Some of you may know Ice-T as Odafin Tutuola, hard boiled NYC cop with a preternatural, encyclopedic knowledge of bizarre crimes. Before Ice was Odafin, he was one of the most important and influential early rappers. And before that he was just Tracy.
Tracy Lauren Marrow (maybe his folks were fans of "A Boy Named Sue") was born today in 1958 in Newark New Jersey. Both of his parents died by the time he was twelve and then Ice was moving with his auntie and uncle in Los Angeles (not quite Bel Air but a decent neighborhood).
While in high school Ice was into rock and metal prior to discovering hip hop while in the Army. After leaving the service he adopted the stage name Ice-T as an homage to author/pimp Iceberg Slim and started performing as a DJ and rapper. Ice released his first single, "The Coldest Rap", in 1983. This song was essentially Morris Day and the Time with Ice standing in for Morris.
Ice was on his way. He released a few more singles and appeared in two of the greatest movies of the 20th century, the sublime "Breakin'" in 1984 and the tour de force "Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo" in 1985. The same year Ice heard Philadelphia rapper Schoolly D's seminal "PSK What Does It Mean?" and immediately changed his style to emulate Schoolly. The immediate result was Ice's "6 in the Mornin'" single while the long-term result was the spread of the seeds of gangsta rap from the East to West coast.
Ice's new style led to greater success and helped him land a proper record deal. His first album "Rhyme Pays" was released in 1987. His 1988 single "Colors" for the movie of the same name introduced Ice to a much wider audience and he followed with three more successful albums through 1991. In 1992 all hell broke loose.
Ice had started a metal band called Body Count with high school friend and guitarist Ernie C in 1990. The band played the Lollapalooza tour in 1991 and released their debut album in 1992. The album included a track called "Cop Killer" and folks got their britches all twisted. Charlton Heston went to a board meeting at Warner Brothers, the record label, and delivered some of the finest spoken word rap when he recited Ice's lyrics. President Bush and VP Quayle breathlessly warned us about the dangers of rap music while condemning a metal song.
It was all quite strange but Ice weathered the storm. He has continued to record music and appear in virtually every form of media - movies, television dramas, comedies, documentaries, reality shows, talk shows, video games - and collaborated with acts like Motorhead, Slayer and Jane's Addiction.
