Creating a vinyl collection of classic rap albums from Los Angeles is nearly an impossible task. From G-funk to gangsta rap to jerkin’, ratchet, and nervous music, the city has had a wildly ...

The first few rap songs to reach No. 1 position skirted the line between serious rap and novelty. "Gangsta's Paradise" did not have the jokey appeal of "Baby Got Back," and seemed to have more ...

On the album's 20th anniversary, it's much easier to recognize Be as a crucial intersection record — not simply for Common, on his way to becoming rap's hokey, well-intentioned uncle, but for ...

Elsewhere, coupled with the looped screams, low bass, and fixation on “death, destruction around every corner” of “Approach To Danger,” N.W.A head beyond the gangsta rap genre they ...