Criminal Minded: Rappers Named After Infamous Bad Guys

Read on for other notable examples of mobbed-up MC names.

Criminal Minded: Rappers Named After Infamous Bad Guys - June 22 was the birthday of feared Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger. Sound familiar? It should to most hip hop fans, thanks to Daz Dillinger, one half of iconic Death Row duo Tha Dogg Pound. But Daz was just following a long hip hop tradition: naming yourself after a notorious criminal. Read on for other notable examples of mobbed-up MC names. —Alex Gale(Photos: Federal Bureau of Investigation/MCT/Landov; Adrian Sidney/PictureGroup) 

1 / 12

Criminal Minded: Rappers Named After Infamous Bad Guys - June 22 was the birthday of feared Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger. Sound familiar? It should to most hip hop fans, thanks to Daz Dillinger, one half of iconic Death Row duo Tha Dogg Pound. But Daz was just following a long hip hop tradition: naming yourself after a notorious criminal. Read on for other notable examples of mobbed-up MC names. —Alex Gale(Photos: Federal Bureau of Investigation/MCT/Landov; Adrian Sidney/PictureGroup) 

Noreaga - Queens rapper Noreaga — later shortened to NORE — named himself after Panamanian strongman (and former CIA employee) Manuel Noriega, who was convicted of drug trafficking, racketeering and money laundering after he was captured by the U.S. in 1990. (Photos: EPA/STF/Landov; Johnny Nunez/Getty Images)

2 / 12

Noreaga - Queens rapper Noreaga — later shortened to NORE — named himself after Panamanian strongman (and former CIA employee) Manuel Noriega, who was convicted of drug trafficking, racketeering and money laundering after he was captured by the U.S. in 1990. (Photos: EPA/STF/Landov; Johnny Nunez/Getty Images)

Nas - Nasty took his Escobar alter ego from Pablo Escobar, the world-renowned Colombian cocaine kingpin. (Photos: Landov; John Ricard/BET)

3 / 12

Nas - Nasty took his Escobar alter ego from Pablo Escobar, the world-renowned Colombian cocaine kingpin. (Photos: Landov; John Ricard/BET)

50 Cent - As explained in the documentary Infamous Times: The Original 50 Cent, Fif took his name from the deceased Brooklyn stick-up kid Kelvin “50 Cent” Martin, who was rumored to have murdered at least 30 people during his ‘80s reign of terror.(Photos: Courtesy Wikimedia Commons; Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

4 / 12

50 Cent - As explained in the documentary Infamous Times: The Original 50 Cent, Fif took his name from the deceased Brooklyn stick-up kid Kelvin “50 Cent” Martin, who was rumored to have murdered at least 30 people during his ‘80s reign of terror.(Photos: Courtesy Wikimedia Commons; Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

A ruling allowing Rick Ross to keep his name despite being sued by Freeway Rick Ross:  - "[Williams] Roberts created a celebrity identity, using the name Rick Ross, of a cocaine kingpin turned rapper. He was not simply an impostor seeking to profit solely off the name and reputation of Rick Ross.” (Photo: Patrick Bastien Photography via Wikicommons/Shareif Ziyadat/PictureGroup)

5 / 12

Rick Ross - Convicted drug trafficker Freeway Rick Ross, who ran an L.A.-based drug empire in the early ’80s, didn’t take kindly to Rozay taking his name — he filed a $10 million copywright infringement lawsuit against the rapper in 2010, though it was dismissed earlier this year.(Photos: Freeway Rick Ross Patrick Bastien Photography/Getty Images; Shareif Ziyadat/PictureGroup)

ADVERTISEMENT
Capone - Like his former partner in rhyme Noreaga, Queensbridge rapper Capone took his name from a crime boss as well, in this case the notorious Chi-town bad guy Al Capone.(Photos: Hulton Archive/Getty Images; Johnny Nunez/Getty Images)

6 / 12

Capone - Like his former partner in rhyme Noreaga, Queensbridge rapper Capone took his name from a crime boss as well, in this case the notorious Chi-town bad guy Al Capone.(Photos: Hulton Archive/Getty Images; Johnny Nunez/Getty Images)

Machine Gun Kelly - “Machine gun” may be the perfect description for this Bad Boy rapper’s rapid-fire flow, but it’s also the nickname of the late George Celino Barnes, a feared Prohibition-era robber, bootlegger and kidnapper.(Photos: Commercial Appeal/Landov; Frank Micelotta/PictureGroup) 

7 / 12

Machine Gun Kelly - “Machine gun” may be the perfect description for this Bad Boy rapper’s rapid-fire flow, but it’s also the nickname of the late George Celino Barnes, a feared Prohibition-era robber, bootlegger and kidnapper.(Photos: Commercial Appeal/Landov; Frank Micelotta/PictureGroup) 

Yo Gotti - Mephis spitter Yo Gotti borrowed half his name from Jon Gotti, the late New York mob boss.(Photos: Landov; Candice Lawler/BET)

8 / 12

Yo Gotti - Mephis spitter Yo Gotti borrowed half his name from Jon Gotti, the late New York mob boss.(Photos: Landov; Candice Lawler/BET)

Beanie Sigel - Beans has quite a rap sheet of his own, but not as big as that of Bugsy Siegel, the feared New York gangster linked to the Genovese crime family and Murder Inc.(Photos: American Stock/Getty Images; Ethan Miller/Getty Images) 

9 / 12

Beanie Sigel - Beans has quite a rap sheet of his own, but not as big as that of Bugsy Siegel, the feared New York gangster linked to the Genovese crime family and Murder Inc.(Photos: American Stock/Getty Images; Ethan Miller/Getty Images) 

Kool G Rap - The G in this gangsta rap legend’s name stands for Giancana, from Sam Giancana, a reputed Chi-town Cosa Nostra don.(Photos: Patrick A. Burns/New York Times Co./Getty Images; Courtesy Cold Chillin' Records)

10 / 12

Kool G Rap - The G in this gangsta rap legend’s name stands for Giancana, from Sam Giancana, a reputed Chi-town Cosa Nostra don.(Photos: Patrick A. Burns/New York Times Co./Getty Images; Courtesy Cold Chillin' Records)

ADVERTISEMENT
Raekwon - Raekwon's took on the nickname Lex Diamond on some of Wu-Tang’s early work, nabbing inspiration from legendary Prohibition-era gangster Jack "Legs" Diamond.(Photos: Courtesy Wikimedia Commons; Adrian Sidney/PictureGroup)

11 / 12

Raekwon - Raekwon's took on the nickname Lex Diamond on some of Wu-Tang’s early work, nabbing inspiration from legendary Prohibition-era gangster Jack "Legs" Diamond.(Photos: Courtesy Wikimedia Commons; Adrian Sidney/PictureGroup)

Jim Jones - The Dipset Capo shares a name with the notorious leader of the Peoples Temple cult, best known for a 1978 mass suicide incident in Guyana, in which over 900 people died, including at least 200 children who were forced to ingest cyanide. Five people, including a U.S. congressman on a fact-finding mission, were killed at a nearby airstrip earlier in the day while attempting to flee the cult’s compound. Some role model.(Photos: dpa/Landov; Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)

12 / 12

Jim Jones - The Dipset Capo shares a name with the notorious leader of the Peoples Temple cult, best known for a 1978 mass suicide incident in Guyana, in which over 900 people died, including at least 200 children who were forced to ingest cyanide. Five people, including a U.S. congressman on a fact-finding mission, were killed at a nearby airstrip earlier in the day while attempting to flee the cult’s compound. Some role model.(Photos: dpa/Landov; Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)