Today is a special day in Hip-Hop. On this day, thirty-five years ago, Ice-T released his debut album, Rhyme Pays. It is not only a collection of songs that introduced the world to “gangsta rap” before it was even a term but marked the arrival of one of Hip-Hop’s greatest storytellers.
West Coast Styles salutes Rhyme Pays and thanks all those involved with its creation for the trail it blazed and the standards it set, some of which very few other albums have matched even all these years later. Respect due.
Check out the tweets below where Ice-T and others provide some insights regarding this landmark recording, and the impact Ice has had on Hip-Hop in its entirety!
35 yrs ago today I dropped my 1st album.. And the Game has never been the same.. lol 💎 https://t.co/OpfMJYxROg
— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) July 28, 2022
35yrs ago today. This is how it ALL started.. 💥💥💥💥💥 https://t.co/yEshFSwAkl
— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) July 28, 2022
The very 1st LA Gang reference on a Hip Hop record. Both Crip and Blood sets…. People across the country had Zero knowledge of LA gangs at the time. Also an early reference to the AK47. ‘Squeeze The Trigger’ 35yrs ago 💎 https://t.co/Pn7BwBkLer
— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) July 28, 2022
When your Peers shout you out….. I hits different.. RESPECT to @MrChuckD PublicEnemy #1 ✊🏽 https://t.co/V2HoKGMhAX
— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) July 27, 2022
On this date: 35 years ago @FINALLEVEL dropped his game-changing debut album 💎 Read the first-person story of how Ice made #RhymePays—and gave birth to West Coast gangsta rap—in #SplitDecision 📚
📸 “Back then, album covers used to be nearly as important as the music itself.” pic.twitter.com/0tSQO55843
— Douglas Century (@DouglasCentury) July 28, 2022