ICE T

Although Ice-T is a West Coast Rapper he was born and raised in Newark, NJ. When he was In his 7th grade both of his parents died and he moved to LA.

His ‘O.G. Original Gangster’ is one of the first albums to define ‘Gangsta Rap’ along with works by NWA and Schooly D. He broadened his musical style, forming the heavy metal band ‘Body Count’ and their controversial song ‘Cop Killer’ brought Ice-T to the attention of the media and general public making them infamous. As his hip hop career waned due to his often sexist and violent lyrics, his acting career started to take off. He starred in ‘New Jack City’ in 1991 and since 2000 has become a mainstay on ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit’.

It was mid-winter, on a freezing day in NYC. Somehow I persuaded Ice-T to leave his hotel room. Once we were out I could see that there was no way he would remain outside so I took him down to the subway where he practised his left and right jabs. Perhaps he was telling me something about how he felt about our photo shoot! No-one recognised him although this was the time when the east coast/west coast rivalry was beginning to get seriously heavy.