Today in Hip-Hop: “Ice Ice Baby” Becomes First Rap Single to Hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100
On this day, Nov. 3, in hip-hop history...
1990: "Ice Ice Baby," the breakout single from Miami rapper Vanilla Ice, became the first hip-hop track to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The Queen-sampling song was released in July of 1990 on Ice's debut album To The Extreme. As a single, "Ice Ice Baby" was the B-side track to one of Ice's other songs titled "Play That Funky Music." When DJ David Morales saw that fans were responding more to the B-side track, he began to promote "Ice Ice Baby" over "Play That Funky Music" and the idea caught on. Though not many people took Ice seriously as a rapper at the time, "Ice Ice Baby" was infectious enough to garner major radio love across the country. "Ice Ice Baby" stayed at the No. 1 spot in the U.S. from Nov. 3, 1990 to Nov. 10, 1990. Around that time, the song also topped the charts in Australia, Belgium, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Ireland and the United Kingdom. This was a huge step for making hip-hop an acceptable genre to mainstream media.
To date, "Ice Ice Baby" remains Vanilla Ice's most recognizable and successful song. The single, as well as his album, To The Extreme, is certified platinum in sales.
The Longest-Running Hot 100 No. 1 Rap Songs Ever