Vanilla Ice had nothing but great things to say about MC Hammer as he discussed his own personal journey with money.
There are longstanding references to Hammer’s previous financial troubles, with JAY-Z even once infamously rapping on Kanye West‘s “So Appalled” in 2010: “And Hammer went broke so you know I’m more focused/ I lost 30 mil so I spent another 30/ ‘Cause unlike Hammer, 30 million can’t hurt me.”
AD LOADING...
While it was later proved that Hammer in fact made good decisions and is nowhere near broke, it still became a point of reference for other former stars’ financial status from the era. In an interview with Vlad TV published on Wednesday (November 29), Ice explained how he’s managed to keep making money as he noted the Hammer comparisons he’s yielded.
“I’ve always made great investments, which is why I was telling you, I’ve never been bitter about any Suge Knight thing,” he began. “I’ve never been bitter. Look at me! What am I bitter about? Money?! Really? I don’t think so. [laughs] I did one of the first [VH1 Behind The Music episodes] and there was a two second clip you might remember, and they said, ‘How did you not end up like MC Hammer? I don’t get it.'”
When Vlad mentioned the Hammer stories weren’t true, Ice agreed but noted: “It was exaggerated but he lost everything [at one point]. And he’s a great friend of mine, by the way, and I wish him all the best. But as public perception, you have to give that disclaimer […] So just to be clear, MC Hammer and I, still friends to this day but public perception – JAY-Z makes jokes, everybody makes jokes. The MC Hammer thing is that he lost everything.”
He continued: “We all know he made good investments after that and he’s still doing decent or whatever and not broke. But I think he lost a big portion of his income or whatever happened that caused him to be that kind of a target for everybody going, ‘I don’t want to end up like MC Hammer!’ And I wish him all the best. Great guy. Total legend, by the way. And he pulled me on tour with him and did so many great things!”
AD LOADING...
Another way Vanilla Ice makes money is being sampled, and Tyga tipped his hat to him earlier this year with a song that sampled 1990’s “Ice Ice Baby.” However, social media didn’t seem to into it at the time.
In a video clip originally shared to social media in June, the “Rack City” rapper played the opening bars of what he claimed to be an upcoming new song featuring Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice.
Fans weren’t exactly keen on Tyga’s take on the remake of the remake, with many taking aim at the “terrible” track. “Get that shit outta here,” someone wrote, while another proclaimed: “This is terrible.”
A third person managed to make Eminem catch some strays while roasting Tyga in the process. “I was thinking that Eminem would use it. I was wrong,” they wrote.
AD LOADING...
The track was eventually released in October as “Bops Going Crazy” – sans Nicki and Ice, however. The video, which pays homage to Vanilla Ice throughout, currently sits at just under seven million views.