Ice Cube

Ice Cube has been married to Kimberly Woodruff since 1992. They have four children together, including O'Shea Jackson Jr., who portrayed his father in the 2015 biopic Straight Outta Compton.

Through O'Shea Jackson Jr., Ice Cube became a grandfather in 2017. He has also spoken about teaching his children to question the value of violence portrayed in music, films, and other media.

Ice Cube began writing rap lyrics in high school and formed the group C.I.A. with Tony Wheatrob, also known as Sir Jinx, and K-Dee. He performed at parties hosted by Dr. Dre, who became an important early collaborator. In 1987, Ice Cube wrote "Boyz-n-the-Hood" for Eazy-E, helping establish the collaboration that led to N.W.A.

N.W.A formed with Ice Cube, Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, DJ Yella, and MC Ren. Ice Cube served as the group's lead rapper and wrote much of the material on Straight Outta Compton, including the title track, "Gangsta Gangsta," and "Express Yourself." The album helped popularize gangsta rap and brought intense attention to the relationship between Black communities and law enforcement.

Ice Cube left N.W.A in 1989 or 1990 after a dispute over compensation and management. His lawsuit involving manager Jerry Heller was settled out of court. N.W.A was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016, and Ice Cube later reunited musically with former group members.

Ice Cube launched his solo career with AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted in 1990. Produced largely by Public Enemy's Bomb Squad, the platinum album established a politically charged style focused on urban and Black culture. He followed it with Death Certificate in 1991, The Predator in 1992, and Lethal Injection in 1993.

Death Certificate drew controversy for songs including "No Vaseline" and "Black Korea," while The Predator became his most commercially successful album. It debuted at number one on both the pop and R&B charts and included the songs "It Was a Good Day" and "Check Yo Self." Later releases included War & Peace, Laugh Now, Cry Later, Raw Footage, I Am the West, Everythang's Corrupt, and Man Down.

In 1995, Ice Cube formed Westside Connection with Mack 10 and WC. Their debut album, Bow Down, was certified platinum in 1996. He also collaborated with artists including David Bowie, Trent Reznor, Korn, and Dr. Dre, and in 2020 joined Snoop Dogg, E-40, and Too Short in the supergroup Mount Westmore. The group's album Snoop Cube 40 $hort was released in 2022.

Ice Cube made his film debut as Doughboy in John Singleton's Boyz n the Hood in 1991. The performance established him as an actor and connected his film career to his earlier music, since the film's title came from the song he wrote for Eazy-E. He later appeared in Trespass, Higher Learning, Three Kings, Anaconda, and The Glass Shield.

He co-wrote and starred as Craig Jones in the Friday film series, beginning with Friday in 1995. The film became a franchise with Next Friday and Friday After Next. Other major credits include the Barbershop series, Are We There Yet?, 21 Jump Street, 22 Jump Street, Ride Along, The High Note, and War of the Worlds.

Ice Cube made his directing debut with The Players Club in 1998, which he also wrote and produced. He directed the documentary Straight Outta L.A. for ESPN's 30 for 30 series and executive produced the television adaptation of Are We There Yet? He also coproduced Straight Outta Compton, the 2015 biopic about N.W.A.

In 2017, Ice Cube launched Big3, a three-on-three basketball league featuring former NBA players. The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame named him the inaugural recipient of the Ice Cube Impact Award in 2023, honoring contributions that use basketball to benefit society.

Ice Cube continued releasing music and performing in the 2020s. He toured Canada in 2024, released the album Man Down that year, and announced the follow-up album Man Up in 2025.