Tyga: I Need a Gun 'Cause I'm a Baller

Tyga is taking shots at people slamming him for showing up at a Sunset Strip nightclub with an armed man ... claiming he's like a moving bedazzled target.

We showed you pics of a guy in the backseat of Tyga's Rolls Saturday night hold a gun as Tyga was leaving Hyde lounge. It seemed odd ... in the middle of the glitzy Strip a guy would be brandishing a weapon.

We're told Tyga feels the need for heat, since he typically wears north of $100k in jewelry. The word we're getting is that it's common in the hip-hop community that people snatch chains off rappers. What's crazy ... are they suggesting it's ok to use a gun when that happens?

It's unclear why the gun was out in the open. Sources connected with Tyga say the gun was being put away and the photog got a quick shot. As for why it was out in the first place ... we don't know.