It’s not all that unusual to see Ice Cube at sporting events. After all, the man’s been famous since his early 20s when he was a member of NWA, and he even runs his own increasingly popular basketball league, The Big 3. But apparently, there are still some sporting events at which you wouldn’t expect to catch the internationally recognized rapper, as seen by the reaction to not only appearing at a Nascar race this past Sunday but performing there as well.
Ice Cube really just performed in the middle of a Nascar race π₯π₯pic.twitter.com/Kc10VsyFFv
— XXL Magazine (@XXL) February 7, 2022
Cube was apparently commissioned for the halftime show at the Busch Light Clash at the LA Coliseum on Sunday (truthfully, I didn’t know car races even had halftimes, so I’m already shocked and confused by this story myself), where he performed hits from across his expansive catalog such as “Check Yoself,” “Friday,” and “You Know How We Do It.” Clearly, though, this wasn’t exactly the audience for an Ice Cube performance, as the audience’s reactions were decidedly mixed.
Never in a million years did I think Iβd see this at a NASCAR race, but Iβm absolutely here for it. @icecube pic.twitter.com/Stxdc0g1B0
— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) February 7, 2022
Online, though, there was as much amusement as bemusement (which actually mean wildly different things, go figure), with fans chiming in to either berate the Nascar audience for not appreciating a musical legend in their midst or demean Nascar for so baldly trying to expand its appeal — likely inspired by the upcoming Super Bowl’s halftime slate of Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige, and Snoop Dogg.
Two things I realized today:
1. Out-there ideas are the ones that make the biggest impact. Kudos to everyone who had a hand in making the #BuschLightClash a reality.
2. @C_Rice1 is the biggest @icecube fan in the garage. pic.twitter.com/EmLTBNE3Cv
— nascarcasm (@nascarcasm) February 7, 2022
This guy in his Viagra jacket hanging in the stands with his friends listening to Ice Cube and watching NASCAR is living his best life. We envy you pic.twitter.com/2edu85P6h0
— nascarman (@nascarman_rr) February 7, 2022
It seems the Nascar audience is as reluctant to embrace hip-hop as the hip-hop audience is to embrace Nascar — or maybe, considering the popularity of the sport down South, they just need to tap some more Southern artists the next time around. Just saying, there’s probably a strong overlap between people who love cars and people who love Ludacris. Check out more responses below.
The βhalftimeβ audience for Ice Cube at The Busch Clash π #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/OlfoYjzvFQ
— Connor Pisano (@connor_pisano) February 7, 2022
I'm not sorry to whoever doesn't like this but you can't tell me that NASCAR Halftime with Ice Cube performing inside the Los Angeles Memorial Colosseum isn't dope af
So here for this. #BuschLightClash
— Davey Segal (@DaveyCenter) February 7, 2022
https://twitter.com/HaunEddie/status/1490479452840726528
ice cube performing at a nascar race is cool as shit
— trace π€π©π΄ (@SkyTrace29) February 7, 2022
please dont stop zooming in on nascar fans dancing to Ice Cube. have not laughed this hard in a long time.
— π€ (@WobBurner) February 7, 2022
Me watching this Ice Cube performance:#NASCAR #BuschLightClash pic.twitter.com/DlAth5EUVN
— Cody Raulston π (@NoogaBammer) February 7, 2022
I'd be perfectly fine if NASCAR also had Ice Cube perform prior to the Daytona 500.
— Jordan Bianchi (@Jordan_Bianchi) February 7, 2022
Ice Cube performing at NASCAR is pure gold. Watching the level of discomfort in most faces in the crowd is just pure entertainment π
— wejustmet (@mboat6) February 7, 2022