Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Culture
CultureEditor's PicksEntertainment

Ice Cube Will Not Succumb to ‘Pressure’ to Stop Performing ‘F— Tha Police’ – Bill O’Reilly Calls It ‘Very Disturbing’

Posted byBy Kiersten Willis | Published on: | Updated on July 21, 2016 CommentsComments (8)
Facebook

Facebook

After the slew of police shootings and killings around the country, Ice Cube maintains he will continue to perform the N.W.A. hit single “F— Tha Police.” The rapper said he has not heard of anyone telling him not to perform the song, which was featured in the biographical film “Straight Outta Compton” last year.

In an interview with TMZ at an airport baggage claim, Cube is asked if he has felt pressure to stop performing the group’s 1988 hit for the time being.

“Pressure me? Pressure me to do what?” Cube asked. “Nobody said nothing to me. I ain’t gonna change nothing I do. Know what I mean? Cause I ain’t doin’ nothing wrong.”

The question refers to the string of fatal police shootings of two Black men earlier this month. Atlanta Black Star reports Alton Sterling was shot at point-blank range outside a Baton Rouge convenience store in Louisiana July 5. He had been selling CDs with permission from the owner. Within the next 24 hours, a cop shot Philando Castile in Falcon Heights, Minnesota when he reached in his pocket to hand over his license during a traffic stop.

In reaction, Army veteran Micah Xavier Johnson reportedly shot and killed five officers at a protest in Dallas July 7. He wounded seven others. Ten days later on July 17, former Marine Gavin Long allegedly killed three officers and wounded three others in Baton Rouge.

XXL reports Cube previously performed “F— Tha Police” at Coachella in April. He was joined on stage by MC Ren and DJ Yella – the surviving members of N.W.A. excluding Dr. Dre, who was unable to attend. Together, Cube, Yella and Ren belted “Straight Outta Compton” along with their defiant protest song.

Cube is set to perform at Pomona, California’s HARD Summer Music Festival July 30, and his fellow band mates are listed as special guests, according to the concert website. There is no word on what their set list includes, but political commentator Bill O’Reilly has added his opinion on “Police.” He called the song a “piece of garbage.”

See the Fox News host’s commentary below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCnEaLopLWw

Still independent.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

The wider picture isn't any steadier. Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under, it's rarely the ones built to center a Black perspective from the ground up that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top