Ronin Ro

As gangsta rap surged in popularity during the 1990s, its authenticity as a form of reportage on inner—city conflict began to give way to a formula (albeit a successful one) that promoted pure fantasies of the "hard" lifestyle of guns, drugs, and crime. The line between fact and fantasy was not always clear, however, and Ro argues that the resulting gangsta fashion that came to dominate hip—hop culture for both blacks and whites has yielded negative effects. Ronin Ro is also the author of Have Gun Will Travel: The Spectacular Rise and Violent Death of Death Row Records.