Keeping it COOL
Ice Cube brings his ‘iconic’ gangsta rap to NMHU
World-famous rapper and actor Ice Cube will stop in Las Vegas, N.M., for a concert at New Mexico Highlands University as part of his 2018 tour.
Ice Cube rose to prominence in the ’80s as a member of N.W.A. The Los Angeles group, inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 and credited with bringing the gangsta rap genre to the mainstream, was the subject of the 2015 film “Straight Outta Compton,” named after the group’s debut album.
After leaving N.W.A. in 1989, Ice Cube — whose real name is O’Shea Jackson — achieved success as a solo artist, with albums such as 1990’s “Amerikkka’s Most Wanted” and 1992’s “The Predator.”
This September, Ice Cube teased his first album in eight years, “Everythang’s Corrupt.” In a tweet revealing the cover art, he also alluded to a possible winter release.
“Whether you’re making music or you’re making a movie, you do whatever you have to, to be great and make it memorable,” Ice Cube says in a Highlands University news release last week.
“Whether it’s cassettes, wax or digital downloads, VHS tapes, satellite TV or Netflix, people don’t care what format it’s in as long as the content is quality.”
Ice Cube has also become a well-known actor since starring in 1991’s “Boyz in the Hood.” He’s also had roles in “21 Jump Street,” “Ride Along” and “Are We There Yet?” Many of his films have been made by his production company, Cube Vision.
The concert will be at Highlands’ John A. Wilson Complex, and is open to ages 15 and up.
In the school’s news release, dean of students Kimberly Blea described Ice Cube’s role in the development of the rap genre as “iconic.”
“We are very excited that
Ice Cube will be performing at Highlands,” Blea said. “It’s a great opportunity for our students and the community to experience high-quality entertainment.”
The show’s opening act is ODIE, a young Nigerian-Canadian musician who started releasing tracks earlier this year.