Entry · catalog no. 9201
gangsta
/ /ˈɡæŋstə/ /GANG-stuh
noun / adjective · Philadelphia, Los Angeles and New York (1980s) · 1980s
✓ Verified
1.
A gangster as the word is said in Black speech, with the final r dropped: a street-gang member, or someone who presents a tough, outlaw image. As an adjective it describes that style or attitude, often as praise.
“He rapped like a gangsta, but he ran the label like an accountant.”
2.
Short for gangsta rap, the hip-hop style that narrates street-gang and street-crime life in the first person.
“She grew up on gangsta and still knows every verse.”
Origin & Attribution
The word is the Black English pronunciation of "gangster," an older English word, written out as "gangsta" by hip-hop artists in the mid-1980s. Dictionary.com dates the spelling to 1985–90. Schoolly D's "P.S.K. What Does It Mean?" (1985) out of Philadelphia and Ice-T's "6 in the Mornin'" (1986) out of Los Angeles are the usual first gangsta rap records, and N.W.A.'s Straight Outta Compton (1988) carried the term to a national audience. The style is often described as a West Coast product; the record shows Philadelphia and New York artists, including Boogie Down Productions (Criminal Minded, 1987), were making it at the same time.
1985
Schoolly D releases "P.S.K. What Does It Mean?" in Philadelphia
1986
Ice-T releases "6 in the Mornin'" in Los Angeles
1988
N.W.A.'s Straight Outta Compton brings gangsta rap to a national audience
Region of origin
West
Midwest
N.East
South
Nationwide
Philadelphia, Los Angeles and New York (1980s) · 1980s
Spoken by
Black youth and hip-hop artists and fans, later general American usage
$GANGSTThe Record · cultural traction
▲ Steady41 yrs
ahead of the mainstream
55/100
peak cultural energy
Introduced to English by the culture — logged here before the mainstream caught on.
Cultural usage — the recordMainstream search interest
First used
1985
in the culture
Recorded here
2026
point of first record
Cultural energy indexed from documented usage, search interest, and citation frequency. The recorded date is the archive’s permanent point of record.
Hear it spoken
By region — how it actually sounds
@auntiereg
Atlanta, GA
@deltasoul
Memphis, TN
Contribute your pronunciation
Citations & Sources
■
Dictionary.com, 'gangsta' (first recorded 1985–90; AAVE pronunciation of gangster); secondary
web
■
Schoolly D, "P.S.K. What Does It Mean?" (1985)
recording
■
Ice-T, "6 in the Mornin'" (1986)
recording
■
+ Cite a sourceN.W.A., Straight Outta Compton (1988)
recording
See also