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Jeff Weiss photo

Jeff Weiss

Jeff Weiss is the founder of the music blog and online magazine Passion of the Weiss and author of the book Waiting for Britney Spears.

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a stylized illustration of kendrick lamar framed by los angeles skyscrapers, lowriders, and dice—evoking the history and iconography of west coast hip hop.

Gansta Rap: 5 Essential Tracks

Irresistible wordplay and beats.

gangsta rap, 5 artists

Non-Hip-Hop Influences on West Coast Rap

These five trailblazers blended funk, soul, and electro to create the sounds that future West Coast rappers—from Dre to Kendrick—would transform into hip-hop history.

a stylized illustration of kendrick lamar framed by los angeles skyscrapers, lowriders, and dice—evoking the history and iconography of west coast hip hop.

Gangsta Rap: A Great Day in Inglewood

Kendrick Lamar’s Juneteenth “Pop Out” concert distilled four decades of West Coast hip-hop into a message of unity.