Ice T
Ice-T in Manhattan on set of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in March 2011. Background information Birth name Tracy Lauren Marrow Also known as Ice-T Ice T Iceberg Ice Oscillator Born (1958-02-16) February 16, 1958 (age 56) Newark, New Jersey, US Origin Crenshaw, Los Angeles, California, US Genres Hip hop, West Coast hip hop, gangsta rap, hardcore punk, thrash metal, speed metal, heavy metal, crossover thrash, rap metal Occupation(s) Musician, rapper, actor, CEO, record producer, screenwriter, author Instruments Vocals, sampler, turntables Years active 1982–present (rapping) 1984–present (acting) Labels Saturn, Sire, Priority, Rhyme Syndicate, Sumerian Associated acts 2 Live Crew, Fresh Kid Ice, Brother Marquis, Afrika Islam, Body Count, Beastie Boys, Low Profile, Quincy Jones, Eazy-E, Tupac Shakur, DJ King Assassin, DJ Flash, Evil E Website www.icetfinallevel.com Notable instruments Roland TR-808, E-mu SP-1200 Tracy Lauren Marrow (born February 16, 1958), better known by his stage name Ice-T, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. He began his career as a rapper in the 1980s and was signed to Sire Records in 1987, when he released his debut album Rhyme Pays, the first hip-hop album to carry an explicit content sticker. The next year, he founded the record label Rhyme $yndicate Records (named after his collective of fellow hip-hop artists called the 'Rhyme $yndicate') and released another album, Power. He co-founded the metal band Body Count, which he introduced in his 1991 album O.G.: Original Gangster. Body Count released its self-titled debut album in 1992. Ice-T encountered controversy over his track "Cop Killer", which was perceived to glamorize killing police officers. Ice-T asked to be released from his contract with Warner Bros. Records, and his next solo album, Home Invasion, was released later in February 1993 through Priority Records. Body Count's next album was released in 1994, and Ice-T released two more albums in the late 1990s. Since 2000, he has portrayed NYPD Detective Odafin Tutuola on the NBC police drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.