While “the gangsta/thug,” “the player/pimp,” and “the balla” are important ideal types in the formation of masculine identity in terms of the social construction and enactment of manhood roles within the social world of hip hop, the most central of all manhood roles in hip hop culture is the role of “the nigga.” The word “nigga” is a southern articulation of the term nigger that has been historically used by Europeans and European Americans to connote a racial hierarchy in which Whites are superior and Blacks are innately inferior. The appropriation of the term nigger by African Americans in their routine social interactions with other Blacks and in the evolution of Black popular culture is not a recent phenomenon. Rather the use of the terms nigger and nigga by African Americans extends back to slavery, Black oral tradition (e.g., toasts, signifying), and comedic performance. Hence in the public and semi-public social settings typically used to facilitate sociability among African American males (e.g., bars, basketball courts, barbershops, street corners, gambling parlors, poolrooms, drug houses, correctional facilities etc.) both positive and negative references to African American males as niggas is common. However, unlike the use of the word by Whites to connote racial inferiority, African Americans have used the term to reference and signify a variety of meanings, ranging from those that denigrate and cast aspersions (e.g. Black nigga, stupid nigga, crazy nigga) to those that praise personal characteristics and accomplishments (e.g., sharp nigga, cool nigga, rich nigga, fine nigga, bad nigga, etc.).

What is unique about the use of the term nigga in hip hop culture is that it has been elevated to a place of centrality in the social construction of both racial and gender identity among young African American males, particularly among those who reside in underclass communities. Furthermore, it should be noted that many young African American males who originate from stable working, middle and upper-class backgrounds also look to hip hop culture for racial and gender identity. Within the context of hip hop culture the term nigga represents a resurrection and extension of the historic “bad nigga” identity that has been typically attributed to rebellious underclass African American males by both Whites and Blacks since the slavery era. For example, in an early academic description of the term, sociologist Samuel Strong wrote: “The bad nigger refuses to accept the place given to Negroes.” Historically, “the bad nigga” was perceived as problematic to the White majority under all circumstances because he posed a threat to White male domination and control of the Black population. In contrast, African Americans have always maintained both fear and admiration of “the bad nigga” depending on the circumstances invoking his rebelliousness and perceptions of how his behavior affected the African American community.

Interestingly, in hip hop the word nigga is generally used to refer to males. Whereas, the term “bitch” is commonly used to denote females. The modern day nigga, that is, the hip hop nigga, is a product of the ghetto. Furthermore, the term is used to identify individuals who link their manhood identity and social significance to “the streets” or the hood.” That is, to be an authentic man, one deserving of respect and deference in the social world of hip hop, particularly rap, one must have some street credibility or familiarity with the ways of “the streets” and the challenges associated with life in lower class black communities. Accordingly, an authentic nigga in hip hop culture is an African American male who has grown up in poverty or on the edge of poverty, is willing to resort to violence to resolve disputes, is always looking for opportunities to engage in sexual relations with willing females, and sees value in understanding street life and succeeding in the world based on one’s adherence to the “code of the streets.” Consistent with the tradition of the historic “bad nigga,” in his song “We Run These Streets,” 50 Cent (2003) raps:

I stay gangsta’d up, niggaz ain’t go shit on me
And I stay with my gat (gun) in case I gotta pop somebody
G –Unit clique, you’re blind if you can’t see
That we run these streets…
I’m from the bottom man, niggaz know I came up hard
I got a temper man, I’m looking for some shit to start

Thus, the contemporary characterization of the nigga in hip hop is identical to the historic “bad nigga” whose persona and behavior was characterized by “(1) an utter disregard of death and danger, (2) a great concentration on sexual virility, (3) a great extravagance in buying cars, clothing, etc.; and (4) an insatiable love of having a good time.” However, what distinguishes the nigga in contemporary Black popular culture from “the bad nigga” of the past is the emergence of African American youth and young adults as the primary producers and consumers of Black popular culture and advances in the commodification and technological dissemination of Black popular culture. Furthermore, among producers of hip hop there are financial incentives to embrace the nigga imagery as a means of remaining relevant to an audience who appears to crave the glorification of the nigga identity as portrayed in hip hop. Consequently, the nigga identity provides a social and psychological foundation for the emergence, enactment and glorification of “the gangsta/thug,” “the player/pimp,” and “the bid balla” manhood identities that are prominent in hip hop culture. In this sense hip hop culture functions as an alternative site for Black male gender socialization given its social significance as a generation-specific soundtrack that reflects the life experiences, challenges, and aspirations of the nigga in hip hop culture.