The guest
Ice Cube: Rapper, actor, writer and producer (O'Shea Jackson); NWA founding member, solo hip-hop star, Friday/Barbershop filmmaker, and founder of the Big3 basketball league.
What this episode covers
Ice Cube joins Joe Rogan on a podcast tour to promote his Big3 three-on-three basketball league, alleging the NBA quietly pressures networks and sponsors to ignore it. The conversation ranges across boxing and MMA (Floyd Mayweather, Mike Tyson, Crawford-Spence), the wealth and pressures of fame, and a long stretch on COVID-era mandates, including Cube turning down a $9 million movie role rather than get vaccinated. He recounts NWA's origins, the FBI letter over 'Fuck tha Police,' police running the group off stage, and how MTV's ban broke them nationally. Cube closes on his pivot from gangster rap to family films, the 'Ice Cube vortex' that builds lifelong fans, his father's influence, and a philosophy of making what you love over chasing money.
The guest's own work
MediaBy the guest
Straight Outta Compton
N.W.A
“elliptical machine listening to Straight Out of Compton going holy like this is why there was nothing like that before that”— Joe Rogan
MediaBy the guest
Straight Outta Compton (film)
F. Gary Gray
“Gary gray is the director of Straight Out of Compton he also directed Friday and he directed uh it was a good day”— Ice Cube
MediaBy the guest
Friday
Ice Cube
“long story short I end up few years later writing Friday okay Friday 1995 comes out Big C classic”— Ice Cube
MediaBy the guest
Barbershop
Ice Cube
“so I did I did another movie called barber shop now that's a already comedy Friday so I do barber shop it's good reaction”— Ice Cube
MediaBy the guest
Are We There Yet
Ice Cube
“I take a look at it and it was already are we there yet I'm like oh this this a kids movie you know”— Ice Cube
MediaBy the guest
Fuck tha Police
N.W.A
“we're very concerned with this record called Straight Out of Compton you guys got a song on there called the Police”— Ice Cube
MediaBy the guest
Bow Down
Westside Connection
“I did a record called you know bow down with the West Side connection which we addressed a lot of the beef”— Ice Cube
Also referenced (named, not recommended)
BookReferencedISBN verified
The Real Anthony Fauci
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“and then wrote that book the real Anthony fouchy detailing you know what it is that these people are actually doing”— Joe Rogan
MediaReferenced
Boyz n the Hood
John Singleton
“John Singleton worked with me you know what I mean John put me in boys in the hood I didn't act I was no actor”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
21 Jump Street
“I've acted in movies you know I did 21 Jump Street I did uh three kings you know where I'm just an actor”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Three Kings
“I've acted in movies you know I did 21 Jump Street I did uh three kings you know where I'm just an actor”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Rockstar Games
“he's the one who who got rockar to do the Grand Theft Auto San Andreas that whole you know like take it from Miami and put it in LA”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Hollywood Shuffle
Robert Townsend
“we were watching uh In Living Color uh and we l Hollywood Shuffle by Robert Townsen and uh we was like let's write a movie”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
In Living Color
“we were watching uh In Living Color uh and we l Hollywood Shuffle by Robert Townsen and uh we was like let's write a movie”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Colors
“everything that was coming out was depressing you know was colors boys in the hood men to society South Central it was like yo this is a hell Zone”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Menace II Society
“everything that was coming out was depressing you know was colors boys in the hood men to society South Central it was like yo this is a hell Zone”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Cop Killer
Body Count
“they start going after I te you know a little bit cuz he body count did a song called cop killer and um yeah”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Fuck Compton
Tim Dog
“an artist named Tim Dog did a song called Compton like out of nowhere we was like damn we like New York”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Rap Dirty
Blowfly
“it was a dude named um uh blowfly blowfly would have songs called he had a song he got one a song called rap dirty”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Rock the Bells
LL Cool J
“even LL was you know amazing Lyricist word Smith you know the original Rock The Bells he's another guy that's done everything”— Ice Cube
MediaReferenced
Going Back to Cali
LL Cool J
“he helped LL do Going Back to Cali you know what I mean like he been around forever”— Ice Cube
ProductReferenced
Bud Light
Anheuser-Busch
“the only time it respects people's opinions is when people boycott and it works like this Bud Light thing”— Joe Rogan
ProductReferenced
Honda Accord
Honda
“the first thing I bought um like the first car oh man I bought a uh a Honda Accord I bought a Honda Accord”— Ice Cube
ProductReferenced
Suzuki Sidekick
Suzuki
“at first I had like a sidekick you know uh Suzuki Sidekick suuki made cars remember those sidekick”— Ice Cube
ProductReferenced
Final Draft
Final Draft
“I go by a computer that same day and final draft which is a script writing and I start writing a script”— Ice Cube
Big reveals from this episode
- Ice Cube claims the NBA works behind the scenes to discourage networks from airing and sponsors from backing his Big3 league.
- His son O'Shea Jackson Jr. plays him in Straight Outta Compton; Cube secretly tested his commitment with extra coaching and auditions.
- Cube turned down a $9 million movie role rather than take a COVID vaccine, and says his private medical status was leaked to the press.
- The FBI sent NWA's label priority records a letter over 'Fuck tha Police'; the band made it public and it blew them up.
- Detroit and Cincinnati police ran NWA off stage mid-set for the song, then demanded autographed photos for their daughters.
- MTV banning the Straight Outta Compton video is what catapulted the group from a niche bin to the front of record stores.
- The 'Ice Cube vortex': kids discover him via Are We There Yet, graduate to Friday, then to his hardcore early rap.
Worth remembering
- Snoop Dogg reportedly pays a full-time professional blunt roller around $40,000 a year.
- The Big3 idea was sparked by Kobe Bryant scoring 60 in his final game, with nowhere left for fans to see him play.
- Cube's first car bought with music money was a roughly $20,000 black Honda Accord, paid in cash.
- Straight Outta Compton sold about 2 million copies while Cube was still in NWA and likely 4 million-plus today.
- After leaving NWA, Cube attended Phoenix Institute of Technology (1987-88) to study architectural drafting.
- As a teen he'd ditch school and hop fences at rival high schools to stage rap battles.
- John Singleton, then a USC intern, pursued Cube for two years to cast him in Boyz n the Hood.
- Singleton pushed Cube to buy screenwriting software Final Draft and start writing, which eventually led to Friday.
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