A teenage boy reluctantly turns to the streets to earn $6,000 a month for his mother's cancer medicine and quickly discovers that street money does not come easy. When an old family friend makes him a syndicate boss, jealousy and greed immediately turn his friends against him. With pressure mounting from all sides, he must choose between saving his mother’s life and saving his own.

Gangstresses, a documentary by Harry Davis, tells the story of violence, poverty, and survival in the streets from a female perspective. Over a two-year period, Davis interviews female hustlers, drug dealers, rappers, porn stars, prostitutes, mothers, and daughters. Among them are Champagne, a well-known African American porn star who has a small child; Mama Mayhem, a street hustler; Uneek, a rapper from the Bronx; and Vanessa Del Rio, a famous porn actress. Musicians Lil' Kim, Mary J. Blige, Ice T, and Tupac Shakur also share personal stories of survival. The documentary conducts follow-up research on the women's complicated lives, offering glimpses of both tragic reality and hopeful recovery.