In 2020, it is rather common to see artistes diversifying their ventures outside of music to make money with brand partnerships, movie and television cameos, and beauty and fashion lines. However, in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, Ice Cube was one of the first rappers to translate his success as a rapper into a prominent film career.
Ice Cube reportedly has a $160 million net worth, according to Celebrity Net Worth, stemming from a combination of music royalties, movie box office sales, The Big3 basketball league, hosting, and business investments.
While a part of rap group, N.W.A, Ice Cube only made $32,000 after their “Straight Outta Compton” tour. This led to him leaving the group in 1989 and going on to have a more profitable solo career. His first two solo albums went platinum selling over one million units.
In 1991, he made his movie debut by starring in “Boyz n the Hood”which raked in $57.5 million in North America, then went on to launch an entire film career after he wrote and starred in the “Friday” trilogy.
Over the next two decades, he has starred in over a dozen blockbuster movies and has used his earnings to build a legacy in and out of Hollywood. In 2017, Ice Cube co-founded a 3-on-3 basketball league, called The Big3, that had a profitable first season, often selling out large venues.
In 2019, Forbes reported that he made a $350 to $500 million bid on a piece of ownership in Disney in partnership with investor and jeweler Carolyn Rafaelian.
While Ice Cube is still a reputable rapper, his money moves has helped him evolve into a well rounded boss
