There’s a scene in Ice Cube’s cult classic film Friday (1995) when Smokey—played by Chris Tucker—says to Cube, “I’m gonna get you high today because it’s Friday. You ain’t got no job, and you ain’t got shit to do,” a line forever burned into pop culture’s ’90s lexicon. Although Cube had previously appeared in movies like Boyz N The Hood and CB4, the stoner flick launched Cube into another orbit and spawned two popular sequels, Next Friday and Friday After Next, and an animated series. It was the brilliant start to another colorful chapter. By the time he shot the film’s first installment, Cube was already a bona fide rap star, but after Friday, he was also a movie star.
Beginning with N.W.A’s seminal album, 1988’s Straight Outta Compton, Cube asserted himself as a tour de force early on. With his signature snarl and brutally honest lyrical gut punches, he helped put gangsta rap firmly on the map. After departing the group under somewhat contentious circumstances, he embarked on a fruitful solo career, releasing AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted in 1990, Death Certificate in 1991, The Predator in 1992, and Lethal Injection in 1993.
Over the last 30 years, Cube has evolved into a one-man army. He established his own three-on-three basketball league, Big3, starred in several more blockbuster films, released multiple albums, and formed a supergroup with Too $hort, Snoop Dogg, and E-40 called Mount Westmore. To say he’s kept himself busy would be a gross understatement. At this point in his career, he’s accomplished so much (including being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame), that it’s difficult to fathom what he could possibly do next. But as Cube would put it, there “ain’t no stoppin’ …
Read More
Author: Kyle Eustice / High Times
