the 1980s as a way of turning hip hop into a call for political and/or social action and a form of social and/or political activism. Inspired by 1970s political artists su ...

. His 2015 album ''

Summertime '06 ''Summertime '06'' is the debut studio double album by American rapper Vince Staples. It was released on June 30, 2015, through ARTium Recordings, Blacksmith Records, and Def Jam Recordings. The album was primarily produced by No I.D., alongside ...

'' reflects the "challenges of racism, injustice, and violent fallouts in his childhood neighborhood". Other gangsta rappers who have maintained success in recent times include Rick Ross, Jeezy, Nipsey Hussle,

Gucci Mane Radric Delantic Davis (born February 12, 1980), known professionally as Gucci Mane, is an American rapper and record executive. He helped pioneer the hip hop subgenre of trap music alongside fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Young Jeezy, ...

Freddie Gibbs Fredrick Jamel Tipton (born June 14, 1982), better known by his stage name Freddie Gibbs, is an American rapper from Gary, Indiana. After initially being signed to Interscope Records in 2006, Gibbs recorded his debut studio album under the label ...

Meek Mill Robert Rihmeek Williams (born May 6, 1987), known professionally as Meek Mill, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he embarked on his music career as a battle rapper, and later formed a short-lived rap group, ...

Ace Hood Antoine Franklin McColister (born May 11, 1988), better known by his stage name Ace Hood, is an American rapper. He was born in Port St. Lucie, Florida and raised in Deerfield Beach, Florida. He was signed to record producer DJ Khaled's label W ...

Pusha T Terrence LeVarr Thornton (born May 13, 1977), better known by his stage name Pusha T, is an American rapper, songwriter and record executive. He rose to prominence as one-half of the hip hop duo Clipse, which was mainly active from 1994 to 201 ...

, YG,

A$AP Ferg Darold Durard Brown Ferguson Jr. (born October 20, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Ferg (stylized as A$AP Ferg), is an American rapper from New York City's Harlem neighborhood. Aside from his solo career, he is a member of the hip hop collec ...

Bobby Shmurda Ackquille Jean Pollard (born August 4, 1994), known professionally as Bobby Shmurda, is an American rapper. Along with Rowdy Rebel, Shmurda is considered a pioneer of Brooklyn drill music. He rose to international fame in 2014 when his song "Hot ...

, A$AP Rocky, Jay Rock,

ScHoolboy Q Quincy Matthew Hanley (born October 26, 1986), better known by his stage name Schoolboy Q (stylized as ScHoolboy Q), is an American rapper. In 2009, Hanley signed to Carson-based independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) and in late ...

21 Savage Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph (born October 22, 1992), known professionally as 21 Savage, is a rapper based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Born in London, he moved to Atlanta with his mother at age seven. He became known after releasing two m ...

, Denzel Curry,

XXXTentacion Jahseh Dwayne Ricardo Onfroy (January 23, 1998 – June 18, 2018), known professionally as XXXTentacion, was an American rapper and singer-songwriter. Though a controversial figure due to his widely publicized legal troubles, XXXTentacion ga ...

Ski Mask The Slump God Stokeley Clevon Goulbourne (born April 18, 1996), known professionally as Ski Mask the Slump God (formerly stylized as $ki Mask "The Slump God"), is an American rapper. He initially rose to prominence alongside XXXTentacion and their collectiv ...

, Smokepurpp,

Dave East David Lawrence Brewster Jr. (born June 3, 1988), better known by his stage name Dave East, is an American rapper. East began his career in 2010, and gained attention in 2014 from his eighth mixtape, ''Black Rose''. Its release garnered the attent ...

Tay-K Taymor Travon McIntyre (born June 16, 2000), known professionally as Tay-K ( ) is an American rapper. He is best known for his 2017 hit song " The Race", which reached number 44 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and was certified platinum by the ...

Uncle Murda Leonard Grant (born July 25, 1980), better known by his stage name Uncle Murda, is an American rapper from East New York, Brooklyn. He is Afro Panamanian of his mother's side. He is currently signed to G-Unit Records. He is known for his annual ...

, Casanova,

Lil Baby Dominique Armani Jones (born December 3, 1994), known professionally as Lil Baby, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to mainstream fame in 2017 following the release of his mixtape ''Perfect Timing''. *Alt URL* * His deb ...

, Da Baby,

Blueface Johnathan Jamall Porter (born January 20, 1997), known professionally as Blueface, is an American rapper. In October 2018, after releasing the music video for his song "Respect My Cryppin'", he became a viral meme due to his offbeat style of rap ...

Roddy Ricch Rodrick Wayne Moore Jr. (born October 22, 1998), known professionally as Roddy Ricch, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to fame in 2018 with his single, " Die Young", which peaked at number 98 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. ...

, NBA Youngboy, NLE Choppa, Pop Smoke, 22Gz, SpotemGottem,

Pooh Shiesty Lontrell Donell Williams Jr. (born November 8, 1999), better known by his stage name Pooh Shiesty, is an American rapper. He is signed to Gucci Mane's 1017 Records and Atlantic Records. He rose to fame in 2020 from his collaborations with the ra ...

, Key Glock, Rowdy Rebel,

Young Dolph Adolph Robert Thornton Jr. (July 27, 1985 – November 17, 2021), better known by his stage name Young Dolph, was an American rapper. In 2016, he released his debut studio album, '' King of Memphis'', which peaked at number 49 on the ''Billboar ...

9lokkNine Jacquavius Dennard Smith (born May 1, 2000), professionally known as 9lokkNine (pronounced and formerly typeset GlokkNine), is an American rapper. He is best known for his songs "10 Percent", which has received over 30 million views on YouTube, ...

, Moneybagg Yo,

Lil Loaded Dashawn Maurice Robertson (August 1, 2000 – May 31, 2021), known professionally as Lil Loaded, was an American rapper from Dallas, Texas. He rose to fame in mid-2019 after his song "6locc 6a6y" went viral. Early life Robertson was born in S ...

, 42 Dugg, YBN Nahmir,

Fredo Bang Fredrick Dewon Thomas Givens II (born March 29, 1996), known professionally as Fredo Bang, is an American rapper from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He is best known for his tracks "Oouuh" and "Top" (featuring Lil Durk). In April 2020, he released his ...

, BlocBoy JB, and

Juice WRLD Jarad Anthony Higgins (December 2, 1998 – December 8, 2019), known professionally as Juice Wrld (pronounced "juice world"; stylized as Juice WRLD), was an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He was a leading figure in the emo rap and ...

. Gangsta rap's pioneers have met success in other forms of pop culture as well. In 2016, N.W.A was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They were followed up by the late

in 2017 who was inducted as the first solo hip hop act, under his first year of eligibility as a nominee. Other Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Hip-Hop Acts include the 2007 induction of

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were an American hip hop group formed in the South Bronx of New York City in 1978. The group's members were Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel, Kidd Creole (not to be confused with Kid Creole), Keef Cowboy, S ...

, who are considered pioneers of expanding the sound of Hip-Hop from disco inspired partying, to street reality that inspired social change. The 2009 induction of Run-D.M.C to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opened the door for more Hip-Hop inductions, as they were followed up by the 2012 induction of Beastie Boys, and the 2013 induction of

Criticism and debate

The explicit nature of gangsta rap's lyrics has made it heavily controversial. There is also debate about the causation between gangsta rap and violent behavior. A study by the Prevention Research Center of the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation in Berkeley, Calif., finds young people who listen to rap and hip-hop are more likely to abuse alcohol and commit violent acts. Critics of gangsta rap hold that it glorifies and encourages criminal behavior, and may be at least partially to blame for the problem of street gangs. Although this view is often stereotyped as that of

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

, it has been shared by members of the

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

community, most notably

Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...

. Those who are supportive or at least less critical of gangsta rap hold that crime on the street level is for the most part a reaction to poverty and that gangsta rap reflects the reality of lower class life. Many believe that the blaming of crime on gangsta rap is a form of unwarranted moral panic; The World Development Report 2011, for instance, confirmed that most street gang members maintain that poverty and unemployment is what drove them to crime; none made reference to music. Ice Cube famously satirized the blame placed on gangsta rap for social ills in his song " Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It". Many gangsta rappers maintain they are playing a "role" in their music like an actor in a play or film, and do not encourage the behavior in their music. Moreover, English scholar Ronald A.T. Judy has argued that gangsta rap reflects the experience of blackness at the end of political economy, when capital is no longer wholly produced by human labor but in a globalized system of commodities. In this economy, gangsta rap traffics blackness as a commodifiable effect of "being a nigga". In other words, gangsta rap defines the experience of blackness, in which he locates in gangsta rap's deployment of the word "nigga", in this new global economic system as "adaptation to the force of commodification". For Judy, ''nigga'' (and gangsta rap) becomes an epistemologically authentic category for describing the condition of being black in the modern "realm of things". Despite this, many who hold that gangsta rap is not responsible for social ills are critical of the way many gangsta rappers intentionally exaggerate their criminal pasts for the sake of street credibility. Rick Ross and Slim Jesus among others have been heavily criticized for this.

Hip-Hop Minister Conrad Tillard

In the 1990s and early 2000s, Nation of Islam Minister Conrad Tillard, known as the "Hip-Hop Minister," was an outspoken critic of hip hop lyrics that he perceived as degrading and dangerous to Blacks.Trumaine W. Mitchell (June 16, 2020)
"The Underclass Culture Wars: Underclass Ideology AndThe Underclass Culture Wars: Underclass Ideology And Neoliberalism In The Era Of Gangsta Rap Censorship, 1993-2000,"
''Theses and Dissertations''.David M. Newman, Jodi O'Brien (2008)
''Sociology; Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life Readings''
Rahiel Tesfamariam (March 15, 2013).

''The Washington Post''. He said such lyrics suggested "that we are penny-chasing, Champagne-drinking, gold-teeth-wearing, modern-day Sambos, pimps and players." He criticized hip-hop lyrics that portrayed American black communities as degenerate. He believed that in seeking to emulate the lyrics in gangsta rap, young Black Americans became victims of mass incarceration, violence, sexual exploitation, and drug crime. In the 1990s, he started an organization called A Movement for C.H.H.A.N.G.E. ("Conscious Hip Hop Activism Necessary for Global Empowerment"), to advocate for "conscious hip hop activism". After the drive-by shooting murder of rapper

in 1996, Tillard organized a "Day of Atonement" event to advocate against violent themes in hip-hop music, to promote unity, and to celebrate Shakur's life. He invited rap group A Tribe Called Quest, Chuck D with

, Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, model Bethann Hardison, actor Malik Yoba,

president

Sean Combs Sean Combs (born Sean John Combs; November 4, 1969), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Puffy, or Diddy, is an American rapper, actor, record producer, and record executive. Born in New York City, he worked as a talent directo ...

, and

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

The Notorious B.I.G. There were an estimated 2,000 attendees. Tillard also criticized the Reverend

Al Sharpton Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr. (born October 3, 1954) is an American civil rights activist, Baptist minister, talk show host and politician. Sharpton is the founder of the National Action Network. In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democrati ...

and other civil rights leaders, calling them "hired guns" for not condemning rappers Sean Combs or Shyne Barrows. He also criticized the businessmen who supported that approach. He feuded with Def Jam founder Russell Simmons in 2001, accusing him of stoking violence by allowing the frequent use of words such as "

nigga ''Nigga'' () is a colloquial and vulgar term used in African-American Vernacular English that began as a dialect form of the word ''nigger'', an ethnic slur against black people. The word is commonly associated with hip hop music and Afri ...

" and "bitch" in rap lyrics. Tillard organized a summit in Harlem over what he perceived as negative imagery in hip hop. Def Jam Recordings founder Russell Simmons organized a counter-summit, urging the public not to "support open and aggressive critics of the hip-hop community".

''2Pacalypse Now'' controversy

In 1992, then-U.S. Vice President

blasted the recording industry for producing rap music he believed led to violence. Quayle called on Time Warner Inc. subsidiary, Interscope Records, to withdraw

's 1991 debut album '' 2Pacalypse Now'' from stores. Quayle stated, "There is absolutely no reason for a record like this to be published—It has no place in our society." Quayle's motivation came in light of the murder of a Texas state trooper Bill Davidson, who had been shot by Ronald Ray Howard after he had been pulled over. Howard was driving a stolen vehicle while songs from ''2Pacalypse Now'' were playing on the tape deck when he was stopped by the officer. The family of Davidson filed a civil suit against Shakur and Interscope Records, claiming the record's violent lyrics incite "imminent lawless action". District Judge John D. Rainey held that Shakur and the record companies did not have the duty to prevent distributing his music when they could not reasonably foresee violence arising from the distribution, nor was there any intent for the usage of the music as a "product for purposes of recovery under a products liability theory". Judge Rainey concluded the suit by ruling the Davidsons' argument that the music was unprotected speech under the First Amendment was irrelevant.

C. Delores Tucker

Politicians such as C. Delores Tucker have cited concerns with sexually explicit and misogynistic lyrics featured in hip-hop tracks. Tucker claimed the explicit lyrics used in hip-hop songs were threatening to the African-American community. Tucker, who once was the highest-ranking African American woman in the Pennsylvania state government, focused on rap music in 1993, labeling it as "pornographic filth" and claiming it was offensive and demeaning to black women. Tucker stated, "You can't listen to all that language and filth without it affecting you." Tucker also handed out leaflets containing lyrics from rap music and urged people to read them aloud. She picketed stores that sold the music and handed out petitions. She then proceeded to buy stock in

Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professiona ...

and other companies for the sole purpose to protest rap music at shareholders meetings. In 1994, Tucker protested when the NAACP nominated rapper

for one of its image awards as Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture from his role in ''

Poetic Justice Poetic justice, also called poetic irony, is a literary device with which ultimately virtue is rewarded and misdeeds are punished. In modern literature, it is often accompanied by an ironic twist of fate related to the character's own action, henc ...

''. Some rappers labeled her "narrow-minded", and some ridiculed her in their lyrics, notably Shakur, who mentions her multiple times in his diamond certified 1996 album '' All Eyez On Me''. Shakur mentions Tucker in the tracks "Wonda Why They Call U Bitch" and "How Do U Want It", where Shakur sings "Delores Tucker, you's a motherfucker/Instead of trying to help a nigga you destroy a brother." Tucker filed a $10 million lawsuit against Shakur's estate for the comments made in both songs. In her lawsuit, she claimed that the comments were slanderous, caused her emotional distress and invaded her personal privacy. The case was eventually dismissed. Shakur was not the only rap artist to mention her in his songs, as Jay-Z, Eminem, Lil' Kim, The Game and

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...

have all previously criticized Tucker for her opposition of the genre.

First Amendment rights

Gangsta rap has also raised questions of whether it is protected speech under the

First Amendment to the United States Constitution The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents the government from making laws that regulate an establishment of religion, or that prohibit the free exercise of religion, or abridge the freedom of speech, the ...

, since lyrics may express violence and may be considered

true threat A true threat is a threatening communication that can be prosecuted under the law. It is distinct from a threat that is made in jest. The U.S. Supreme Court has held that true threats are not protected under the U.S. Constitution based on three jus ...

s. The Supreme Court ruled in '' Elonis v. United States'' (2015) that '' mens rea'', the intent to commit a crime, is necessary to convict someone of a crime for using threatening words in a rap song. In a notable case, rapper Jamal Knox, performing as "Mayhem Mal", wrote a gangsta rap song named "F*** the Police" shortly after he was arrested for gun and drug charges in Pittsburgh. The song's lyrics specifically named the two arresting officers, and included explicit violent threats including "Let's kill these cops cuz they don't do us no good". One of the officers, believing to be threatened, subsequently left the force. Knox was convicted of making terroristic threats and of witness intimidation in a bench trial, and the conviction was affirmed by the

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It also claims to be the oldest appellate court in the United States, a claim that is disputed by the Massachusetts Supreme Ju ...

, which held that the song's lyrics amounted to a true threat. Knox petitioned the Supreme Court of the United States to hear the case, and academics joined rappers Killer Mike, Chance the Rapper, Meek Mill, Yo Gotti, Fat Joe and 21 Savage in an '' amicus curiae'' brief arguing that Knox's song should be seen as a political statement and thus is protected speech. The Supreme Court declined review in April 2019.

International influence

German gangsta-rap

The gangsta-rap movement in Germany derived its roots from the '90s and since 2003–2004 has become a successful subgenre of German hip hop. Contextually and musically, it borrows its influences from the French and US-based gangsta rap and

battle rap Battle rap (also known as rap battling)Edwards, Paul, 2009, p. 25. is a type of rapping performed between two or more performers that incorporates boasts, insults and wordplay. Battle rap is often performed or freestyled spontaneously in live ...

. Although there is a certain correlation between street-rap and gangsta-rap, gangsta-rap is not considered as a derivative genre since it is only partially related to street-rap and has contextually little to do with the other subgenre.

History

Pioneers of the subgenre gangsta-rap, who have since the 1990s still been active, are

Kool Savas Savaş Yurderi (born 10 February 1975), known by his stage name Kool Savas, is a German rapper. Along with Taktlo$$, he formed the highly influential German rap duo Westberlin Maskulin (1997–2000). He was also a founding member of the German ...

and Azad. Within the genre, they implemented an incredibly explicit, broken and aggressive text, that originally still had much influence from English text elements. This style of rap, after the turn of the century, was implemented by the majority of gangsta-rappers in Germany and is, therefore, a very well respected form on the approach of German gangsta-rap. On the other hand, Savas distanced himself from these vulgar and explicit texts. One of the founding fathers of German gangsta-rap, Charnell, the little-known rapper and martial-arts artist, thematized growing up in the midst of a social renaissance. Gangsta-rap in other countries, that resembled the music of the Rödelheim Hartreim Projekt in Germany, was commercially successful in the 2000s. Germany at the time, however, had few rappers active in this subgenre; allowing certain artists in the Berlin underground-hip-hop scene an opportunity to establish themselves with their lyrics representing a certain hardship acquired through the criminal lifestyle which had previously been popularized. Recognizable names from the underground scene are Bass Sultan Hengzt,

Fler Patrick Losenský (born 3 April 1982), known professionally as Fler, is a German rapper and the CEO of Maskulin Music Group. Career 2000–2006: Beginnings Fler was first recognized in the rap scene through collaborations with Bushido. ...

MC Bogy MC Bogy (1979 in Berlin), born ''Moritz Christopher'', also known by the pseudonym ''Der Atzenkeeper'', is a German rapper and co-founder of the Berlin street gang ''Berlin Crime''. Career Moritz Christopher was born in 1979, the son of a German ...

or MOK. Another notable rapper and pioneer of gangsta-rap in Germany is Azad. Although he came from the rural

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

, he was a big reason this subgenre became popular in Germany. In his lyrical text, he thematized the rigid and rough lifestyle of living in the northwest district of Frankfurt. At the beginning of the year 2003 the process of commercialization of this subgenre began. Contrary to popular belief, a variable of the German gangsta-rap became popular before the actual subgenre itself did. When Sido, a notoriously known rapper from Berlin, released his album ''

Maske ''Maske'' (German for "Mask") is the debut album by German rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed ...

'' which thematized gangs, drugs and violence, this album became the first of its genre to sell 100,000 copies. Following that album Sido released another two named '' Ich'' and '' Ich und meine Maske'' which both had over 100,000 sold copies and emphasized the success of his first album. Following the success of Sido and his albums, Bushido became the next artist to emerge from the German gangsta-rap scene. He established himself a career and became the most important representative of German gangsta-rap of his time.

Aggro Berlin Aggro Berlin was a German hip-hop independent record label based in Berlin that existed from 1 January 2001 until 1 April 2009. Three artists ( Sido, Tony D and Kitty Kat) were signed with the label at the time of its closure. Since the end ...

, the label those two artists were both represented by, stated that this version of rap was the second, more aggressive evolution of German hip-hop. Bushido's albums ''

Carlo Cokxxx Nutten ''Carlo Cokxxx Nutten'' ("Carlo Colucci talian fashion brand/small>, Coke, Hookers") is an album by German rappers Bushido (alias Sonny Black) and Fler (alias Frank White). It was released on 21 October 2002 by Aggro Berlin. In 2005, the fo ...

'' with Fler and Bushido's debut album '' Vom Bordstein bis zur Skyline'' had relatively little success although the prominent topics on his album reflected directly with the themes that made Sido popular. Following the continuous success of Sido and Bushido came a wave of rappers who were trying, with the help of major-labels, to establish themselves and be recognized by the populace. Eventually came Massiv, who was signed with Sony BMG, and was crowned by his label to be the German 50 Cent. This artist did not reach the success of 50 Cent. Further artists such as

Baba Saad Saad El-Haddad ( ar, سعد الحداد; born 26 November 1985), better known by his stage names Baba Saad or just Saad, is a German rapper of Lebanese descent. Early life Baba Saad was born in Beirut, Lebanon, but emigrated to Syke in norther ...

Kollegah Felix Martin Andreas Matthias Blume (born 3 August 1984), known professionally as Kollegah, is a German rapper. He releases his music via his own label, Alpha Music Empire. Born in Friedberg and raised by a single mother in Simmern, he started ...

have since then established themselves as relatively successful in the German charts. As of recently, names such as

Farid Bang Farid Hamed El Abdellaoui ( ar, link=no, فريد العبدلاوي, born 4 June 1986), known professionally as Farid Bang, is a German rapper of Moroccan-Spanish descent. He is currently the owner of the label Banger Musik. Early life Fari ...

, Nate57, Majoe & Jasko and

Haftbefehl Aykut Anhan (born 16 December 1985), known by his stage name Haftbefehl (meaning "arrest warrant" in German), is a German rapper. He was signed to his own record label Azzlack, before signing with the label Echte Musik. Biography Haftbefehl wa ...

have appeared on the charts regularly.

Musical style

Gangsta-rap in Germany originated from Queensbridge-rap in the 1990s as well as French gangsta-rap. Characteristically the necessary ambiance and melody for this type of hip-hop needs to be melancholic, dark and often threatening. Often, the songs incorporate piano, choir, synthesizers, but also samples from classical and neo-classical arrangements. All complexities such as minimalistic arrangements to vast orchestral symphonic arrangements are used and sampled in this subgenre.

Road rap

Road rap (also known as British gangsta rap or simply UK rap) is a genre of music pioneered in South London, primarily in Brixton and Peckham. The genre was pioneered by groups such as PDC, SMS, SN1, North Star, MashTown, U.S.G. and artists such as Giggs, K Koke, Nines and

Sneakbo Agassi Babatunde Odusina (born 25 July 1992), better known by his stage name Sneakbo, is a British rapper. His first song, " The Wave", peaked at number 48 on the UK Singles Chart and he has since released a number of top 40 hits, such as " Zi ...

. The genre came to the fore as a backlash against the perceived commercialisation of

grime Grime may refer to: * Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust * Grime (music genre), a genre of music * ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity * ''Grime'' (video game), a 2021 Metroidvania video game * "Grime", a 2022 song by Dallas Woo ...

in the mid-late 2000s in London. The genre came to prominence around 2007 with the rise of Giggs. Road rap retained the explicit depictions of violence and British gang culture found in some early grime music and combines it with a musical style more similar to American gangsta rap than the sound system influenced music of grime,

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken be ...

UK garage UK garage, abbreviated as UKG, is a genre of electronic dance music which originated in England in the early to mid-1990s. The genre was most clearly inspired by garage house, but also incorporates elements from dance-pop, R&B, and jungle. It ...

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''ja� ...

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

and dub. Gangs played a large part in the genre, with gangs such as the Peckham Boys (with its various sets such as SN1, PYG and OPB), based in Peckham and GAS Gang, based in Brixton, becoming notable in the road rap scene during the 2000s. The road rap scene centres around mixtape releases and YouTube videos with some of the genres more popular acts getting mainstream recognition. The genre has been criticised for the relentless nihilism and violence in its lyrics as well as its links to gangs and gun crime with many rappers serving prison sentences. In keeping with grime, road rap has suffered from pre-emptive policing with Giggs claiming that the Metropolitan Police have set out to deny him the opportunity to make a living from music having banned him from touring. In 2011, Stigs was served the first ever gang injunction that banned him from rapping about anything that may encourage violence. In the early 2010s, the American genre drill began to emerge in the UK, pushed by groups such as 150, 67 and

Section Boyz Smoke Boys (formerly Section Boyz and before that Squeeze Section) was a British hip hop collective started by British rapper Ghost in 2010. On 25 September 2015 the group's second mixtape '' Don't Panic'' entered at number 36, making their fir ...

. UK drill has been referred to as subgenre of road rap due to the influence it's had on the genre. Road rap also went on to influence

afroswing Afroswing, also known as Afrobashment, or less commonly Afrobbean or Afro-trap (not to be confused with the French genre), is a genre of music that developed in the UK during the mid-2010s, derivative of dancehall and afrobeats, with influence ...

, which emerged in the mid-2010s.

References

Sources

* {{Authority control Hip hop genres Criticism of hip-hop Hardcore hip hop American styles of music Music of New York City Music of New York (state) Music of California Compton, California African-American culture 1980s in music 1990s in music 2000s in music 2010s in music 2020s in music Music controversies Obscenity controversies in music 1980s fads and trends 1990s fads and trends 2000s fads and trends 2010s fads and trends 2020s fads and trends

1985–1988: Origins and early years

Schoolly D and Ice-T

Boogie Down Productions

Other early influences

1988–1995: Golden age

N.W.A. And Ice Cube

West, East and South

Ice-T's solo career

G-funk and Death Row Records

Mafioso rap

East Coast hardcore hip hop and the East Coast–West Coast feud

Southern and Midwest gangsta rap

Narco-rap

1995–2009: Bling era

2009–present: Mainstream decline, rise of drill and trap

Criticism and debate

Hip-Hop Minister Conrad Tillard

''2Pacalypse Now'' controversy

C. Delores Tucker

First Amendment rights

International influence

German gangsta-rap

History

Musical style

Road rap

See also

References

Sources