Ice Cube (Rapper)

The ten best diss tracks of all time

Since hip-hop's genesis, beef has been as integral a driving force to the art as bravado. There's been some titanic tangles over the years, from Canibus facing off with LL Cool J to Jay-Z and Nas locking horns with one other, all of which have resulted in some relentless and incendiary rhymes being ... More >>

The fifty greatest rap groups of all time

There's something great about a hip-hop group. From the beginning, it was never intended to be a solo endeavor; rap began in cyphers at block parties, and the first established rappers were components of a collective centered around the more important DJ. Even now that the rapper is the star, it's n ... More >>

The 50 best rap lyrics of all time: Complete list

Last week, we took a look at the fifty worst rap lyrics of all time. Going through all the dreck and drivel to get to the crème de la crème of crappiness was tedious and rather exhausting. This week, we even things out by taking a look at the other end of the spectrum and examining rap lyrics to f ... More >>

The 50 best rap lyrics of all time: 50-26

Last week, we took a look at the fifty worst rap lyrics of all time. Culling through all the dreck and drivel to get to the crème de la crème of crappiness was tedious and rather exhausting. This week we even things out by taking a look at the other end of the spectrum and examining the fifty best ... More >>

The 50 worst rap lyrics: The complete list

We've finally arrived: The The best of the worst. The creme de la crap. The unholy of unholies. If you thought 50-11 were bad, you ain't seen nothin' yet. These are the lyrics that can turn a good album sour, and make a bad album laughable. Included are quotes from Eminem, Lil B, J. Cole, 2 Chainz, ... More >>

Here's what we're all listening to right now. What's rocking your world this week?

As people who think about, talk about, write about, listen to and make music, it's not surprising that the most common (and favorite) topic of conversation among us is the same: "What are you listening to right now?" Stick a quarter in us, and, boy, wouldn't you know it, off we go, on and on about t ... More >>

The fifty worst rap lyrics (50-41)

Listen, before I breakdown rap's worst lyrics, you should know, I don't hate Lil' Wayne. No, really. I like him just fine. But even good rappers get caught slipping, as evidenced by the fact that Lil' Wayne makes several appearances on this list. And while picking low-hanging fruit is the nature of ... More >>

The five best concerts this weekend

Welcome to the weekend! The fact that you're reading this right now means that we either all survived the end of the world, or we all misunderstood the Mayans and miscalculated the date of our supposed demise. Whatever the case, we're here, and it's the weekend -- and it's a holiday weekend at that. ... More >>

Denver's RiNo district breaks the First Friday mold this weekend

The Ice Cube Gallery fronts the Dry Ice Factory, a beautiful, light-strewn maze of studio spaces in, yes, a converted dry-ice factory. It's a formidable venue for the display of art, and once-a year Ice Cube cooperative members join together for a wide-open group show. See also: - Feminism is as ur ... More >>

The ten best movies featuring rappers

Wu-Tang has been immersed in kung-fu for so long, it was inevitable that one member of the Clan would make a major appearance in a martial arts movie at some point. The RZA appeared briefly in Ghost Dog in 1999, but only for a passing moment, though he did produce the soundtrack. In The Man with the ... More >>

Ten essential gangsta rap albums

Many hip-hop fans, those who love rap -- hell, even some rappers -- have an aversion to gangsta rap for its objectionable content. Common named the rise of gangsta rap as one of the many steps in hip-hop's downfall in "I Used to Love H.E.R.," a sentiment that, of course, began a contentious relation ... More >>

Backbeat's top five spins: This is what we're listening to this week. What's on your playlist?

As people who think about, talk about, write about, listen to and make music, it shouldn't be surprising to find that the most common (and mutually favorite) topic of conversation among us is the same: "What are you listening to right now?" Stick a quarter in us, and, boy, wouldn't you know it, off ... More >>

Backbeat's five most listened-to songs and albums, week of September 5, 2012

As people who think about, talk about, write about, listen to and make music, it shouldn't be too surprising to find that the most common (and our mutually favorite) topic of conversation among all of us is the same: "What are you listening to right now?" Stick a quarter in us, and boy, wouldn't you ... More >>

Feminism is as urgent as ever at Ice Cube Gallery and Pirate: Contemporary Art

Snoop Dogg and Ice Cube at Comfort Dental, 8/24/12

SNOOP DOGG and ICE CUBE @ COMFORT DENTAL | 2/4/12 With a lineup in which the youngest performer was Bizzy Bone of Bone Thugs-n-Harmony at 35, one might assume that this show was doomed to an early bedtime and fading energy as the night wore on. In reality, the crowd got more and more hyped as legen ... More >>

Ice Cube

Friday, August 24, Comfort Dental Amphitheatre, 303-830-8497.

The five best concerts in Colorado this week

There's some stellar music on tap this week to look forward to no matter your flavor. The week kicks off with an absolute bang this afternoon at the Summit Music Hall with Cannibal Corpse, which headlines the Summer Slaughter tour with Between the Buried & Me, Job for a Cowboy, Exhumed, Goatwhore an ... More >>

Cool summer shows at Ice Cube and Walker Fine Art

See more images: Photos: Stay cool at summer shows at Ice Cube, Walker Fine Art

Photos: Stay cool at summer shows at Ice Cube, Walker Fine Art

"Ice Cube Gallery sounds like an attractive escape from 100-plus-degree temperatures," writes Michael Paglia in his review of Regina V. Benson: Wading In and Jane McMahan: Absence (through July 14), two shows that feature natural imagery as key components, in this week's Westword. Meanwhile, the Gol ... More >>

Morrissey, Snoop Dogg and Ice Cube, Dinosaur Jr., Jackson Browne lead this week's shows

Denver's summer concert season is proving to be every bit as hot as anticipated, and the fall is shaping up to be just as heated with new dates from Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg and E-40, who are due back in town at the end of August, followed by Rascal Flatts in September, Dinosaur Jr. in October and Morri ... More >>

Oxytocin and Pendent Tendencies give Ice Cube Gallery an installation charge

Slug from Atmosphere on the fictionalization of his lyrics and unwinding with some online chess

​Sean Daley helped launch an empire when he co-founded Rhymesayers Entertainment, home to P.O.S., Brother Ali and, of course, his outfit, Atmosphere.The rapper otherwise known as Slug is an unstoppable force with endless vision and nonstop determination, which has helped make Rhymesayers one o ... More >>

It's on like Donkey Kong: A brief history (infographic)

Oh, it's on.​The basic origin of the phrase "It's on like Donkey Kong" is clear enough: the 1981 video game, in which said large ape somewhat inexplicably terrorizes a construction site. What's less clear, though, is how that ape went from mindlessly slinging 8-bit barrels at Mario to an icon ... More >>

Top five lost albums we'd like to see released

​Love's lost album from 1973, Black Beauty, is finally going to see the light of day when its released in June. The album was their first with a new lineup after Arthur Lee left the band, but the record label went bankrupt before it was ever released. It's certainly not the first time this has ... More >>

Displaced boner: Is Jesus rocking a chubb in the Denver Post today?

​Is that a suspiciously shaped tendon, Jesus, or are you just happy to see us? A tad nonplussed at the photo (above) the Denver Post ran today on page 14D of Rebecca Vaughan and Peter Illig's "Celestial Navigation" -- part of the artist's Displaced show at Ice Cube Gallery, which closes tomorr ... More >>

Ice Cube

Rule Gallery to quit Broadway and move to RiNo

Robin Rule rulez!​After more than a decade on Broadway, Rule Gallery, one of the city's top contemporary art dealers, will be relocating in March to RiNo. Sky-high rents on Broadway have led owner Robin Rule to seek out a new spot for her twenty-year-old-plus business, and she apparently liked ... More >>

Sufjan Stevens, Belle & Sebastian, Lil Wayne top sellers at local stores

​Sufjan Stevens' The Age of Adz, released last week on Asthmatic Kitty, and Belle & Sebastian's latest release on Matador, Write About Love, took the top two spots at Albums on the Hill and Twist & Shout for the week ending October 17. Lil Wayne's new album, meanwhile, I Am Not a Human Being ... More >>

Neil Young, Deerhunter, Blonde Redhead, Ice Cube top sellers at local stores

​Le Noise, Neil Young's collaboration with producer Daniel Lanois, released last week on Reprise, claimed the top spot at Twist & Shout, checked in at number three at Albums on the Hill and rounded out the top ten at Wax Trax for the week ending October 3. Deerhunter's Halcyon Digest, meanwhil ... More >>

Top 10 weirdest musician movie roles

​It's not unusual for musicians to try out acting or vice-versa, but sometimes those roles take unusual turns. Now, with "I Kissed a Girl" songstress Katy Perry (who, interestingly, recently called Lady Gaga's new "Alejandro" video "blasphemous") gearing up to play Smurfette in the upcoming ad ... More >>

Tool, Limp Bizkit, American Idol Live! shows announced

​Nearly a year after Tool's triumphant headlining set at the Mile High Music Festival, Maynard James Keenan and company return to the area for a two-night stand at Red Rocks Amphitheatre on Monday and Tuesday, June 28 and 29. Reserved tickets are $52.50 to $69.50 and go on sale Saturday, May 1 ... More >>

Q&A with Steve "Lips" Kudlow from Anvil

Anvil (due this Sunday, January 31 at the Gothic Theatre) wasn't exactly a household name until this past year, despite having exerted considerable influence on bands like Metallica, Guns 'N' Roses and Slayer. In the early '80s, Anvil developed a sound that was faster and more aggressive than most o ... More >>

When music meets movies: Ten Great Hollywood Decisions

​All right, a few weeks ago we offered up our take on the ten worst moments of crossover disaster, ill-advised efforts to mate movies with music. Now it's time to look at the flip side of the coin, the ten movies in which music and Hollywood made great bedfellows, outstanding cinematic turns that ... More >>

Axe Murder Boys due at 10th Annual Gathering of the Juggalos

Have you seen this? The infomercial for the "most controversial music festival in the world," the 10th Annual Gathering of the Juggalos? Redamndiculous. Everywhere you look, as host Sugar Slam so eloquently puts it, there's some different shit popping off. Indeed. They should call this little shind ... More >>

Q&A with The Game

Much has been written about the Game's dysfunctional past. He grew up in a Santana Blocc Crip neighborhood in Compton, and his mother was affiliated with the Crips. After his sister accused his father of sexually molesting her, the family was split up, and Game spent time in foster homes. After he r ... More >>

The Friday Rap-Up: Ice Cube, Phife, 50 Cent, Jam Master Jay

First Sunday

Ice Cube and Tracy Morgan get religion in First Sunday.

Ice Cube

Sunday, April 15, Gothic Theatre, Englewood, 303-788-0984.

Ice Cube

Thursday, May 25, Fillmore Auditorium, 303-830-8497.

Cut and Paste

Beauty Shop is clipped straight from its predecessors.

Letters to the Editor

From the week of March 11, 2004

Murder He Wrote

Ice Cube's words now ring hollow for one of his students.

Constant Evolution

The weirdest thing about Del tha Funkee Homosapien isn't his mind. It's his ability to get better and better.

Attitude Check

Four discs trace the development of the original gangstas.

Cut Rate

Ice Cube's Barbershop could style more laughs.

Feedback

Father Cube

Ice Cube on child-rearing and Family Values.

Our Gangstas

Is gangsta rap getting more profound? Well...no.

Feedback

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