gangsta rap

American  

[gang-stuh rap] / ˈgæŋ stə ˌræp /

Also gangster rap

noun

1. a type of rap music whose lyrics feature violence, sexual exploits, and the like.

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gangsta rap British  

/ ˈɡæŋstə /

noun

1. a style of rap music, usually characterized by lyrics about Black street gangs in the US, often with violent, nihilistic, and misogynistic themes

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Other Word Forms

• gangsta rapper noun

Etymology

Origin of gangsta rap

First recorded in 1985–90; see origin at gangsta ( def. ), rap music ( def. )

Example Sentences

When no one is around, the doleful ex-judge listens to Italian gangsta rap, and sometimes even raps along with it, suggesting he isn’t quite the stereotype others assume him to be.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025

Her tastes were eclectic - picking Mozart's Ave Verum Corpus as her favourite piece on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs - but also later speaking of her liking for gangsta rap.

From BBC • Sep. 5, 2025

With the surprise success of her hard-boiled debut album, Boss--the moniker adopted by Detroit native Lichelle Laws--emerges as the first woman to seriously challenge male rappers in the raunchy, anything-goes world of gangsta rap.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 12, 2024

Wearing a shiesty has become synonymous with the subgenre of drill rap, which takes cues from the antagonistic gangsta rap genre.

From Washington Times • Oct. 10, 2023

None of these places was new to me, but I saw them all differently with a soundtrack playing as I passed them by: an 1800s white-washed bunkhouse with a caved-in roof set to gangsta rap.

From "The Miseducation of Cameron Post" by emily m. danforth