Ben Westhoff: Orginal Gangstas

Based on five years of research and reporting, Original Gangstas is the definitive history of L.A. gangsta rap, revealing how a cohort of then-unknown rappers, including Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, and Tupac Shakur, grappled with rivalries, crime, drugs, gangs, racist cops and bad record deals to create the defining music of a generation. “Original Gangstas shows how the rap West was won,” says Chuck D. Ben Westhoff is a hip-hop contributor to The Guardian.