Rapper, actor and filmmaker Ice Cube was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, adding another highlight to a long and varied career for the multi-faceted performer.
“Toast to all my Day 1 Riders! If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,” he tweeted.
Many celebrities from the hip-hop and filmmaking community were present for the ceremony, including director John Singleton, who directed Ice Cube in his first acting role in 1991’s Boyz n the Hood.
“The mark of a true man is how many people he influences in his lifetime,” Singleton said. “That’s how I see Cube.”
At the time of his first Hollywood movie role, Ice Cube, now 47, was already a controversial hip-hop star as part of the group, N.W.A., whose 1988 hit song, “[Expletive] tha Police” made headlines and censor lists for its blunt lyrics about racist police in Los Angeles’ majority black South Central area.
Ice Cube, originally known as O’Shea Jackson, has gone on to enjoy success in Hollywood with several starring roles, including the highly profitable Barbershop franchise, in which he starred and produced.
The Hollywood Walk of Fame honor comes at the same time Ice Cube is busy promoting his new hip-hop album, Death Certificate.
“You don’t get here by yourself,” he said during his speech to accept the honor. “Today is not really about Ice Cube. It’s about all the people that helped me get here.”
