Interview
And your parents were happy
for you to do that?
Vanilla Ice
They didn’t know, but I never had to ask for an
allowance, because I earned my own while all
my friends got their parents to give them $5 a
week, which was a lot in the 80s. For me it was
a way to make my own money from my hobby.
I would battle with other break dancers and
rappers, we would have competitions.
How
did
you
construction?
get
into
All of a sudden in 1990 with the success of Ice,
Ice Baby and To the Extreme, everything blew
up when I sold over 160 million records. So I
bought a bunch of homes as an investment.
Then I started to learn about real estate. That
was the start, the beginning and I’ve been
doing this for 25 years now. I don’t only do
Expecting the Unexpected
The American rapper, actor and television host
Vanilla Ice was born in October 1967 as Robert
Matthew Van Winkle. As a teenager, he practiced
breakdancing, which led to his friends calling him
Vanilla, as he was the only member of the group
who wasn’t black. The Ice part of his name came
later, from one of this breakdance moves, “The Ice”.
Now a successful businessman, as well as his
celebrity status, Vanilla Ice went through some
dark times, including periods of heavy drug use
and it was during this time, he acquired most
of his tattoos. In 1994 he attempted suicide
with a heroin overdose, after being revived, he
came to the conclusion it was time to change
his lifestyle, as a symbol of this decision he got
a tattoo of a leaf on his stomach.
8
In addition to his businesses, music and TV
persona, Ice was a professional motocross
racer and later became the world's No.
6-ranked sit-down jet ski racer.
How did you develop a passion
for so many businesses?
I guess it started from my competitive drive
from when I raced motocross as a kid. I figured
out on my own how to hustle and make some
money. I would go to the mall and start break
dancing, putting a tip jar out in front and
people would throw money in it. I was 14 and I
had learned a way to make some money from
something I loved.
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