Flava in Tanzania borrows elements from music all over the world, mainly cultural elements (i.e.- style, attitude) from the American hip hop scene. There is a sense that Tanzanian youth look up to the European styles which they apparently mimic. The music is produced using Swahili which makes it seem like the foreign hip hop cultures are the inputs to the output that is Bongo Flava, but this final "output" is different from the sum of its parts. In an effort to appear authentic, much of Tanzanian hip-hop began imitating the American model of "gangsta" rap, romanticizing aggression and violence. However, as hip-hop evolved in Tanzania, it has slowly diverged from this precedent. Crime in Tanzania is seen as a result of economic need and is very much frowned upon, with wezi, or thieves, becoming instant targets for outcasting by the community or falling victim to "instant justice" on the streets. In fact, bongo flava originates from the Swahili word "ubongo" meaning brains, an implication that it takes brains to survive in Dar es Salaam. This interpretation of values conflicts the message sent out by American "gangsta" rap. Furthermore, the gangs in Dar es Salaam share few of the same characteristics of the large drug dealing gangs wreaking havoc in inner city America. In a region where Islam plays a strong role in the lives of the general populace, it is difficult to incorporate the vain outlook on life and the condescending attitude towards women so prevalent in commercially successful rap in America. Consequently, "gangsta" rap has not achieved widespread popularity in Tanzania, although "gangsta" rap will occasionally reveal itself in album sales or on the radio. Tanzania hip-hop artists often struggle to distance themselves from the styles of American hip-hop, but are making a conscious effort to create their own style. Tanzanian hip hop group Jungle Crewz Posse scoffed at the notion that their songs were just like American music, saying "Rap is not copying from abroad...we are not talking gun. If you showed me a gun it would be hard for me to tell you which is the trigger. I know gun in movies, pictures. We are talking things that we know and see and understand. Tanzanian hip-hop music could have been associated with mimicry and copying from other cultures at one point, but as Bongo flava becomes more developed, its sound will become more and more authentic