G-funk
G-funk, short for gangsta funk, (or funk rap) is a sub-genre of gangsta rap that emerged from the West Coast scene in the early 1990s. The genre was heavily influenced by the synthesizer-heavy 1970s funk sound of Parliament-Funkadelic (aka P-Funk), often using samples or recreating the original tracks. It was represented by commercially successful albums such as Dr. Dre's The Chronic (1992) and Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle (1993). Characteristics G-funk (which uses funk with an artificially altered tempo) incorporates multi-layered and melodic synthesizers, slow hypnotic grooves, a deep bass, heavy use of the snare drum, background female vocals, the extensive sampling of P-Funk tunes, and a high-pitched portamento saw wave synthesizer lead. It is typically set at a tempo of anywhere between 80 and 100 BPM. The lyrical content depended on the artist and could consist of sex, drug use (especially marijuana), love for a city/neighborhood, love for friends and relaxing words. There was also a slurred "lazy" or "smooth" way of rapping in order to clarify words and stay in rhythmic cadence. The trademark West Coast G-funk style of hip-hop was a very defining element of the region's music and helped distinguish it from the rivaling rap scene on the East Coast. In essence, the smooth, slow-tempo sound of G-funk accompanied the perceived "laid-back" stereotype of Californian culture whereas East Coast hip-hop typically featured more aggressive attitudes alongside a fast-paced tempo (e.g. hardcore hip hop). Unlike other earlier rap acts that also utilized funk samples (such as EPMD and the Bomb Squad), G-funk often utilized fewer, unaltered samples per song. Music theorist Adam Krims has described G-funk as "a style of generally West Coast rap whose musical tracks tend to deploy live instrumentation, heavy on bass and keyboards, with minimal (sometimes no) sampling and often highly conventional harmonic progressions and harmonies". Dr. Dre, a pioneer of the G-funk genre, normally uses live musicians to replay the original music of sampled records. This enabled him to produce music that had his own sounds, rather than a direct copy of the sample. History and origins 1989–1992: Beginnings Early examples of the genre began to show up in 1989 with The D.O.C.'s "It's Funky Enough" and "The Formula", the former was an early minor hit for the genre, reaching No. 12 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Two years later, in 1991, N.W.A. released another early example of the genre with their album Niggaz4Life, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and No. 2 on Billboards Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The same year, Ice Cube's diss track towards N.W.A., "No Vaseline", was made in the style. Dr. Dre, who produced No One Can Do It Better and Niggaz4Life, is often seen as the originator/creator of the G-funk sound. Though these claims have been disputed with , a member of Above the Law, claiming that he came up with the name and sound. 1992–1997: Mainstream peak 1992 was the breakout year for the genre, with Dr. Dre dropping his album The Chronic. The album