An only child whose parents died when he was very young, Ice T became involved in Los Angeles gangs before spending 4 years in the army. His first break came when the producers of the film Breakin asked him to rap in the movie. Ice T formed Rhyme Syndicate Records in 1989 and released a string of groundbreaking West Coast rap records. Body Count was the most critically acclaimed act on the highly successful 1991 Lollapalooza tour, and continued to tour worldwide. Ice T has received a Grammy Award and was also voted Best Male Rapper in Rolling Stone s 1992 Readers Poll.
Ice T is an accomplished movie actor as well.
He has starred opposite Wesley Snipes in New Jack City, Denzel Washington in Ricochet, and Keanu Reeves in the sci-fi action thriller Johnny Mnemonic. Ice T also appeared in Tank Girl and was featured in cult director Walter Hill s Trespass. He has numerous independent and documentary film roles to his credit as well. In the Fall of 1997, Ice T starred in a one-hour weekly drama series on NBC, Players, which was based on his own concept. The show was Ice T s personal guide to Blaxploitation movies and to black culture in general.