Ice Cube speaks on Eminem opening the “Up In Smoke Tour.”
When it comes to tours, the “Up in Smoke Tour” is considered to be one of the greatest & biggest tours in Hip Hop history. The 2000 tour was headlined by Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, along with featuring artists Eminem, Ice Cube, D12, Xzibit, Nate Dogg, Kurupt, and more. Ice Cube recently sat down with HipHopDX to reflect on the legendary tour, where Eminem was opening for them.
“I think just the whole thing, not a standalone memory,” Ice Cube said when asked about his favorite moment. “That was the first tour that I took my sons on. I’m like, ‘Y’all hanging with me. Y’all ’bout to grow up.’ And you know, I had them rolling with me, and just having the energy of all those humongous groups. I mean, at the time, Eminem was opening up, you know?! Like, after Warren G, Eminem was going on. So that just shows you the level that we were at, that we was on. He could’ve headlined.”
“It’s just being with the best teams. You talk about the [U.S. Olympic] Dream Team or the ’90s Bulls, the ’80s Lakers, Shaq and Kobe… it’s up there. You know you’re at a point where it gets no better than this.”
Taking his eldest son, Oshea Jackson Jr., on tour also aided Cube’s preparation for his role in the Straight Outta Compton film. “Without a doubt, and then going on tours after that with me,” he said. “I would let him go on stage and perform with me. Some kids got it… he just got it. He’s born for the stage. I knew he could do it as far as the rhyming and delivery and the projection. He came through with the acting.”
Even though Eminem and Ice Cube were on the same camp and tour, but they never had a joint together in their career. But still, both MCs often show respect to each other. Ice Cube recently named his favorite rappers, which also featured Eminem, along with Nas, Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, and more.
Xzibit said in April 2020 that the Up in Smoke Tour felt like the rap Avengers and that he was happy to be a part of it. “Imagine reading The Avengers comic book and then being in The Avengers,” he said about the career highlight. “Look, I gotta contain myself because I’m used to reading the back of these covers. I’m used to seeing them on TV and now we’re praying together, walking out on stage and the crowd is considering me a part of this family.”
The “Up In Smoke” tour is still regarded as one of the most memorable in hip-hop history. Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Ice Cube, Warren, G, Nate Dogg, Xzibit, and others embarked on a cross-country tour. Of course, with such a stellar lineup, there had to be some wild tales from the road. Maybe if there was a future reunion tour.
Watch his interview below.
[VIA]
