Ice Cube Under Fire For 2006 ‘Race Swap’ Show He Executive Produced
Ice Cube has made controversial art on two sides of the scale — from his early days with N.W.A to his role in John Singleton’s 1995 film Higher Learning. Over the years, Cube has been close to the forefront of examining race in America through his own hyper-focused lens as well. Recently, a 2006 reality series he produced for FX titled Black. White. resurfaced on Twitter, bringing up old memories of the short-lived show. It forced certain Twitter users to re-examine the show with a 2022 worldview.
“What’s it like to walk not just in another man’s shoes, but in another man’s skin?” the synopsis for the show reads. “That’s the question this series asks as it transforms through extensive makeup work a Black family into a white family and vice versa.”
For the duration of the experiment, both families lived with one another and once the makeup was removed, they explained the differences they experienced while living with different skin color. All six episodes of the series can be found on YouTube for free (FX didn’t renew it for a second season).
One Twitter user commented, “Most people thought the show was funny or they just didn’t care about it but no one took it seriously. So it’s funny seeing young people just finding out about this show Ice Cube produced and losing their shit.”
Ice Cube is currently on tour and has yet to comment on the show bubbling up on social media.
The chatter behind Black. White. will more than likely die down in a few days as Cube prepares for the rebirth of the Rock The Bells tour alongside legends such as LL COOL J, Lil Kim and Scarface, who will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of his lone Def Jam album The Fix.
I’m 31 years old so I remember seeing the show when it first aired. Most people thought the show was funny or they just didn’t care about it but no one took it seriously. So it’s funny seeing young people just finding out about this show Ice Cube produced and losing their shit.