Ice-T saw his rap career flourish during the era of Biggie and Tupac, amongst others. Watching them get gunned down and others get strung out on drug abuse gives him enough perspective to offer a stark warning to the new rappers in the game. While he helped create the gangsta rap era, he spoke on the dangers of the profession to People Magazine at ESSENCE Fest in New Orleans over the weekend.
"I think people from my generation are really upset with what’s going on with the youngsters because every week somebody’s going to jail," Ice-T said in an interview that also had fellow rap OG KRS-One. "People are dying of drugs, killing each other." With recent tragic losses, such as XXXTENTACION, Nipsey Hussle, and Takeoff, drug abuse and gun violence is more rampant than ever in rap. "My generation, we lost Tupac, we lost Biggie, and we got the memo," Ice-T continues. "Everybody calmed down. We all figured this out: We [were] rapping to get out of the streets."
Read more: Ice-T Gets Choked Up Discussing 2Pac On “Drink Champs”
What Ice-T Has To Say To The Young Ones
Tupac and The Notorious B.I.G. were murdered back in the late 90s, and Ice-T knows how valuable life is. So he wants to make sure the people in the rap industry nowadays are protecting themselves. "[The] youngsters who are out here behaving like that, these kids are millionaires," he told People. "So I don't know how many young people gotta get lost, I don't know which one might trigger that message, but I think it's time for this generation to get a hold of itself."
It's been a minute since Ice-T rapped. He is one of the mainstays on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and is going on plenty of podcasts. His rap career was spectacular, spanning two decades for solo albums. He does collaboration albums every now and then, the most recent one being Uncut with Afrika Islam in 2021. He released Carnivore in 2020 with Body Count, a heavy metal band with a focus on social and political issues.
Read more: Ice-T Says He Still Eats At Denny’s & iHop Despite His Wealth
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