Ice Cube Biography
Ice Cube is an American rapper, songwriter, actor, and film producer. He rose to fame after becoming a member of the seminal gangsta rap group N.W.A. His lyrics on N.W.A.’s 1988 album Straight Outta Compton helped make gangsta rap a global phenomenon, and his critically and commercially successful solo albums AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted (1990), Death Certificate (1991), and The Predator (1992) all featured political rap.
Ice Cube Career
Cube started writing raps in the ninth grade at George Washington Preparatory High School in Los Angeles. This was following a challenge from his friend “Kiddo” during a typewriting class. Kiddo came out on top. His elder brother, who “threatened to slam him into a freezer and pull [him] out when he was an ice cube,” is credited with inspiring his stage name, according to him. In the Woodland Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, Cube also attended William Howard Taft High School. From his home in a high-crime neighborhood, he was bussed 40 miles to the suburban school. Shortly after writing and recording a few locally popular rap songs with N.W.A. in the fall of 1987, he enrolled at Phoenix Institute of Technology in Phoenix, Arizona.
Having completed his architectural drafting diploma, he returned to Los Angeles in 1988. There, he re-joined N.W.A., but he continued to pursue his architectural drafting career as a fallback. Cube started rapping in the trio C.I.A. in 1986 when he was sixteen years old. He soon joined the newly formed rap group N.W.A. He served as both the primary ghostwriter and lead rapper for N.W.A.’s 1988 official debut album, Straight Outta Compton. By early 1990, he had left the group over a money dispute. His first solo album, AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted, released in 1990, also featured him as the leader of the featured rap group, Da Lench Mob. In the interim, he aided in the growth of rapper Yo Yo.
Cube performed at Dr. Dre’s parties as part of the rap group C.I.A., which he founded with his friend Sir Jinx. Dre had been part of the World Class Wreckin’ Cru, a well-known DJ crew, since 1984. By 1985, the group had begun to perform and record electro-rap. The hit song “Cabbage Patch” by the Wreckin Cru was co-written by Cube and Dre. Along with Cube, Dre was a member of the side project Stereo Crew. They recorded the 12-inch record “She’s a Skag” for Epic Records in 1986.
In 1987, C.I.A. released the Dr. Dre-produced single “My Posse”. In the meantime, the Eve After Dark nightclub, located in Los Angeles County approximately 0.5 miles outside of Compton, served as the home base for the Wreckin’ Cru. Ice Cube would rap while Dre was spinning records, frequently making fun of songs by other musicians. At one point, Cube parodied Run-DMC’s “My Adidas” with a song called “My Penis”. Alonzo Williams, the leader of Wreckin’ and co-owner of the nightclub, recalled in 2015 that he felt his reputation was harmed by this and asked that it not happen again.
When Cube was sixteen years old, he sold his first song to Eric Wright, later known as Eazy-E, who was starting Ruthless Records and the Compton, California-based band N.W.A. Cube, who is from South Central Los Angeles, is the only core member of N.W.A. who was not born in Compton. Following the success of “Boyz-n-the-Hood,” a song written by Cube, produced by Dre, and rapped by Eazy-E that contributed to the rise of gangsta rap in California, Eazy turned his attention to creating N.W.A., which quickly attracted MC Ren. On the August 1988 release of N.W.A.’s official debut album, Straight Outta Compton, Cube penned nearly all of Eazy’s lyrics and some of Dre’s. However, by late 1989, Cube had doubts about his pay and Jerry Heller’s leadership of the N.W.A.
Furthermore, Cube wrote the majority of Eazy-E’s Eazy-Duz-It debut album. In all, Heller was paid $32,000, and the 1989 contract he produced did not formally establish him as an N.W.A. member. Cube filed a lawsuit against Heller in December after quitting the band and its label; the case was eventually settled out of court. N.W.A. members retaliated against Cube by criticizing him on the 1990 EP 100 Miles and Runnin’ and on the group’s subsequent and last album, Niggaz4Life, released in 1991. The Bomb Squad, the production team behind the legendary rap group Public Enemy, worked with Ice Cube in early 1990 to record his debut solo album, AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted, in New York. It debuted in May 1990 and became an immediate hit, accelerating the mainstreaming of rap.
Despite being controversial, it received accusations of racism and misogyny. Ice Cube’s affirmation of black nationalism and black struggle ideology is introduced in the album. A female rapper who appears on the album as a guest, Yo-Yo was chosen by Cube to lead his record label and co-produced her debut album, Make Way for the Motherlode. Cube followed up in 1990 with the highly regarded EP Kill At Will, which became the first Platinum-certified EP in the history of rap. Death Certificate, his second album, was released in 1991. Thought to be more concentrated, the album caused even more controversy when it was accused of having misogynistic, anti-White, and anti-Semitic content.
Two themes divided the album: “a vision of where we are today” for the Death Side and “a vision of where we need to go” for the Life Side. The song “No Vaseline” savagely responds to charges of betrayal made against him in the 1990 EP and 1991 album by N.W.A. The song calls for Eazy-E’s execution and labels him a “house nigga” in addition to accusing N.W.A. manager Jerry Heller of taking advantage of the group and mentioning that he is a Jew. Ice Cube argued that he only incidentally brought up Heller’s ethnicity—not to set up an attack—just as news outlets bring up the races of attackers who are not white. The racist song “Black Korea” was also believed to have predicted the 1992 Los Angeles riots.
Death Certificate expanded his fan base despite being controversial; in 1992, he went on tour with Lollapalooza. The Predator, Cube’s third album, was released in November 1992. The opening line of the song “Wicked” alludes to the 1992 Los Angeles riots, saying, “April 29 was power to the people, and we might just see a sequel.” The first album in history to debut at the top of both the pop and R&B/hip-hop charts was The Predator. “It Was a Good Day” and “Check Yo Self” are two singles that have “two-part” music videos. With over three million copies sold in the US, the album is his most commercially successful to date, receiving high praise from critics. Cube’s rap fan base drastically shrank following the release of this album, and it never recovered the popularity of his first three albums.
Cube started to appear on a lot of other artists’ songs around this time. Cube made appearances on the 1992 albums I Wish My Brother George Was Here by Del the Funky Homosapien, Guerillas in the Mist by Da Lench Mob, which he also produced, and “Two to the Head” by DJ Polo and Kool G Rap. He contributed to Kam’s debut album in 1993 and Ice-T’s song “Last Wordz” from 2Pac’s Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. album. Lethal Injection, Cube’s fourth album, came out towards the end of 1993. Here, Cube took inspiration from Dr. Dre’s then-popular G-funk. Despite the album’s poor critical reception, hits like “Really Doe,” “Bop Gun (One Nation),” “You Know How We Do It,” and “What Can I Do?” were released. Ice Cube essentially lost his rap fan base after this album.
After Lethal Injection, Cube concentrated on making movies and rap albums for other artists, such as Mack 10, Mr. Short Khop, Da Lench Mob, and Kausion. Cube teamed up with former N.W.For the first time since Cube had left the group, a groupmate Dr. Dre. Dr. Dre was then spearheading the G-funk subgenre of rap, had reformed following Dre’s 1991 departure. As a result, Dre’s then-new label, Death Row Records, released the song “Natural Born Killaz” by Cube and Dre for the Murder Was The Case soundtrack. Cube, Mack 10, and WC formed the Westside Connection, a side trio, in 1995. Feeling sidelined by East Coast media—a persistent problem in the bicoastal rap rivalry—the group sought to uplift the underappreciated and instill a sense of Westward pride.
The Westside Connection’s goals were reflected in songs like “Bow Down” and “Gangstas Make the World Go ‘Round” from their debut album, Bow Down (1996).
By year’s end, the album had received a Platinum certification. Common’s song “I Used to Love H.E.R.” was interpreted by Cube and the Westside Connection as a jab at West Coast rap, leading to a brief but amicable feud that ended in 1997. Cube started working with artists outside of the rap genre around this same period. He collaborated on a remix of David Bowie’s “I’m Afraid of Americans” in 1997 alongside Trent Reznor, the singer of Nine Inch Nails. Cube performed with the band Korn on their 1998 Family Values Tour and was featured on the song “Children of the Korn” by the band.
Cube’s eagerly anticipated fifth solo album, War & Peace Vol. 1 (The War Disc), was finally released in November 1998. Volume 2, the sixth album, was finally released in 2000. The Westside Connection and his reunion with former N.W.A. members Dr. Dre and MC Ren are featured on these albums. Korn also returned the favor by featuring on Cube’s song “Fuck Dying” from Vol. 1. Many fans insisted that the quality of these two albums was lower than that of his earlier work, particularly the second. Cube went on the Up in Smoke Tour with Dr. Dre, Eminem, and Snoop Dogg in 2000. Cube made an appearance on the song “Get Em Up” from British DJ Paul Oakenfold’s solo debut album Bunkka in 2002.
Terrorist Threats, Westside Connection’s second album, was released in 2003 and received positive reviews but poor sales. The single that was released, “Gangsta Nation” featuring Nate Dogg, became popular on the radio. The Westside Connection broke up in 2005 due to a disagreement between Cube and Mack 10 regarding Cube’s film work undervaluing the group’s touring schedule. Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz, the pioneers of the crunk subgenre of rap at the time, featured Cube on their song “Real Nigga Roll Call” in 2004. Laugh Now, Cry Later, Cube’s seventh solo album, was released in 2006 and sold 144,000 copies in its first week of release. The lead single “Why We Thugs” was produced by Lil Jon and Scott Storch.
Cube sang it and the song “Go to Church” when he was honored at VH1’s Annual Hip Hop Honors in October. Soon after, Cube embarked on a worldwide tour in support of the Straight Outta Compton Tour. He visited America, Europe, Australia, and Japan with rapper WC from the Westside Connection. In September 2007, a compilation album featuring Ice Cube’s songs on soundtracks, called In the Movies, was released amidst Cube’s numerous features and short-lived partnerships. August 19, 2008, marked the release of Cube’s eighth studio album, Raw Footage. The album produced the hits “Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It” and “Do Ya Thang”. Cube contributed to the songs “Blackboy” by Tech N9ne and “State of Emergency” by The Game in 2008.
As a supporter of the Raiders in the NFL, Cube recorded a tribute song called “Raider Nation” in October 2009. Ice Cube made a return appearance at the Gathering of the Juggalos in 2011 after having performed there in 2009. I Am the West, Cube’s ninth solo album, came out on September 28, 2010. According to Cube, it took a different turn than any of his previous records. Producers on it include West Coast veterans DJ Quik, Dr. Dre, E-A-Ski, and, reuniting with Cube after nearly two decades, Sir Jinx, who was once his C.I.A. groupmate. In its first week of release, the album sold 22,000 copies. It also debuted at number 22 on the Billboard 200, offering the single “I Rep That West”.
Additionally, in 2010, Cube signed 7Tre The Ghost. He was a promising musician whom most record labels were expected to pass over or treat like a cookie-cutter. In 2011, Cube appeared on two songs: “Boogie Till You Conk Out” by DJ Quik and “Iz You Ready to Die” by Daz Dillinger. Cube recorded a verse for the album Mike E. Clark’s Extra Pop Emporium in 2012, which was a remix of the Insane Clown Posse song “Chris Benoit” from ICP’s The Mighty Death Pop! album. During the Pepsi NFL Anthems campaign in September 2012, Cube released “Come and Get It,” his second Raiders anthem.
Cube provided additional information about his upcoming tenth studio album, Everythang’s Corrupt, in November 2012. At the time of the album’s release, which coincided with the 2012 elections, he said, “You know, this record is for the political heads.”The album’s release, however, was postponed. A music video for the song “Sic Them Youngins on ‘Em” was released the following day on iTunes, February 10, 2014. The album’s release was postponed even longer than Cube’s involvement in the 2015 film Straight Outta Compton, despite the release of a few more songs. The album eventually arrived on December 7, 2018, following a statement that postponed its release until 2017. Cube made his debut on MC Ren’s remix of “Rebel Music” in 2014; this was their first joint project since the N.W.A. reunion in 2000.
Cube joined rappers Too Short, E-40, and Snoop Dogg in 2020 to form the supergroup Mount Westmore. On June 7, 2022, the band’s debut album was made available. As part of his Straight Into Canada tour, Ice Cube will travel across Canada in the early months of 2024. Ice Cube has acted in almost 40 movies since 1991, many of them are well-known. Action is emphasized in a few of them, like the 1992 thriller Trespass and the 1999 war comedy Three Kings. However, the majority of these are family-friendly comedies, like the Barbershop franchise, with a few adult-oriented comedies thrown in, like the Friday franchise.
In July 1991, John Singleton’s landmark film Boyz n the Hood made Ice Cube’s acting debut as Doughboy, a role that Cube pulled off with convincingness. Later, Cube starred in two thriller films directed by Walter Hill (1992) and 1995 (The Glass Shield, directed by Charles Burnett), costarring with Ice-T and Bill Paxton. Tupac Shakur later starred in Singleton’s 1993 romance Poetic Justice, which Cube turned down to co-star with Janet Jackson. Cube played the role of Fudge, a college student, in Singleton’s Higher Learning, released in 1995. It was said that Singleton had encouraged Cube by saying, “If you can write a record, you can write a movie.” In the adult-themed comedy Friday (1995), which starred comedian Chris Tucker, Cube wrote the screenplay.
Produced with $3.5 million, Friday brought in $28 million globally. Next Friday and Friday After Next, the two sequels, were released in 2000 and 2002, respectively. In 1997, Cube starred in the action thriller Dangerous Ground and had a supporting role in Anaconda, where he played a South African exiled to America who returns fifteen years later. Resuming writing in 1998, director Ice Cube made his feature film debut in The Players Club. He played a staff sergeant in the critically acclaimed “intelligent” war comedy Three Kings (1999), starring George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg. The film was set in the immediate aftermath of the Gulf War (1990), in which the United States attacked Iraq. Cube starred in two comedies in 2002: Tim Story’s Barbershop and Kevin Bray’s All About the Benjamins.
Cube performed in Torque and Barbershop 2 in 2004. He took over as the primary protagonist in the second XXX film series, XXX: State of the Union, the following year. He returned to the role in the third film, XXX: Return of Xander Cage. There, he met Vin Diesel again after a 12-year hiatus. In addition, he made an appearance in the family comedy Are We There Yet? The film set up his part in the follow-up Are We Done Yet? from 2007. Cube made an appearance in 21 Jump Street in 2012. In 2014, he made another appearance in 22 Jump Street, the sequel. In two more Tim Story movies, Ride Along and Ride Along 2, he starred with comedian Kevin Hart after returning to the role in that year.
Cube made a comeback for the third installment of the Barbershop series in 2016. Additionally, Cube and Charlie Day starred in the comedy Fist Fight in 2017. Ice Cube and Jack Black were supposed to star in the comedy Oh Hell No (now called Stepdude) in October 2021. However, Ice Cube withdrew from the project when he refused to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. He would have received $9 million from the project. Ice Cube and R. J. Cutler co-created the six-part FX cable documentary series Black. White in late 2005. LeBron James, the basketball player, and Ice Cube collaborated to pitch ABC a one-hour special based on James’s life.
Cube’s documentary Straight Outta L.A. explored the relationship between hip-hop, the Raiders, and Los Angeles politics from the 1980s to the 1990s. It broadcast on ESPN on May 11, 2010. On June 2, 2010, Ice Cube’s Are We There Yet? series debuted on TBS. The plot centers on how the matriarch’s new husband, Terry Crews, is assimilated by the family. The show was renewed for a total of six seasons, or ninety more episodes, on August 16. Cube acknowledges Tyler Perry’s contribution to TBS as well. Rather, Cube made an appearance in front of the cameras when he and Elmo were guests on PBS’s Sesame Street in 2014.
Ice Cube Age
Cube was born on June 15, 1969, in Los Angeles, California, United States. He is 54 years old as of 2023 and he celebrates his birthday on the 15th of June every year.
Ice Cube Height and Weight
Cube stands at a height of 5 feet 8 inches (1.73 meters) and weighs 88 kg (194.01 lbs).
Ice Cube Family
Born O’Shea Jackson in Los Angeles, Cube is the son of Hosea Jackson, a machinist and UCLA groundskeeper, and Doris Jackson, a hospital clerk, and custodian. Cube was 12 years old when his half-sister, Beverly Jean Brown was murdered. He also has two brothers Clyde Ray Jackson and Pat Jackson. Cube is the cousin of Del tha Funky Homosapien and Kam, two other rappers. He was raised in the Westmont neighborhood of South Los Angeles on Van Wick Street.
Ice Cube Wife and Children
Cube has been married to Kimberly Woodruff since April 26, 1992. Together, their five children include O’Shea Jackson Jr., who played him in the movie Straight Outta Compton and was born in 1991. In 2005, when questioned about striking a balance between his career and family, Cube talked about instilling in his kids a critical mindset regarding the depictions of violence in media, not just in song lyrics. Ice Cube is a grandfather through his son O’Shea Jackson Jr.
Ice Cube Salary
Cube earns an annual salary of about $15 Million.
Ice Cube Net Worth
Cube has an estimated net worth of about $160 Million which he has earned through his career as a rapper, songwriter, actor, and film producer.
Ice Cube Movies and TV Shows
- Boyz n the Hood (1991)
- Trespass (1992)
- CB4 (1993)
- The Glass Shield (1994)
- Higher Learning (1995)
- Friday (1997)
- Dangerous Ground (1998)
- Anaconda (1999)
- The Players Club (2000)
- I Got the Hook Up (2001)
- Three Kings (2002)
- Thicker Than Water (2004)
- Next Friday (2005)
- Ghosts of Mars (2007)
- All About The Benjamins (2008)
- Barbershop (2009)
- Friday After Next (2010)
- Torque (2011)
- The N-Word (2012)
- Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2014)
- Are We There Yet? (2015)
- Beauty Shop (2016)
- Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars (2017)
- XXX: State of the Union (2020)
- Are We Done Yet? (2023)
- First Sunday (TBA)
- The Longshots (1991)
- Janky Promoters (1992)
- Lottery Ticket (1993)
- Rampart (1994)
- 21 Jump Street (1995)
- Ride Along (1997)
- 22 Jump Street (1998)
- The Book of Life (1999)
- Straight Outta Compton (2000)
- Ride Along 2 (2001)
- Barbershop: The Next Cut (2002)
- XXX: Return of Xander Cage (2004)
- Fist Fight (2005)
- The High Note (2007)
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2008)
- The Killer’s Game (2009)
- The Sinbad Show (1994)
- The Bernie Mac Show (2002)
- BarberShop: The Series (2005)
- WrestleMania 21 (2006)
- Black. White. (2007)
- Friday: The Animated Series (2010)
- 30 for 30 (2010–2013)
- Are We There Yet? (2017)
- The Defiant Ones (1994)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010)
Ice Cube Social Media Platform
Cube is very active on his Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook pages. He has 5.8M followers on Twitter 31.1M followers on Instagram, and 17M followers on Facebook.