Analysis Of Gangsta Rap

Register to read the introduction… Hip hop music, originating in New York in the late 70s, had spread throughout the nation and splintered into many different subgenres sending many different messages. One impulse was “Gangsta Rap”, which exemplified the violence and struggles of many inner city youths through harsh and often offensive lyrics. Gangsta rap was specifically popular on the west coast and eventually reached the ears of kids living in South Central Los Angeles. Artists like N.W.A., a group that grew up in South Central, and Ice-T represented California and constantly alluded to their experiences growing up in the “ghetto” in their songs. N.W.A.’s debut album, Straight Outta Compton, boasted it’s most controversial and popular track titled “Fuck tha Police”. Lyrics from the song state, “Young nigga got it bad cause I'm brown/And not the other color so police think/They have the authority to kill a minority”. N.W.A. did not sugarcoat their mentality; the message was clear, and it was one that many youths identified with in Los Angeles as well as all across the nation. Textually, the lyrics denounced authority because it abused its power. This theme is interchangeable with the Rodney King controversy, and cultivated support in defending King. The grief, tribulations, and resentments that lived day to day in the minds of desperate youths were made real through these lyrics. N.W.A. materialized something that had only ever existed in the minds of silent children. They brought to the surface something ugly and hateful, and by refusing to sugarcoat it, enlightened much of the world about the truths of inner city plight for the first time. Outside of gangsta rap, groups like Body Count, a heavy metal band, produced songs with similar undertones. One track by Body Count titled, “Cop Killer”, incited similar themes of seeking revenge for wrongdoings by police officers ("Gangsta …show more content…
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