O'Shea Jackson, Sr., better known as (Ice Cube) is a American rapper, actor, songwriter, and producer who first began as a member of the hip hop group, C.I.A. and later went on to join the hip hop group known as N.W.A. After leaving the group in 1989 due to disputes with manager Jerry Heller, Cube went on to have a successful career in not only just music but also in films such as Boyz n the Hood, Friday, Are We There Yet?, and Ride Along. He is also one of the founding artists of gangsta rap and is regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, also being labeled as one of "rap's greatest storytellers".
Biography[]
Born in Baldwin Hills, South Central in Los Angeles, he is the son of Doris and Hosea Jackson, he also has a older brother who was killed when Cube was 12 and who also gave Jackson his stage name "Ice Cube". In his teenage years, Cube gained an interest in hip-hop music and began writing rap songs in high school. At the age of 16, Cube wrote the song "Boyz n the Hood" for Eazy E (the soon-to-be leader of N.W.A). Along with friend Sir Jinx, Ice Cube would perform with the hip hop group C.I.A. at parties hosted by disc jockey, Dr. Dre. While Dr. Dre had a job at the dance club, Eve After Dark, Cube would often rap over the music that Dre would play.
In 1897, Ice Cube soon performed on the song "My Posse", with his group "C.I.A.". Soon after, Cube showed Eazy the lyrics to "Boyz n the Hood" as he at first rejected the song but recorded it for the complication album N.W.A and the Posse. Cube then became a full-time member in N.W.A, initially becoming one of the main songwriters for their debut album Straight Outta Compton. He soon left the group in 1989 due to disputes with Jerry Heller even though he wrote half of the lyrics of the album and also Eazy E's debut album Eazy-Duz-It but he was only paid $32, 000 and was confirmed to be an official member of N.W.A. Cube then left the group and filed a private lawsuit against Heller which was settled out of court. The group's response to this was frequently attacking Cube on their final album Ni**az4Life.
Cube then began his solo career with his debut album AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted which became a instant hit. He then began acting with his film debut as "Doughboy" in the drama film Boyz n the Hood, which was by filmmaker John Singleton. Cube then released his second studio album Death Certificate, which was more controversial than his first album and also included his full-blown diss against N.W.A with the song "No Vaseline".
Cube released his third studio album The Predator in 1992, which included "It Was a Good Day" and "Check Yo Self". The album is his most successful release to date. However his fourth solo effort, Lethal Injection was not well received by his audience or critics. He then took a break from music to focus on his film work.
Cube then starred as one of the two leads in the 1995 comedy Friday, a film that he written solely himself with help from DJ Pooh as the film also starred up-and-coming comedian Chris Tucker. The film since has gained a cult following and regarded as one of the best comedy films of all time, also spawning two more films Next Friday, Friday After Next, and the soon-to-be Last Friday.
Around that time, Cube also formed a group called "Westside Connection" with rappers Mack 10 and WC, they released their debut album Bow Down. After a seven year hiatus, the group released their second studio album Terrorist Threats. But soon after disbanded due to Ice Cube's commitment to film.
Cube then reunited with former N.W.A member Dr. Dre with the song "Natural Born Killaz". From there, Cube released his fifth studio album War & Peace Vol. 1 (The War Disc). Then his delayed sixth solo effort, Volume 2 was released. Cube soon joined Dr. Dre, Eminem, and Snoop Dogg for the "Up in Smoke Tour".
Cube then released three more albums and also made a track in tribute of the LA Raiders.
Aside from his music career, Cube went on to star in films such as Are We There Yet?, it's sequel Are We Done Yet?, and also starring/executive producing it's television series based on both films on TBS also. He also starred in films such as 21 Jump Street and it's sequel 22 Jump Street, all three films in the Barbershop franchise, XXX: State of the Union, and most recently Fist Fight.
Personal Life[]
Cube, since 1992 has been married to Kimberly Woodruff and has 4 children, O'Shea, Jr., Darrell, Kareema, and Shareef. His oldest son O'Shea also portrayed his father in the biopic based on N.W.A, Straight Outta Compton.
Discography[]
Solo Albums[]
- AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted (1990)
- Death Certificate (1991)
- The Predator (1992)
- Lethal Injection (1993)
- War & Peace Vol. 1 (The War Disc) (1998)
- War * Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) (2000)
- Laugh Now, Cry Later (2006)
- Raw Footage (2008)
- I Am the West (2010)
- Death Certificate's 25th Anniversary Edition (2017)
- Everythang's Corrupt (TBA)
Extended plays[]
- Kill At Will (1990)
Group Albums[]
- N.W.A and the Posse (1987)
- Straight Outta Compton (1988)
- Bow Down (1996)
- Terrorist Threats (2003)