Because every Hip Hop artist needs a nom de guerre, “Ice-T” came into being with help from author Robert Maupin Beck III, whose pen name “Iceberg Slim” became Tracy Marrow’s (Ice T’s real name) inspiration. After spending a few years honing his craft by creating music for videos and releasing various recordings, Ice-T signed with Sire Records in 1987. Later that year, he released Rhyme Pays, his debut album, which eventually went gold. His recording of the theme song for Dennis Hopper’s gang-themed movie Colors (1988) also garnered the new artist plenty of attention.

Ice-T released two more albums in the late 1980s, confirming his status as one of West Coast rap’s most promising stars. His album O.G. Original Gangster (1991) was later cited as one of the key factors in developing the genre of gangster rap. (Full bio here)

Tracklist:

1. 6 N The Morning
2. I Love Ladies
3. Pain
4. Squeeze The Trigger
5. Colors
6. Power
7. Drama
8. I’m Your Pusher
9. Personal
10. High Rollers
11. The Hunted Child
12. What Ya Wanna Do?
13. This One’s For Me
14. Lethal Weapon
15. Peel Their Caps Back
16. You Played Yourself
17. New Jack Hustler
18. Mind Over Matter
19. Bitches 2
20. Straight Up N****
21. O.G. Original Gangster
22. Fly By
23. Midnight
24. Pulse Of The Rhyme
25. The Tower
26. Gotta Lotta Love
27. That’s How I’m Livin’
28. 99 Problems
29. Richochet