Priority/Capitol Reissues First Four Ice Cube Albums, All Featuring Bonus Tracks
(Hollywood, CA) Priority/Capitol Records has reissued the first four Ice Cube albums: Amerikkka's Most Wanted, Death Certificate, Lethal Injection and The Predator - in addition to the DVD Ice Cube: The Videos.

All albums will feature bonus tracks. Amerikkka's Most Wanted contains the Kill At Will EP that was also released in 1990 and features key tracks "Dead Homiez" and "Jackin' For Beats." Death Certificate contains the track "How To Survive In South Central" originally available on the "Boyz In The Hood" soundtrack. The Predator features four bonus tracks including remixes of "Check Yo Self (The Message Remix)," "It Was A Good Day (Remix)," "24 with an L," and "U Ain't Gonna Take My Life." Lethal Injection includes four remixes, "You Know How We Do It," "Lil Ass Gee" and two versions of "What Can I Do" including an "Eastside" mix by Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest that has never been released on CD.

Also available for the first time ever is Ice Cube: The Vides on DVD. The collection features Ice Cube's first 14 videos.

Ice Cube's Westside Connection Reconnect For Reunion LP
Pretty soon you'll be seeing each of them with one hand raised and their middle fingers twisted around their ring fingers — Ice Cube, Mack 10 and WC are ready to ride as Westside Connection again.

The three put out the song "It's the Holidaze" last year and "Lights Out" this year, and they've consistently appeared on each other's solo projects and have even toured together, but only recently did they officially reform to record a follow-up to 1996's Bow Down. According to their spokesperson, Cube, Mack and Dub C are already eight songs deep into the recording process for what they're calling Terrorist Threat, expected out in October.

Cube's lyrical hoo-banging with his Cali brethren won't be his only focus this summer. Aside from his own solo album that he's been working on with Dr. Dre, the frosty filmmaker has signed on for "Barbershop 2" and begins shooting the sequel next month in Chicago, according to his spokesperson.

Cube has an abundance of other movie projects forthcoming, but the next time we'll see him on the silver screen will be in January, when his bike thriller, "Torque," opens.


If you crossed "Boyz N the Hood" with the "Star Wars" prequels, who would win in a battle between Doughboy and Mace Windu?

Though there are already plenty of reasons we'll probably never see that scenario pan out, Westside Connection just added a new one in the form of the song "Lights Out." In it, frontman Ice Cube responds to reports that Samuel L. Jackson made disparaging comments about rappers trying to become actors.

"You can tell Samuel L. I'm'a keep acting," Cube defiantly raps over producer Damizza's spacey funk track.

Cube has never been one to bite his tongue. On "Lights Out" he also likens himself to a young Osama, says MCs should bow down to him as if he were Yoda and levies shots at yet another Jackson — the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

The activist, along with the Rev. Al Sharpton, publicly complained about a scene in Cube's film "Barbershop" in which a character makes light of Rosa Parks' contribution to the civil rights movement. The two called for the scene to be deleted from the movie.

"You can even tell that muthaf---in' Jesse Jackson/ Pay your child support/ Keep your payments up/ Put a rubber on," Cube spits later in the verse, poking fun at Jackson, who last year admitted to fathering a child out of wedlock. Meanwhile, Cube's partners, Mack 10 and WC, keep names out of their lyrics and focus on tales of rough riding through the badlands of Cali.

"Lights Out" is part of the Ghetto, Gutta and Gangster compilation due in May as a joint venture from Mack 10's Hoo Bangin' record company and Damizza's Baby Ree label. On the solo tip, Cube has been in the studio working on tracks provided by Dr. Dre. A deal to bring Cube to Dre's Aftermath label has been all but finalized, according to both rappers.

Spokespeople for Samuel L. Jackson and Jesse Jackson could not be reached for comment.

Ice Cube Puts Chill On Dr. Dre's Supposed Final Album
Ice Cube has put a chill on Dr. Dre's supposed final album.

Dre has pushed back the release of his highly anticipated Detox from next summer to the end of 2003 in order to produce his former N.W.A partner's next release.

Cube and the good doctor entered the studio two weeks ago and have already laid down a couple of beats.

"I haven't heard him on the mic just yet," Dre said. "He's got a couple of tracks that I think are banging, so I'm just waiting to see what he is going to come with."

Cube's as-yet-untitled album is due next summer and will be released on Dre's Aftermath label.

Meanwhile, Dre has been working with newcomer 50 Cent, who also signed to Aftermath, in a joint deal with Eminem's Shady Records.

"Me and 50 got in the studio for the first time and we worked together for like five days and we did seven joints," Dre said on the set of 50 Cent's "In Da Club" video. "Six of them went on the album and one of them is out right now on a mixtape."

Like Eminem, Dre has more than a few kind words to say about the Queens, New York, rapper.

"50's album, in my opinion, is going to compete with all the classic hip-hop records that have come out over the last 10 years," he said. "Illmatic, The Chronic, Marshall Mathers LP, it's right up there. And that's no bullsh--."

Dre has also been recording Rakim, whose Aftermath debut is due next year, and logging ideas for Detox, which he has said will be a concept album of sorts. "I'm gonna try to make this one the one they remember me for," he said Wednesday.

Once his album is finished, Dre plans on hanging up his solo-artist hat and focusing on his career as a producer, most likely working alongside his protégé Eminem.

"[We're] studio rats, we love being in the studio, making hot music," Dre said. "We are definitely going to put our all in everything that we work on because we are our worst critics and we have to feel like we made a record that we have to buy. You know what I'm saying? And I don't buy a lot of records."

Ice Cube Hopes To Shut Down 'Friday,' Not Ready To Join Ruff Ryders Yet
Debuting at #3, behind considerably larger-scale productions "Die Another Day" and the latest installment of "Harry Potter," "Friday After Next" is on pace to match or surpass previous "Friday" flicks as a box-office draw. However, the man who conceived of and stars in the franchise says that despite its success, he'd be happy to end the series.

"I'm not really worried about that," Cube said a couple of weeks ago about what the film would gross at the box office. "At this point all you could do is do a good movie and go from there. I know we got a good movie (see "With Next 'Friday' Headed To Theaters, Cube Mulls More 'Barbershop' "). Sometimes you could start playing number games and try to be #1 or try to make sure it surpasses what the other ones did, but I'm not in the game for that. I am not thinking about ['Friday'] four. No four. This is it."

At least one of the principals of "Friday" says he hopes Cube can be persuaded to change his mind.

"When we were in the editing, one day Cube said, 'This is probably gonna be the last [one],' " the film's director and longtime Ice Cube music-video helmer Marcus Raboy remembered. "I said, 'I'll bet you a $100 there's another "Friday." ' He said, 'I can't even take that bet.' We had to think of it as three as the perfect number in a set. Then you put it out there to the audiences and if the audience is saying, 'We want more, we want more,' I think that's a decision that Cube will make down the line. [He may] say, 'They want more, I'm inspired, I have a great angle on it. It feels like it can be fresh and have a purpose.' Time will tell."

Even if Cube really has laid "Friday" to rest, he said that he and his co-star Mike Epps will continue to make movies together.

"Our relationship on the set is real cool and real close," Cube said of working with Epps, who was featured in the flick "All About the Benjamins" along with the rapper. "All we do is sit around and laugh and joke on each other, kinda like kicking it. The chemistry spills over. I look at him like my little brother. It seems like it all resonates onscreen. We're looking at other things we can do to expand on it. We know people love this combination. That's what we in it for, to give the people what they want."

As for the music front, Dr. Dre almost has his former N.W.A rhyme partner on his Aftermath Records roster.

"I love music as much as I love the movie thing," Cube said. "I'm gonna be on Aftermath as soon as I get the deal signed. It's close, very close. It's just basically making sure we got a deal. We're fine-tuning the deal. We've agreed on most of the numbers."

Since the success of "Barbershop" earlier this year, the MC-turned-Hollywood-mogul says executives around Tinseltown are throwing plenty of deals at him. "More people want to be in business, but we don't want to just take opportunities now that they're there," explained Cube, who says he still hasn't thought about the script for a "Barbershop" sequel. "I take pride in having a company called Cubevision. I don't want to mess it up because we have the opportunity to make a lot of movies real fast. A lot of quality goes into whatever we're doing. We gotta make sure the product is still very good."

Cube has no doubts about what he could do if he weren't constrained to his usual shoestring budgets.

"If they gave a $100 million, I'll damn sure make it look like $250 million," he laughed. "It's not hard to get that money on the screen and do something off the hook. I really don't need that much money. You don't need a $100 million to make $100 million."

Cube finished his next film, "Torque," less than a month ago. Although he didn't produce or write the script this time around, he did get a chance to ride motorcycles in the action flick.

"I'm pretty nice on them," he said about riding. "I ain't ready to join the Ruff Ryders yet, but give me three or four more months, I'll be ready. It was fun making the movie though, getting to ride hard."

"Torque" will come out in 2003, and Cube says he hopes to get back to work, either in the studio or on a movie set, in January.

Friday After Next
The Christmas season isn't kind to Craig (Ice Cube) and his pal Day-Day (Mike Epps). When Craig finds Santa Claus in their apartment, he's not bringing presents, he's taking them. The thief also gets away with the rent money, and to avoid being beaten by a thuggish enforcer and thrown out onto the street, the comic duo is forced to work as low-rent security guards while they try to track down the phony "ghetto" Santa.

Movie: November 22nd Tickets/Times
Soundtrack: November 19th Buy Now!

Tracklist:
1. Westside Connection "It's The Holidaze"
2. Flipmode Squad featuring Busta Rhymes, Rah Digga and Spliff "Just Chill"
3. FT Featuring The Eastsidaz "High Times (Ride With Us)"
4. Nappy Roots "Got All'at"
5. Krayzie Bone featuring La Reece and K-Mont "Wonderful World"
6. 50Cent featuring G Unit "Bad News"
7. Rockwilder Presents Whateva "Mardi Gras"
8. Roscoe Featuring Mr. Kane "Get Ready"
9. Calvin Richardson "Go To The Club"
10. Leon Haywood "I Want'a Do Something Freaky To You"
11. Slave "Slide"
12. Donny Hathaway "This Christmas"
13. Eartha Kitt "Santa Baby"
14. The Temptations "Silent Night"

Ice Cube on Last Call
Ice Cube is headed to Last Call with Carson Daly on November 19th. The show tapes Tuesday evening at 30 Rockefeller Center in New York. Tickets are free but on a first come first serve basis so email now to reserve your priority seating. Our ticket email is lastcallaudience@nbc.com. Please put "Ice Cube" in the subject heading, give us your full name, phone number and number of tickets you need to reserve. We will follow up with a confirmation email. You must be at least 16 years of age to be in our audience. Thanks and we look forward to seeing you at the show!

Rap: Mack 10 Presents Da Hood
L.A. rapper Mack 10 gives some of his discoveries a chance to shine on this hit-and-miss set of street tales. His crew of Skoop, Cousteau, Deviossi, K-Mac and Techneic fare well on the anthemic L.A. fo Ya and the funk-driven We Ain't Playin'. Ice Cube and Timbaland lend a hand on a track apiece, but their star power doesn't compensate for these all-too-familiar stories of pimping and moving weight. Surely there's more than this going on in the 'hood.

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