This internet meme has been floating around for a while. It shows two very different Ice Cubes: one, a gangsta, a real "nigga," who doesn't take any shit (as expressed through his artillery, posse, and menacing look); and two, a family movies actor smiling in a goofy life jacket and fishing rod. We can laugh at the drastic contrast, but what do pictures like this mean for Ice Cube's identity?
Ice Cube can be whoever he wants to be. But this image kept popping up into my mind all throughout Chang's "The Real Enemy." For a man once so wrapped up in “gangstacentricity,” concerned with enemies including “race traitors” (those not representing their ghetto roots), Koreans, and the oppressive white majority, he seems to be pretty content with how the system worked out for him. “Are We There Yet” is a much different movie than “Boyz n the Hood.”
I was just curious on the class’ reaction. I’m not trying to provoke an “Ice Cube sold out” conversation (unless that’s how you really feel—then go for it), I just wanted to hear what you all had to say in response.
It seems to me that Ice Cube is just trying to make a buck with his movie career. It is easy to say he has sold out, but that was exactly his intention I believe. Authenticity at his age doesn't always mean dollar signs. He has grown out of the rap scene, although he still uses his "scary" rap persona in some of his current bits which is pretty interesting...
ReplyDeleteI think he is cashing in on the rapper he once was by creating a family aesthetic to his current acting performances. There is a bit of comedy in seeing him play "soft" roles, so I think he has that going for him, as well.
I hadn't seen this meme before so 1. Thanks for that. 2. I think this relates back to the reading of Old and new Identities, Old and New Ethnicities by Stewart Hall. Hall states, " It contains the notion of the true self, some real self inside there, hiding inside the husks of all the false selves that we present to the rest of the world. It is a kind of guarantee of authenticity."
ReplyDeleteBasically people present different versions of themselves to the world depending on who they're with or what they're doing.
As for Ice Cube's identity, I think his character in "Are We There Yet" is one of his "false selves" He's an actor, therefore he gets paid to be someone who he's not. But I'm sure his movie was also influenced by his real life. He's a much different person now than he was at age 18 or 19. He's been married since '92 and has 4 kids. He played a father in the movie, but he's also a father in real life. Does it make him any less real because he grew up? This next part I found on wikipedia: "Ice Cube was asked by Fresh Air's Terry Gross to provide some perspective on the relationship between his work and his family. When asked whether or not he allowed his children to listen to his music, he responded: "What's worked for me is instilling in my kids a level of self-respect," helping them to understand the content of not just music but the violence found on the evening news. When asked what he tells his children about profanity, he recalled telling his kids that there are "appropriate times to use any kind of language.... Adults should never hear you use these words. If you want to use these words around your friends, that's really on you."[11] Two of his sons (O'Shea Jr. and Darrel) are also rappers under the names OMG and Doughboy. They were featured on his latest album I Am the West."
Him starting a family is just another facet and growth of his identity. I also like how he doesn't hide his past from his kids and encourages them to really understand his music instead of just listen. Also, he made "Are We There Yet" thanks to all of his success he had as a teenager rapping in NWA. His career may has taken a slightly different path but he just gained more fame from it. It seems from our class discussions that we've defined "real" as oppressed people who rail against the government and authority. I'm not so sure "real" can be confined to that little box.