Ice Cube in Del Mar, California









Del Mar Thoroughbred Club Concert Series
September 2, 2018

"Journey with me
Into the mind of a maniac
Doomed to be a killer
Since I came out the nut sack
I'm in a murderous mind-state
With a heart full of terror
I see the devil in the mirror
Buck buck, Lights out
Cause when I get my sawed off
Niggas get hauled off”

With those lyrics, Ice Cube, born O’Shea Jackson in South Central Los Angeles, kicked off his sold out (18,000 approximately) performance at the Del Mar Fairgrounds (after the horse racing), performing “Natural Born Killaz.”  Having graduated high school in 1992 I was well versed in rock, alternative, blues, country, and thanks to friends and a great show called Yo MTV Raps, rap, and hip-hop (one and the same if you ask me).

While attending Mt. Miguel High School I was already being introduced to rap by listening to my friend’s music, and I recall my friend Rick introducing me to this band out of Compton called N.W.A. The music of N.W.A. was pretty much banned from radio and MTV, with the exception of a radio “friendly” song like “Express Yourself.”  Rap is no different than rock, blues or country, in that there’s a story to be told by the singer(s), albeit at times more violent than what most are used to hearing, but it’s a story that needs to be heard.

For N.W.A., a group that truly wasn’t together that long, 1986-1991, they have had a long-lasting impact on the music industry, and eventually a much-debated entry into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.  Dr. Dre continued with his music, became a great producer, and a very successful line of headphones, Beats By Dr. Dre, co-founded with world-renowned music icon Jimmy Iovine.  Ice Cube has also maintained not only his music career but has done pretty well as an actor.

The first time I saw Boyz In The Hood, with Ice Cube, it, co-starring Angela Bassett, Laurence Fishburne, Morris Chestnut, and Cuba Gooding Jr., I was blown away.  It’s one of those films with a great cast, storyline, and soundtrack.  If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it, it’s one of director John Singleton’s masterpieces.  Of Course, Ice Cube has been in many other movies, including Friday, Anaconda, Next Friday, Ride Along, Barbershop and most recently Fist Fight. Ice Cube’s latest venture is Big3, started in 2017, is a three on three basketball league with many former NBA players. His fans have been waiting for his next album to be released, what would his tenth studio album, has been in the works off and on since 2010.  He did release “Everythang’s Corrupt” as an LP in 2013, which many had hoped was the first single.  With everything going on with Ice Cube, movies, and Big3, hopefully, we can surprise with a new album sometime soon!.

Article and photography by Andy Bartotto.

https://icecube.com/

All photographs are copyrighted images. Andy Bartotto Photography

















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