ICE CUBE(July 2010) | Interview By:
Javon Adams
Dubcnn was among a privileged few to sit with the legendary Hip Hop icon,
Ice Cube. The room of interviewers were chomping at the bit to chat with the
20 year Rap veteran and Cube enthusiastically talked about his new album, I
Am The West, and his stance on the simmering debate over Old West vs. New
West.
Cube also discusses what role his successes out side of Hip Hop play in his
music today. Aspiring entrepreneurs will want to read about the importance
of vision in Cube’s illustrious career. Ever the mogul, we also learn about
two of Cube’s new film projects: the ESPN documentary Straight Outta L.A.
and his new film Lottery Ticket.
This is a must read not only for Ice Cube fans but lovers of Hip Hop. Is
Cube The West? Take a few minutes to listen and read and you can judge for
yourself.
s always feel free to hit up
javon@dubcnn.com with questions or comments.
Ice Cube Interview Audio - July 2010: Download
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Interviewer #1: The I Am The West album is coming out, what is the
statement behind that title right there?
Cube: It’s kinda self explanatory. You know, I am the West. When you sum
it up and you look at longevity and continuity and content…it sums it
up. There’s only a few people that can be on the West Coast Mount
Rushmore and I’m one of them. So to me it is what it is.
Interviewer #1: You did the Rock the Bells last year and now you
are headlining this Paid Dues. What made you want to be a part of all of
these huge independent festivals recently?
Cube: I love it. This is the world we come out of. We come out of the
independent world with Ruthless. Even though we were quickly signed by
Priority (Records) the mentality had always stayed independent. By me
doing Laugh Now, Cry Later in 2006 and kind of throwing my hat in as an
artist in the independent world…we’d been independent with Lench Mob
Records since ’94 with KD and Caution. So this is right up my alley.
Interviewer #1: You’re independently putting out the documentary
with the Raiders too. What’s that project about?
Cube: Well, that’s not necessarily independent. That’s with ESPN for
their 30 for 30 and they approached me to do it. They have 30 film
makers to do these films…sports films or anything you wanted to do. I
picked Straight Outta L.A. from when the L.A. Raiders were in L.A.
because it affected NWA so much and I was kinda like, nobody would have
told that story right unless I did it…so I jumped at the chance.
Dubcnn: With Lench Mob Records when your putting out projects
now and being independent, how do you judge success? What’s a successful
project for you?
Cube: Well, right now it’s really if my fans like it. If my core fans
like the project…I really can’t trip on numbers because numbers come and
go. I’ve had records that sell a whole lot and records that haven’t sold
a whole lot. But to me it’s not really about that. It’s about whether or
not your core fan enjoys the record. Because to me that’s the only
success an emcee really can measure himself off of.
I never was a fan of measuring yourself off of sales because those
numbers come and they go. Vanilla Ice has one of the highest selling Hip
Hop albums in Rap history (laughs). But who cares how much money you
make if you don’t like it? So to me that’s the most important thing. You
know, rappers in the ‘90’s go caught up in the ‘I got platinum on the
wall and I got gold on the wall’ but they ain’t got no lyrics in the
mouth. So I just wanted to go back to the essence. So I measure myself
on people’s enjoyment.
Interviewer #2: What’s it like being 20 years in the game and
having all of the younger generation looking up to you now? Back in the
day you used to look up to people…how does it feel to have the roles
switched?
Cube: It feels good, you know? I love all the young emcees that
are trying to do their thang. I know its been going back and forth about
the New West …I got love for the New West, I mean why wouldn’t I? But I
don’t got love for nobody dissing the Old West, you know what I meant?
That’s where I got a problem because we put it down. We made it
possible. We got some light shined this way to make it possible for all
that come after us. And they gotta pay respect to that. And they can’t
diss that. And if they do, then they got to see me.
Interviewer #2: You’ve definitely paid dues.
Cube: Definitely and that’s why I’m here. The Paid Dues Festival.
Interviewer #3: Cube? Can I call you Mr. Cube?
Cube: You can call me Mr. Cube. I’ll take it.
Interviewer #3: You’ve been doing so many things in
entertainment…I’m feeling like there’s a cookbook next in line. (laughs)
Cube: Nah man. I’m not gonna work on no damn cookbook. Y’all don’t wanna
eat my cooking. Trust me.
Dubcnn: With the anniversary of Amerikka’s Most Wanted 20 years ago…one
of the things that attracted me to you in terms of your rapping style
was the passion and the furrowed eyebrow. It seems like you’re really
getting back to that the last three albums. Does success (in particular)
the success you’ve had outside of music give you that freedom to really
step outside of what the industry wants and allow you to do what you
really want to do and give the fans what they’re really clamoring for?
The old Ice Cube with the Jherri Curl and all that.
Cube: As an artist you’re always conflicted because you don’t want to be
a one trick pony. You don’t want people to say, ‘Ah, I heard that back
in ’91. He’s doing the same thing.’ So you always try to figure out and
calibrate should you flip the script and change the style up or how much
should you keep it the same? There’s always a balance.
For me, I just stopped worrying about that stuff. To me I just let the
beat take me. I hear the music and the music tells me what I need to do
and how I need to come at it. And I just simplify the process. You know,
I get hot beats but if they don’t speak to me and songs don’t come off
of those beats then they just sit there, you know? Or I’ll get a beat
and the song will just come up right away. So I just start going back to
the essence on how I used to do music before I got famous and before
people started expecting certain things of me. Now I just do what I feel
and just let the chips fall where they may.
Interviewer #1: Piggybacking off of his question, B.E.T. just
played Boyz in the Hood for the 10,000th time with the Jherri Curl and
the whole thing. You’re one of the few rappers that can do hardcore Hip
Hop and then turnaround and do Are We There Yet. How do you maintain
that balance of credibility?
Cube: I just be myself. I just feel like if you be yourself then people
will accept you. People know that nobody’s hard 24 hours a day. And that
most people are well-rounded and have a sense of humor and a serious
side. So I felt like it’s real to show that. I remember when I was about
to record It Was A Good Day and people in the studio, I ain’t gonna name
no names, was like you can’t do that record. And I said why the f*ck
not? (laughs) Why can’t I do that record? They said, ‘Because your sh*t
is hard! And if you say you’re having a good day then you ain’t hard.’
And I said, ‘Bullsh*t! That is hard because it’s being real’. And that
should be hard enough. Real should be hard enough. And if real ain’t
hard enough then I don’t know what the f*ck I’m doing here. So that’s
why I can do that song because I feel like it’s true to what it is. Same
reason I can do those movies, you know? I feel like I do got a sense of
humor and I can put it on camera and it doesn’t make me any less harder
than what I am right now.
Interviewer #1: Break down (the movie) Lottery Ticket for me.
It’s the new comedy you have coming out with Brandon T. Jackson, Bow
Wow…
Cube: It’s a movie that was brought to CubeVision that we took on to
produce. It’s starring Bow Wow and it’s a good script. Its about what
happens when you win the lottery and the time before you actually get
the money. How hectic your life is and everybody thinks you’re rich
before you even get the money in your hands. It’s dealing with that
moment in time before…everybody knows you have all this money but you
don’t have all this money. It’s kind of how the neighborhood is coming
at you from there. It’s a good movie. It will be out in August.
Interviewer #4: On a different subject…who are you biggest
influences and who’d you look up to the most when you started?
Cube: My biggest influence in my life is my father. I’m just happy he
stayed around and didn’t break out like a lot of fathers do. But I
looked up to people like (Dr.) Dre and Chuck D and Russell Simmons. As
far as films…John Singleton and people that I saw my age that were doing
it big. I looked up to those dudes and wanted to do it big too..
Dubcnn: You mentioned Russell Simmons and (you are) a producer,
a director and an artist. You have to have vision. Talk about how vision
plays a part in what you’re doing now and what you plan to do 3, 5, 10
years from now.
Cube: Vision is everything. If you don’t see yourself doing it then it
won’t get done. You have to visualize success. It’s to the point where
when I get a good idea my wife and I say, ‘Don’t say it out loud because
once it goes in the air somebody else might grab that idea and start
working on it.’ So its real…you have to visualize success and if you
don’t you can never get there. If you never see yourself wining then how
can you win?
My vision is just…its not a vision of looking 10 or 20 years in front of
me. I’m looking at what is my next move and making sure I execute that
to the fullest. Then I step onto the next. Sometimes you look so much
ahead and you never deal with the job at hand because you’re looking
at…I’m not worried about what I got to do tomorrow. I’m worried about
what I gotta do right now. I keep it simple like that but I also have a
plan for the future but you gotta execute today and the future will
usually take care of itself.
Interviewer #4: Can you tell me about what does paying dues mean
to you? And advice for artists trying to make it in any industry.
Cube: Paying dues is starting from the bottom and doing whatever it
takes to be successful. I’ve carried crates of records for people like
Dre and DJ Yella. I’ve lifted Cerwin Vega’s and put speakers up and all
that kind a sh*t. It’s pay ya dues type of work to get to where you are.
I’ve been in rap contests and battles on Senior Quad and all that sh*t
in high school. All that is paying your dues. Getting in the industry
and paying respect and homage to the people that have been there before
but also wanting to be better then them…not dissing them, but wanting to
be better. To me this is all a part of paying your dues and when you do
it right I think you get in a position where I’m in right now.
