Home Invasion
Encyclopedia
Home Invasion is the fifth solo album by Ice-T
. Released in 1993
, the album (which was originally set to be released in 1992 under the deal with Sire
/Warner Bros. Records
) was Ice-T's first official release as an artist on his own label Rhyme Syndicate Records now in full control of the content of the release, as part of his new distribution deal with Priority Records
.
song "Cop Killer
." Sire
/Warner Bros. Records
had stood by freedom of expression during the controversy, although some within the Time Warner
conglomerate now favored a more pragmatic policy. Home Invasion was originally set for a November 15, 1992
, release, but the Rodney King riots were still fresh in people's minds, an election was in process, and political releases by Ice Cube
and Dr. Dre
were causing controversy, so Ice T agreed to postpone Home Invasion's release, in addition to removing the song "Ricochet," which had already appeared on the soundtrack to the film of the same name
.
With the album's release postponed to February 14, 1993
, Sire/Warner Bros. told Ice-T that it would not release the album with its current artwork, painted by Dave Halili
(cover artist for Body Count), which depicted a white child who was engrossed in black culture in the middle of images of violence, even though the catalog number 45119 was already assigned to it, and the single “Gotta Lotta Love” was released. Ice-T initially agreed, opting for an all-black cover and a name change to The Black Album. He later realized that his future output was going to be continuously monitored and censored, so he left the label amicably, signing a distribution deal with Priority Records
, which released the album with the originally intended artwork. Due to the postponed release of the album, tracks were altered to keep the topics up-to-date.
and I might cut his head off." Charlton Heston had pushed for Ice T's contract with Sire/Warner Bros. to be dissolved. The title track explored the concept of a white supremacist home being invaded by political emcees who were seeking to rescue the children from racist indoctrination. "Gotta Lotta Love" pays tribute to the gang truce in L.A. "That's How I'm Living" is autobiographical, describing Ice T's early life. "Race War" is a reflection on the riots and a warning against such events repeating themselves. "Message to the Soldier" offers advice to those involved in political hip hop
. After abstaining from sex rhymes on O.G. Original Gangster, Ice-T made a point of including two such tracks on this album with "Hit the Fan" and "99 Problems."
magazine's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and at #14 on the Billboard 200
. Home Invasion was the last hip hop release of Ice T that had significant political content. His later releases were more in tune with the rest of gangsta rap
. This is reflected in how this album featured the end of the accumulated pleas that had appeared inside the pamphlets of his albums since Power
. Home Invasion also often seen as the release with which Ice T's career began to take a downturn. Reviews were generally less impressed than they had been with his earlier work. The hip hop audience was moving away from political artists at the time. The rivalry between the West and East Coast was also at its peak. Ice-T had always stayed out of the dispute. He also didn't seem to fit neatly into either camp; he hailed from the West Coast, but his raps were more in the style of the East Coast.
ICE-T
* Ice-T, an American rapper and actor* ICE T , a tilting model of the German InterCityExpress series of high-speed trains...
. Released in 1993
1993 in music
This is a summary of significant events in music in 1993.-January–February:*January 8 – The U.S. Postal Service issues an Elvis Presley stamp. The design was voted on in February 1992....
, the album (which was originally set to be released in 1992 under the deal with Sire
Sire Records
Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...
/Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
) was Ice-T's first official release as an artist on his own label Rhyme Syndicate Records now in full control of the content of the release, as part of his new distribution deal with Priority Records
Priority Records
Priority Records is an American record label, owned and operated by EMI, which has made a name for itself dealing primarily in hip hop, pop and world...
.
History
Home Invasion was the first album that Ice-T released following the controversy over the Body CountBody Count
Body Count is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1990. The group is fronted by rapper and actor Ice-T, who founded the group out of his interest in heavy metal music, taking on the role of vocalist and writing the lyrics for most of the group's songs. Lead guitarist...
song "Cop Killer
Cop Killer (song)
"Cop Killer" is a song by American band Body Count, from its 1992 self-titled debut album. The lyrics are sung from the point of view of an individual who is outraged by police brutality and decides to take the law into his own hands by killing police officers...
." Sire
Sire Records
Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...
/Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
had stood by freedom of expression during the controversy, although some within the Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
conglomerate now favored a more pragmatic policy. Home Invasion was originally set for a November 15, 1992
1992 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1992.-January–February:*January 11**Nirvana's Nevermind album goes to #1 in the US Billboard 200 chart, establishing the widespread popularity of the Grunge movement of the 1990s....
, release, but the Rodney King riots were still fresh in people's minds, an election was in process, and political releases by Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
and Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
were causing controversy, so Ice T agreed to postpone Home Invasion's release, in addition to removing the song "Ricochet," which had already appeared on the soundtrack to the film of the same name
Ricochet (film)
Ricochet is a 1991 crime-thriller film, directed by Russell Mulcahy and starring Denzel Washington, John Lithgow, Ice-T, Kevin Pollak, and Lindsay Wagner...
.
With the album's release postponed to February 14, 1993
1993 in music
This is a summary of significant events in music in 1993.-January–February:*January 8 – The U.S. Postal Service issues an Elvis Presley stamp. The design was voted on in February 1992....
, Sire/Warner Bros. told Ice-T that it would not release the album with its current artwork, painted by Dave Halili
Dave Halili
Dave Halili is a contemporary American fine arts illustrator and graphic designer of album cover paintings, posters, logos, T-shirts and other graphical merchandise...
(cover artist for Body Count), which depicted a white child who was engrossed in black culture in the middle of images of violence, even though the catalog number 45119 was already assigned to it, and the single “Gotta Lotta Love” was released. Ice-T initially agreed, opting for an all-black cover and a name change to The Black Album. He later realized that his future output was going to be continuously monitored and censored, so he left the label amicably, signing a distribution deal with Priority Records
Priority Records
Priority Records is an American record label, owned and operated by EMI, which has made a name for itself dealing primarily in hip hop, pop and world...
, which released the album with the originally intended artwork. Due to the postponed release of the album, tracks were altered to keep the topics up-to-date.
Lyrical themes
"It's On" begins with the phrase "Turn up the mike, dog, so I can get off/Find me Charlton HestonCharlton Heston
Charlton Heston was an American actor of film, theatre and television. Heston is known for heroic roles in films such as The Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, El Cid, and Planet of the Apes...
and I might cut his head off." Charlton Heston had pushed for Ice T's contract with Sire/Warner Bros. to be dissolved. The title track explored the concept of a white supremacist home being invaded by political emcees who were seeking to rescue the children from racist indoctrination. "Gotta Lotta Love" pays tribute to the gang truce in L.A. "That's How I'm Living" is autobiographical, describing Ice T's early life. "Race War" is a reflection on the riots and a warning against such events repeating themselves. "Message to the Soldier" offers advice to those involved in political hip hop
Political hip hop
Political hip hop is a sub-genre of hip hop music that developed in the 1980s. Inspired by 1970s political preachers such as The Last Poets and Gil Scott-Heron, Public Enemy were the first political hip hop group...
. After abstaining from sex rhymes on O.G. Original Gangster, Ice-T made a point of including two such tracks on this album with "Hit the Fan" and "99 Problems."
Reception
The album peaked at #9 on BillboardBillboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
magazine's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and at #14 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. Home Invasion was the last hip hop release of Ice T that had significant political content. His later releases were more in tune with the rest of gangsta rap
Gangsta rap
Gangsta Rap is a subgenre of hip hop music that evolved from hardcore hip hop and purports to reflect urban crime and the violent lifestyles of inner-city youths. Lyrics in gangsta rap have varied from accurate reflections to fictionalized accounts. Gangsta is a non-rhotic pronunciation of the word...
. This is reflected in how this album featured the end of the accumulated pleas that had appeared inside the pamphlets of his albums since Power
Power (Ice T album)
Power is the second album by Ice-T. Released in 1988, the album produced the single and video "I'm Your Pusher," which got Ice-T major air-play on MTV....
. Home Invasion also often seen as the release with which Ice T's career began to take a downturn. Reviews were generally less impressed than they had been with his earlier work. The hip hop audience was moving away from political artists at the time. The rivalry between the West and East Coast was also at its peak. Ice-T had always stayed out of the dispute. He also didn't seem to fit neatly into either camp; he hailed from the West Coast, but his raps were more in the style of the East Coast.
Track listing
| # | Title | Writer(s) | Time | Producer(s) | Performer(s) | Samples |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Warning" | 0:36 | ||||
| 2 | "It's On" | Ice-T DJ Aladdin |
4:56 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T | |
| 3 | "Ice M.F. T" | Ice-T DJ Aladdin |
3:41 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T | |
| 4 | "Home Invasion" | Ice-T, DJ Aladdin | 2:59 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T |
|
| 5 | "G-Style" | Ice-T | 4:29 | DJ L.P. Hen Gee |
Ice-T | |
| 6 | "Addicted To Danger" | Ice-T DJ Aladdin |
3:27 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T |
|
| 7 | "Question And Answer" | 0:33 | ||||
| 8 | "Watch The Ice Break" | DJ Aladdin Ice-T |
4:24 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T | |
| 9 | "Race War" | DJ Aladdin Ice-T |
4:50 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T Bass Bass guitar The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... : Mooseman (Body Count Body Count Body Count is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1990. The group is fronted by rapper and actor Ice-T, who founded the group out of his interest in heavy metal music, taking on the role of vocalist and writing the lyrics for most of the group's songs. Lead guitarist... ) |
|
| 10 | "That's How I'm Living" | DJ Aladdin Ice-T |
4:39 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T | |
| 11 | "I Ain't New To This" | DJ Aladdin Ice-T |
5:01 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T |
Bring the Noise "Bring the Noise" is a song by the hip hop group Public Enemy. It was included on the soundtrack of the 1987 film Less Than Zero and was also released as a single that year. It later became the first song on the group's 1988 album It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back... " by Public Enemy |
| 12 | "Pimp Behind the Wheels" | DJ Aladdin Ice-T |
3:05 | Ice-T | Ice-T DJ Evil E The Great |
|
| 13 | "Gotta Lotta Love" | Ice-T | 5:24 | Donald D Ice-T |
Ice-T |
Tubular Bells Tubular Bells is the debut record album of English musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1973. It was the first album released by Virgin Records and an early cornerstone of the company's success... " by Mike Oldfield Mike Oldfield Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature... |
| 14 | "Hit The Fan" | Ice-T | 4:47 | Trekah Ice-T |
Ice-T | |
| 15 | "Depths of Hell" | Ice-T DJ Aladdin |
5:15 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T Daddy Nitro Bass: Mooseman (Body Count) |
Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American soul, R&B, and funk singer, songwriter, and record producer.He is best known for his anthemic music with The Impressions during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's and for composing the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film Super Fly, Mayfield is highly... |
| 16 | "99 Problems" | Ice-T DJ Aladdin |
4:50 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T Brother Marquis |
Get Off Your Ass and Jam "Get Off Your Ass and Jam" is a song by Funkadelic, track number 6 to their 1975 album Let's Take It to the Stage. It was written by George Clinton, although the lyrics are made up entirely of repetitions of the phrase, "Shit! Goddamn! Get off yo' ass and jam!", interspersed with lengthy guitar solos... " by Funkadelic Funkadelic Funkadelic was an American band most prominent during the 1970s. The band and its sister act Parliament, both led by George Clinton, began the funk music culture of that decade.-History:... |
| 17 | "Funky Gripsta" | Music by Ice-T, Grip Gripsta Brandi Younger better known as Gripsta is an Oakland, California born female rap artist/actress discovered by Ice-T at the age of 13. She was featured on song titled "Funky Gripsta" off of his 1993 album release Home Invasion and later signed to Tuff Break/A&M Records in the 1990s... , Wolf and DJ Aladdin Lyrics by Grip Gripsta Brandi Younger better known as Gripsta is an Oakland, California born female rap artist/actress discovered by Ice-T at the age of 13. She was featured on song titled "Funky Gripsta" off of his 1993 album release Home Invasion and later signed to Tuff Break/A&M Records in the 1990s... |
4:47 | Ice-T DJ Aladdin |
Gripsta Gripsta Brandi Younger better known as Gripsta is an Oakland, California born female rap artist/actress discovered by Ice-T at the age of 13. She was featured on song titled "Funky Gripsta" off of his 1993 album release Home Invasion and later signed to Tuff Break/A&M Records in the 1990s... Ice-T |
George Clinton (funk musician) George Clinton is an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and music producer and the principal architect of P-Funk. He was the mastermind of the bands Parliament and Funkadelic during the 1970s and early 1980s, and launched a solo career in 1981. He has been cited as one of the foremost... |
| 18 | "Message to the Soldier" | Ice-T, DJ Aladdin | 5:36 | DJ Aladdin SLJ Ice-T |
Ice-T |
Young-Holt Unlimited Young-Holt Unlimited were an American soul and jazz instrumental musical ensemble from Chicago, Illinois.Drummer Isaac "Red" Holt and bassist Eldee Young, formerly members of Ramsey Lewis' jazz trio, formed a new outfit called the Young-Holt Trio with pianist Don Walker in 1966... |
| 19 | "Ain't a Damn Thing Changed" | 0:36 |
The Last Temptation of Ice
The album was re-released with a bonus disc titled The Last Temptation of Ice. Its track listing follows.- That's How I'm Livin' (On The Rox Remix)
- Gotta Lotta Love (Tubular Bells Mix)
- I Ain't New Ta This (Radio Version)
- Ricochet
- Addicted To Danger (Nut Shop Mix)
- G Style (Remix)
- Race War (Full Muthafuckin' Assassin Remix)