Ice-T Explains How the Term 'O.G.' Became Part of the Pop Culture Lexicon, and Why He Never Thought He'd Be a Big Star
- - Ice-T Explains How the Term 'O.G.' Became Part of the Pop Culture Lexicon, and Why He Never Thought He'd Be a Big Star
Angela AndaloroFebruary 4, 2026 at 8:00 AM
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Ice-T in 1992 (left) and today
Al Pereira/Getty; Rob Kim/Getty
Ice-T got his start in the late 80s and is considered one of the pioneers of rap as we know it
During his interview on the Allison Interviews podcast, Ice-T talked about the early days of his career and how he couldn't have dreamt of where he is today
The rapper, 67, looks back at how he brought a mainstay in L.A. lingo to the masses and his surprise at how it spread
Ice-T never imagined where his rap career could take him.
The actor and rapper, 67, appeared on the Allison Interviews podcast and talked to host Allison Kugel about the early days of his career and how his success came as a surprise to him, although he never lacked the confidence needed to get there.
“I didn’t think I was going to be big, because there was no one big yet. Now, a kid can say, ‘I wanna be a rapper,' because they can look at Drake and go, ‘Look at that.’ But who was I to look at? Grandmaster Flash and Furious Five were still struggling. Hip hop wasn’t big enough. We’re talking about 1982. Original Gangster was way later. That was three albums in."
The mention of his fourth studio album, which turns 35 this year, brought Ice-T to explain how he introduced the term "O.G." to the world outside of Los Angeles.
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“O.G. is a term used by the L.A. gangs for the first generation of a particular set. But also in L.A., the term just means ‘The Original.’ I brought it to the forefront when the press decided to name what we did ‘Gangster Rap,’ and they named it Gangster Rap because of Ice Cube," he explained.
"They didn’t have a name for [the genre] when we first started. They were calling it ‘Reality Rap,’ but I was like, ‘Well, this is not everybody’s reality. This is just some particular kids’ reality.’ So, Ice Cube did Straight Outta Compton and he said ‘Straight Outta Compton; crazy motherf--ker named Ice Cube; from the gang called N----s With Attitude.’ And the press said, ‘Oh, he referred to his rap group as a gang. They’re gangster rappers.' "
"That’s where the media gave us that name and I said, ‘Okay, if this is gangster rap, I’m the Original Gangster.' I tagged myself on the tag they gave us, so I was, like, claiming my terrain.”
While he knew some people outside of L.A. might take to the term, Ice-T was also surprised by how it became part of the pop culture lexicon.
Ice-T's "OG: Original Gangster" cover
Sire
"I shoulda trademarked it. But Rakim says, ‘I’ll take a phrase that’s rarely heard, flip it; now it’s a daily word,' " he said with a laugh, adding, "A lot of terms come from Hip Hop, but yeah, I put ‘O.G.’ into the game.”
One thing that Ice-T has learned along his journey is that rap beef is generally not worth it. In a Nov. 2024 interview with Boss Talk 101, the West Coast rapper reflected on the changing definition and stakes of feuds in hip-hop over the years.
"The problem with beef is it can escalate away from you," he shared, later acknowledging that the stakes of rap beef changed with social media. "Social media is an amplifier to everything," he said. "It forces a reaction that really could be squashed so much simpler. Why people would have a problem and take it to social media is beyond me, especially if you know a n---a phone number."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
