In 1987, Ice-T unleashed what is commonly referred to as the first gangster rap album of all time, "Rhyme Pays". In 1988, the gloves came all the way off with "Power", with more cutting edge and thought provoking lyrics than his debut. In 1989, he took a step back from the straight up gangster rap and tackled 1st amendment issues, unlike it's predecessor, with "The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech...Just Watch What You Say". In 1991, he released his most accomplished album to date, "O.G. Original Gangster", delivering fully realized, and conscious lyrics that convey chilling violence, psychological storytelling, pleas for solutions to ghetto misery, and the everyday street life of a hustler, with a lot less sex raps than it's predecessors.

"O.G." is all over the map, jumping from style to style, dominated with a variety that is unmatched by any single Ice-T album. Some standouts include "Mind over Matter", "New Jack Hustler", "Bitches 2", "Straight up Nigga", "O.G. Original Gangster", "Midnight", "Lifestyles of the Rich and Infamous" and "Body Count". Ice-T's lyrics are funny, dark, disturbing and extremely thought provoking. This is by far my favorite Ice-T album in the bunch, if not my favorite old school rap album of all time.

This album is considered by many to be Ice's best, and although I can't say it's my favourite, I do admit it was his most accessible, and easily his best-produced album.

The beats never got any better than this, and this album really was his first that just played with the competition, especially on the car stereo. LL's "Mama Said Knock You Out" was also released in '91, but there's no comparison. "Midnight", "Pulse Of The Rhyme Flow", and "The Tower" aren't even the a-sides and they're bumpin' 'till the break of dawn.

Singles "New Jack Hustler", and "O.G." bookend the first side, and we were lucky enough not only to get Body Count's first single here, but also a requisite name-dropping track and some of the best in-between song banter he'd ever make.

Best hiphop release ever,only thing that gives it a run for it's money is "Fear Of A Black Planet"

This album, which is ice's 4th record tops 'em all off, as a crown royal classic. Other than dope beats and/or song's like "New Jack Hustler" "O.G. Original Gangster" etc., this lp has variety. It talks about street life DRAMA, politically correct problems of the inner city, including racism, war, incarceration, almost everthing put in to one. Other than that the album is str8 dope, every song is worth killiin' time to lend an ear to. Its a masterpiece. A lot of people don't give Ice props for him creating gangster rap, and it was'int N.W.A., they got there ideas from him, all they mostly did was bang on wax, Ice spoke it all! If you like prolific rap music cop this! Its a Killer/Thriller.

Ice was diverse, political, hard, and experimental on this long album, his first really famous one since he had just did New Jack City and had the theme on here. He also was one of the first to really try some of this rock/rap stuff, with Body Count, and a little intro to that song which is thoughtful. Ice T is one of the smartest rappers ever, even when his songs are kind of horrorcore to the point of corniness (like Midnight, even though it used to be my favorite track.)Pulse of the Rhyme is real raw like that, too. "My words feel like hooks underneath your flesh makin' you twist and turn scorch and burn, when will you learn? The '90s are my turn, to pitch a vocal fit, like the ultimate Gangster rhyme, yo, I invented the isht!"

This seems to be the most characteristic of his albums, like he was doing more "regular" rap songs even on Power, which was great, and Rhyme Pays, but after Freedom of Speech, he really went out on his own trip, but after this album, he just seemed to try to be pushing boundaries and losing alot because he is skilled as a straight up lyricist, didn't need any gimmicks or over the top rawness to where it didn't feel genuine.