#VitalNewz: Fresh Kid Ice (From 2 Live Crew) Dead At 53

Fresh Kid Ice, founding member of the Miami, Florida group 2 Live Crew, passed away earlier today. He was 53 years old. He was considered a pioneer for Asian rappers. Ice (real name, Christopher Wong Won) was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. His family is of Trinidadian and Chinese descent. At the age of 12 he moved from Trinidad & Tobago to Brooklyn, New York. In 1982 he graduated from Samuel J. Tilden High School, and that summer he joined the U.S. Air Force for a four-year stint. While stationed at March Air Force Base in Riverside, California, in 1984, he met fellow musicians Amazing Vee and Mr. Mixx to form the rap group 2 Live Crew. Local rapper Luther Campbell (formerly known as Luke Skywalker) gave The 2 Live Crew a record deal and worked as the group's manager and then lead vocalist. In 1986 they released their debut album The 2 Live Crew Is What We Are. The album reached gold Status despite not having any charted singles. From the start of their career they were known for having explicit lyrics in their music. In 1987 they released their follow-up album Move Somethin'. This album also reached Gold status and did much better on the charts than their debut album. Their third album, released in 1989 is what made them famous (or notorious, depending on who's talking about them) and propelled them to Platinum status. The album As Nasty As They Wanna Be peaked at #29 on Billboard's Hot 200 Albums Chart. It contained the hit single Me So Horny, their only song to top the Hot Rap Singles Chart. As Nasty As They Wanna Be became the first record to bear the black & white Parental Advisory sticker. In 1990 they released their 4th album Banned in The U.S.A., which peaked at #21 on billboard's Hot 200 Albums Chart. The Title track is a reference to the decision in a court case that its album As Nasty As They Wanna Be was obscene (the decision would later be overturned on appeal). Bruce Springsteen granted the group permission to interpolate his song "Born in the U.S.A." for it. Shortly before the release of Move Somethin', Fresh Kid Ice was in a near fatal car accident. His injuries included injuries to his Brachial Plexus, which is the network of nerves that sends signals from your spine to your shoulder, arm and hand. This caused a loss of mobility in his left arm.He also suffered his first stroke on Thanksgiving 2009, followed by a second stroke early 2010. He had to retrain himself to walk and correct his speech. Ice passed away at 7:50 AM local time. The group's manager said he died as a result of a medical condition but would not elaborate. Fellow 2 Live crew member Luther Campbell posted on his Twitter page "My Condolence goes out to the family Chris Wong Wong Fresh Kid Ice of the 2 Live Crew who just passed away people we lost a legend".

RIP Christopher "Fresh Kid Ice" Wong Won May 29, 1964 - July 13, 2017