Ice Cube Should Have Checked Himself Before He Wrecked Himself With Tucker Carlson

In the hierarchy of Black male hairstyles that capture the complex duality of his position in America, none is higher than the Jheri curl. By itself, the hairstyle is a chemical manipulation of ones God-given curl pattern that creates luxurious, flowing curls. During the 1970s and the late 80s, Jheri curls were the preferred hairstyle of West Coast gang members, making the mashup of stern-faced violence and soft (possibly even moist), flamboyant curls strange bedfellows. The dichotomy was an opulent disturbance, a menacing luxuriousness. A juxtaposition of wealth framed by violence both impending and imagined. 

A beautiful mess.

Ice Cube and Tucker Carlson are jumbo shrimp. 

They are amazingly awful. They are icy hot. 

Carlson is the Jheri curl on top of Ice Cubes head. 

It makes no sense. And yet here we are, in the year of our Lord Beyonc, with the sentient soggy boat shoe and the man who gave us Fuck tha Police joining forces to vibrate over their nonconformity.

Recently, Carlson, the perpetually stiff business suit, and OShea Jackson, bka Ice Cube, the fitted baseball cap, appeared on video for a conversation about topics like the police, race, inflation, Black people, more race, cancel culture and race.

Cube labels himself an independent thinker and believes that this scares most in the mainstream, who are locked into the matrix of sheep thinking. He believes that because hes defiant in his independent thought, hes finding himself on the outside looking in with most conversations.

I tried to go on The View  they didnt have me on The View, Ice Cube told Carlson.

A few of the [hosts] ... just really didnt like where I was coming from, he continued. Thats what I was told by the producers. I dont know if the producers was just copping out and using some of the hosts to not have me come on and explain myself.

It didnt occur to Cube that The View didnt want anything to do with his unvaccinated ass . Or that they had no use for his quasi-Republican position on politics. According to Cube, the issue was that hes not willing to go along to get along.

See, Ice Cube is a Black man who believes hes at the unique precipice of free thought. Not quite hotep and not full MAGA, he has what he believes are unconventional thoughts on how Black America can not only survive, but thrive in a two-party system that doesnt appear to care about Black peoples needs. And this is where Ice Cube isnt wrong. Democrats take Black women for granted, which is wild when you realize that they are the backbone of the Democratic Party. Black women not only disproportionately vote Democrat, they have actually saved America more than a few times.

But that doesnt mean you completely abandon the party. Ice Cube seems to believe that cozying up to the opposition which includes bigots like Tucker Carlson and Donald Trump, the former president turned indictment hound is the way to Black Americas promised land. But Cube completely misses that those hes spending time with are partly to blame for why were here. Carlson is not an impartial participant; hes grand wizard No. 1 of pot-stirring a potential race war. Hes built his entire career around saying the things that racists believe while acting as if hes not a racist.

Like defending the great replacement theory but not calling it out by name :

I know that the left and all the little gatekeepers on Twitter become literally hysterical if you use the term replacement, if you suggest that the Democratic Party is trying to replace the current electorate, the voters now casting ballots, with new people, more obedient voters from the Third World. But they become hysterical because thats whats happening actually. Lets just say it: Thats true.

Or claiming that criminal white supremacy ... doesnt exist:

Or going on and on about his apparent hatred for diversity:

Ice Cube is not a stupid man. Hes one of the few early hip-hop stars who has parlayed a rap career into a successful acting career and turned three-on-three basketball with washed-up NBA players which could have easily been a laughable exhibition into something of a sport. So its disingenuous for Cube to act as though hes just sitting across from a journalist and having an exchange of thoughts when Carlson is not only an architect of chaos, but using his platform to spread vicious stereotypes about the people Cube claims to love. 

So the two men do the dance Carlson, the perpetually wide-eyed bigot who acts as if he doesnt know that Cube has crossed over to the dark side, and Cube, the prophetic lyricist whose narcissism cant handle that his Contract With Black America wasnt warmly received by Democrats . 

Oh, you didnt know thats what started it? Then let me take you back. In 2020, Cube created a manifesto born of the Black uprising after the police killings of unarmed Black men, women and children. Cube considered it a living document that would be a start to address, among other things, police and prison reform. Democrats liked the plan but didnt act on it. However, Trumps 2020 campaign reached out to Cube to incorporate portions of the CWBA into a document it was working on, called the Platinum Plan. While Cube never met with Trump, that didnt stop the campaign from clout-chasing off Cubes name. 

Leaders gonna lead, haters gonna hate, Katrina Pierson, a senior adviser to the 2020 campaign, wrote online  after noting that Cube helped with the Platinum Plan. Thank you for leading!

Cube then went on a world news tour explaining himself while losing more ground.

Every side is the Darkside for us here in America, he tweeted , while defending his work with Trump. Theyre all the same until something changes for us. They all lie and they all cheat but we cant afford not to negotiate with whoever is in power or our condition in this country will never change. Our justice is bipartisan.

Except it isnt. There are limits to this shit. Not everyone is privy to the conversation. Whats saddest about Ice Cube filming an interview and car ride around Los Angeles with Carlson is that hes not even wise enough to realize hes being played. The conversation isnt furthering race relations in this country; its actually empowering Carlsons beliefs about the ineffectiveness of Barack Obama s presidency and the Black Lives Matter movement. And its difficult to hear Carlson call Cube one of the least obedient entertainers in LA.

But this is what happens when money grows up. In truth, Tucker Carlson and Ice Cube are just two abundantly wealthy men riding around Cubes former neighborhood and laughing from the comfort of their chauffeur-driven vehicle. At one point, the two men end up behind a tour bus taking riders through historic movie locations in Los Angeles. Its a surreal moment, as the back of the bus is emblazoned with photos of a young Cube from his days in the group N.W.A. At one point, Carlson asks if Cube wants to get out and say hi to the people on the bus, who are surely his fans. 

No, Cube says emphatically. Not unless they want to give us money.

And there it is, folks. No need to stare longingly for the person Cube used to be, as even he wouldnt recognize himself. Tucker Carlson and Ice Cube are just two capitalists sharing a moment that doesnt look like anything we ever thought wed see, and yet somehow it makes sense.