Gangsta Rap

Gangsta rap is a sub-genre of hip hop that reflects the violent lifestyles of some inner-city youths. "Gangsta" is a corruption of the word gangster. The genre was pioneered around 1983 by Ice-T with songs like Cold Wind Madness and Body Rock/Killers, and was popularized by groups like N.W.A in the late 80s. After the national attention that Ice-T & N.W.A received in the late 80s, gangsta rap became the most commercially lucrative subgenre of hip-hop.