Custom Search 1

Ice Cube: 'I think you should be honest with your kids'

LIKE FATHER LIKE SON: Ice Cube with his son, 24-year-old O'Shea Jackson Jr, who portrays his father in Straight Outta Compton

HIP-HOP HERO Ice Cube says he was happy for his children to listen to his music and watch his films as they were growing up.

The US rapper, who rose to fame as a member of hip-hop group NWA, serves as one of the producers of Straight Outta Compton - the much-talked-about N.W.A biopic, in which Ice Cube is portrayed by his 24-year-old son, O'Shea Jackson Jr.

Impressed by his son's performance in the film, the rapper and actor said that Jackson Jr had been exposed to NWA music and stories about the group when he was growing up.

“My wife and I have talked about these stories his whole life, so he's heard versions of it,” Ice Cube says. “I think it was just about actually putting the dialogue in front of him.”

Asked if his son, when growing up, listened to NWA's music - which has come under fire for its violent and misogynistic content - Ice Cube said that all his children came into contact with his music or movies at some point.

“Whenever they were able to catch something, grab something, I was there to explain it to them and to give it context,” the father-of-five explains. “I knew it wasn't right to try and hide anything and that they would lose a little trust in me if they thought I didn't think they could handle it.


FAMILY MAN: The rapper with his wife and four of their children

“So I've always exposed them to as much as they should see at that age,” the 46-year-old continues. “As they grew up they started to discover my stuff without me. I'd walk in the house and they'd be watching one of my movies or listening to one of my records.”

The Check Yo Self hitmaker adds that he believes in the importance of parents being truthful with their children.

“I think you should be honest with your kids,” he says. “They shouldn't hear something in the street that they should have heard from you.

“I always wanted them to be able to talk to me about anything and feel like I wasn't going to jump into the daddy mode and scold them for being real. I knew I wanted to bring them up unsheltered and not naive to the world.”

Read the full interview with Ice Cube in next week's issue of The Voice (out September 3)

Subscribe to The Voice database!

We'd like to keep in touch with you regarding our daily newsletter, Voice competitions, promotions and marketing material and to further increase our reach with The Voice readers.

If interested, please click the below button to complete the subscription form.

We will never sell your data and will keep it safe and secure.

For further details visit our privacy policy.

You have the right to withdraw at any time, by clicking 'Unsubscribe'.