Rapper Stunna Girl found herself behind bars Thursday night in North Carolina after she was arrested for failure to appear in court in a different case that's been hanging over he head for nearly a decade ... TMZ has learned.

The "Pretty Privilege" artist was arrested by the Mooresville Police Department during a traffic stop while she was in a black and white Mercedes, according to police records.

It's not clear what led to the traffic stop ... though it resulted in her being booked into the Iredell County Detention Center for failure to appear in court over a previous charge.

She didn't get too comfy in the clink, 'cause it appears she was released hours later on a $3,500 bond.

TMZ has learned the missed court date in question stems from a 2017 arrest, in which Stunna was charged with trespassing and resisting a public officer. The docs say she has failed to appear in court for the case at least two times.

She's due in court on July 28 ... but her track record here isn't exactly promising.

Looks like the arrest didn't rain on her parade ... Stunna was back to posting to IG Friday and has a performance scheduled for Saturday at the Crybaby nightclub in Oakland, CA.

We reached out to Stunna ... so far, no word back