Editing Gangsta rap (section)

==1985–1988: Early years==

===Schoolly D and Ice-T===
[[Philadelphia]] rapper [[Schoolly D]] is generally considered the first "gangsta rapper",<ref name="Billboard">{{cite magazine|last=Balfour|first=Jay|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/6784905/schoolly-d-psk-first-gangsta-rap-song-anniversary|title=Schoolly D Reflects on Creating Gangsta Rap With 'P.S.K.' on Its 30th Anniversary|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|date=2015-12-03|access-date=2019-09-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190923063727/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/6784905/schoolly-d-psk-first-gangsta-rap-song-anniversary|archive-date=September 23, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Britannica">{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/art/gangsta-rap|title=gangsta rap {{pipe}} hip-hop music {{pipe}} Britannica|website=www.britannica.com|date=April 6, 2023 }}</ref> significantly influencing the more popular early gangsta rap originator, [[Ice-T]].<ref name="Iceprops">{{cite web |url=http://www.daveyd.com/iceprops.html |title=Ice T Interview |website=Daveyd.com |access-date=2015-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060718115817/http://www.daveyd.com/iceprops.html |archive-date=July 18, 2006 |url-status=live }}</ref> Ice-T was born in [[Newark, New Jersey]] in 1958. As a teenager, he moved to [[Los Angeles]] where he rose to prominence in the [[West Coast hip hop|West Coast hip hop scene]]. An early case of using "gangsta" as an adjective and a compliment came in his 1984 single ''Body Rock''. In 1986, Ice-T released "[[6 in the Mornin']]", which is regarded as the second gangsta rap song. Ice-T had been MCing since the early 1980s, but first turned to gangsta rap themes after being influenced by Schoolly D's [[Schoolly D (album)|self-titled debut album]], and especially the song "[[P.S.K. What Does It Mean?]]" (1985),<ref>{{cite web |url=https://movies.nytimes.com/person/563261/Schoolly-D |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104101400/http://movies.nytimes.com/person/563261/Schoolly-D |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 November 2012 |department=Movies & TV Dept. |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=2012 |title=All Movie Guide: Schoolly D | access-date=27 March 2021}}</ref> which is regarded as the first gangsta rap song.<ref name="Iceprops"/> Schoolly D had "Am I Black Enough For You" album in 1989. 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]] hit with ''[[Criminal Minded]]'', which was a gangster-based album. It wasn't about messages or "You Must Learn", it was about gangsterism.<ref name="Iceprops"/>

In 2011, Ice-T repeated in his autobiography that Schoolly D was his inspiration for gangsta rap.<ref>''Ice: A Memoir of Gangster Life and Redemption—from South Central to Hollywood'', Chapter 8: Six in the Mornin', One World, New York, 2011</ref> Ice-T continued to release gangsta albums for the remainder of the 1980s: ''[[Rhyme Pays]]'' in 1987, ''[[Power (Ice T)|Power]]'' 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 works would heavily influence not only Ice-T, but also [[Eazy-E]] and [[N.W.A]] (most notably in the song "[[Boyz-n-the-Hood]]"), as well as the [[Beastie Boys]] on their seminal hardcore hip hop-inspired album ''[[Licensed to Ill]]'' (1986).<ref name=hess>{{cite book|last1=Hess|first1=Mickey|title=Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide|date=2009|publisher=ABC-CLIO|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XkCncJ7j744C&q=schoolly+d+influenced+eazy+e&pg=PA154|isbn=9780313343216}}</ref>

===Boogie Down Productions===
[[Boogie Down Productions]] released their first single, "Say No Brother (Crack Attack Don't Do It)", in 1986. It was followed by "[[South Bronx (song)|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).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ohhla.com/anonymous/boogiedp/cri_mind/9mm_goes.bdp.txt |title=The Original Hip-Hop (Rap) Lyrics Archive |website=Ohhla.com |access-date=2015-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060814055106/http://www.ohhla.com/anonymous/boogiedp/cri_mind/9mm_goes.bdp.txt |archive-date=August 14, 2006 |url-status=live }}</ref> The album ''[[Criminal Minded]]'' 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]] songs and being among the first rappers to dress in gang-like street clothing. The seminal Long Island–based group [[Public Enemy]] 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 (album)|Paid in Full]]''.

The hip hop group [[Beastie Boys]] also influenced the gangsta rap genre with their 1986 album ''[[Licensed to Ill]]'', with an early reference to being a "gangster" mentioned in the song "Slow Ride". In 1986, the Los Angeles–based group [[C.I.A. (band)|C.I.A.]] (consisting of Ice Cube, K-Dee, [[Sir Jinx]]) 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.<ref>Chang, Jeff. ''Can't Stop, Won't Stop: The History of the Hip Hop Generation''</ref>  The [[Beastie Boys]] had started out as a [[hardcore punk]] band, but after introduction to producer [[Rick Rubin]] and the exit of [[Kate Schellenbach]] they became a hip hop group.<ref>[http://nymag.com/arts/popmusic/features/beastie-boys-2011-5/ Rude Boys] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170301015036/http://nymag.com/arts/popmusic/features/beastie-boys-2011-5/ |date=March 1, 2017 }}, Amos Barshad, New York magazine 2011 5, retr 2012 Oct</ref> According to ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' Magazine, the Beastie Boys' 1986 album ''[[Licensed to Ill]]'' is "filled with enough references to guns, drugs and empty sex (including the pornographic deployment of a [[Wiffleball]] bat in "[[Paul Revere (song)|Paul Revere]]") to qualify as a gangsta-rap cornerstone."<ref>''The New Rolling Stone Album Guide'', Fourth Edition</ref>