What Is Ice Cube's Net Worth?
Ice Cube is an American rapper, actor, producer, and entrepreneur who has a net worth of $160 million. Ice Cube has transitioned from one of the originators of the West Coast gangsta rap to one of the most powerful people in Hollywood today. After initially earning fame and fortune as a member of NWA, Ice Cube embarked on a highly successful solo career. He has also written, produced, and starred in a number of films.
He first gained fame as a member of the groundbreaking hip-hop group N.W.A., where he was one of the primary songwriters. With lyrics that were both incisive and controversial, N.W.A.'s albums played a crucial role in popularizing gangsta rap and had a significant influence on the hip-hop genre.
After leaving N.W.A. in 1989, Ice Cube embarked on a solo career that would further cement his status as one of hip-hop's most influential figures. His debut solo album, "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted," was released in 1990 and was a commercial success, earning both critical acclaim and controversy for its social and political commentary. Ice Cube's subsequent albums, such as "Death Certificate" and "The Predator," continued to explore themes of social justice, racial inequality, and urban strife.
In addition to his music career, Ice Cube made a successful transition to acting. He made his feature film debut in John Singleton's "Boyz n the Hood" in 1991, delivering a powerful performance that opened doors to further acting opportunities. He starred in and contributed to the script for "Friday" (1995), a comedy film that became a cult classic. Ice Cube's film career has spanned various genres, including action ("xXx: State of the Union"), family comedy ("Are We There Yet?"), and drama ("Barbershop").
Ice Cube's work as a producer and writer has also been significant. He produced many of the films he starred in, and his production company, Cube Vision, has been behind several successful film and television projects.
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Early Life
Ice Cube was born O'Shea Jackson on June 15, 1969, in South Central Los Angeles. Jackson was born to Doris, a custodian and hospital clerk, and Hosea Jackson, a UCLA groundskeeper. He has an older brother, and his half-sister was tragically murdered when Ice Cube was just 12. He grew up on Van Wick Street in Los Angeles and started writing rap and hip-hop music by age 14. Ice Cube got his rapper name from his older brother, quoted as saying his brother threatened to slam him into a freezer and pull him out when he was an ice cube, and the name stuck.
He attended William Howard Taft High School in Woodland Hills, California. When he was 16, he sold his first song to future N.W.A. member Eazy-E. After high school, he enrolled at the Phoenix Institute of Technology in Arizona in the fall of 1987. He studied architectural drafting and completed his diploma within a year. Ice Cube then returned to Los Angeles to pursue a career in rap.
Early Career
Ice Cube formed the group C.I.A. with his friend Sir Jinx, and they performed at parties around L.A. hosted by Dr. Dre. In 1987, Ice Cube and C.I.A. released a track produced by Dr. Dre, "My Posse." Ice Cube showed Eazy-E the lyrics to a rap he had penned, "Boyz-n-the-Hood," and he initially hated the lyrics. However, Eazy-E eventually went on to record the song for "N.W.A. and the Posse," the debut album for N.W.A., which also included Dr. Dre, MC Ren, DJ Yella, and Ice Cube. Ice Cube wrote Dr. Dre and Eazy-E's rhymes and half the lyrics for the group's breakthrough album, 1988's "Straight Outta Compton." However, he was only paid $32,000 for his contributions. Ice Cube left N.W.A. after conflicts involving his pay and official contracts with the group were unable to be resolved.
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Solo Career
"AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted," Ice Cube's first solo album, was released in May 1990 to instant success, riding the wave of rap's immense popularity of the time. The same year, he released the EP "Kill at Will," which became the first hip-hop EP to go Platinum. In 1991, Ice Cube tested his acting chops by starring as Doughboy in John Singleton's crime drama "Boyz n the Hood." His performance was acclaimed and praised by critics across the board.
"Death Certificate," his second album, was released in 1991. It was controversial and divided audiences and critics alike. He performed at Lollapalooza in 1992, tapping into a wider fanbase. In November 1992, he released "The Predator," his third album. It debuted at #1 on both the pop and R&B charts, making it the first album in history to do so, and it was well-received by critics. It remains his most successful commercial release, selling over three million copies in the U.S.
The next year saw Ice Cube's rap audience diminishing. His fourth album, "Lethal Injection," was not received well by critics. He took a hiatus from music and didn't release his fifth album ("War & Peace Vol. 1") until 1998. In 2000, he joined Dr. Dre, Eminem, and Snoop Dog for the "Up in Smoke Tour" and waited another six years before releasing another album, "Laugh Now, Cry Later," which debuted at #4 on the "Billboard" charts. "I Am the West" was Ice Cube's ninth solo album, and he released it on September 28, 2010. Ice Cube collaborated on different projects and with various groups through the 2010s, including stepping outside of the hip-hop world to work with Trent Reznor and David Bowie on some tracks. He released his tenth solo album, "Everythang's Corrupt," in 2018, after slowly releasing singles over several years.
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Acting Career
In 1991, Ice Cube made his film acting debut in "Boyz n the Hood." He appeared in a handful of films over the next few years. In 1995, "Friday" – a movie that starred, was written by, and produced by Ice Cube – was released to critical and commercial success. "Friday" produced several sequels.
In 1997, he starred in "Anaconda." In 1998, he directed, produced, wrote, and starred in "The Players Club."
Other Ice Cube movies include "Are We There Yet" and its sequel, "21 Jump Street" and "22 Jump Street," "xXx: Return of Xander Cage," and "Fist Fight." He also produced the 2015 N.W.A. biopic "Straight Outta Compton," and his son O'Shea Jr. portrayed him in the film.
In October 2021, it was revealed that Ice Cube had decided to exit an upcoming film production of a comedy called "Oh Hell No" after he declined to get a COVID-19 vaccine, which is required since the production was set to film in Hawaii. Cube gave up a $9 million salary to leave the film.
Other Ventures
Ice Cube formed Westside Connection with Mack 10 and WC in 1996, and he released two albums with the collaboration.
Ice Cube has a clothing line, Solo by Cube, which sells hooded sweatshirts with built-in headphones. In 2011, he became a spokesperson for Coors Light beer. Ice Cube announced his new project, Big3, on January 11, 2017. Big3 is a concept professional basketball league featuring former NBA greats. Season one began in June 2017.
In 2023, it was announced that Ice Cube teamed up with Jesse Collins to bring a new Big3 sports league docuseries to light for Jesse Collins Entertainment to tell of the success of the league and its track to becoming one of the biggest in the world.
Personal Life
Ice Cube married Kimberly Woodruff on April 26, 1992. The two have five children together: O'Shea Jr. (b. 1991), Darrell (b. 1992), Karima (b. 1994), Deja (b. 1994), and Shareef (b. 1995). Ice Cube has a granddaughter named Jordan.
Terry Gross, interviewing Ice Cube in January 2005 on NPR's "Fresh Air," asked him whether or not he allowed his children to listen to his music. He responded, "What's worked for me is instilling in my kids a level of self-respect and helping them to understand the content of not just music but the violence found on the evening news." When questioned about what he tells his children in regards to profanity, he responded that he told his children there are appropriate times to use any kind of language but not to use certain words around adults out of respect.
Real Estate
In May 2016, Ice Cube paid $7.25 million for a home in Marina Del Rey, California. He bought the home from Jean-Claude Van Damme, who bought the house in 2012 for $6 million as a brand-new spec mansion. Ice Cube and his wife also maintain a large mansion in Encino, California, which they bought in June 1996 for $2.36 million. This home is set on a 1.11-acre lot and has seven bedrooms in a nearly 8,000-square-foot main house with a pool, spa, and full-size basketball court.
