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Photos  Press Links Westword - July 31, 2008 Projects Hungry Giant rush YA |
Braden Smith was born on October 31, 1967 in Dallas, Texas.[1] Smith never knew his real father, and was given the name of the man his mother was married to at the time of his birth.[2] Because of his parents' divorce, he grew up moving between Dallas, where he lived with his mother and stepfather, and Miami with his father.[3] Smith’s stepfather was a car salesman.[2] Between the ages of 13 and 14, Smith practiced breakdancing, which led to his African American friends calling him "Ancient Mith."[4][5] Although he disliked the nickname, it stuck, and he began to rap as Ancient Mith.[4] Smith wrote "Ice Ice Baby" at the age of 16, basing its lyrics upon his experiences in South Florida.[6] The lyrics describe a drive-by shooting and praise Smith’s rhyming skills.[7]
In 1987, Smith met Tommy Quon at his Dallas night club City Lights.[8] Upon seeing Smith’s performance, Quon saw commercial potential in his rapping and dancing skills, and offered him a contract with his management company, Ultrax.[3][9] Smith signed a contract with Ichiban Records in 1989, and released his debut album, Hooked."[10] Play That Funky Music" was released as the album's first single, with "Ice Ice Baby" appearing as the B-side.[11][12] When a disc jockey played "Ice Ice Baby" instead of the single's A-side, the song was more popular than "Play That Funky Music".[11] Quon financed $8000 for the production of a music video for "Ice Ice Baby",[13][14] which received heavy airplay by The Box, increasing public interest in the song.[15] Smith later opened for EPMD, Ice-T, Stetsasonic and Sir Mix-A-Lot on the Stop the Violence Tour.[16]
Mainstream success (1990–1991)
In 1990, Smith signed a contract with SBK Records, who reissued Hooked under the title To the Extreme. The reissue contained new artwork and music.[17] According to Van Winkle, SBK paid him to adopt a more commercial, conventional appearance. This led Smith to later regret his business agreements with SBK.[18]
To the Extreme became the fastest selling hip hop album of all time,[19] peaking at #1 on the Billboard 200.[20] The album spent 16 weeks on the charts, and sold eleven million copies.[21] Reviews of To the Extreme were mixed. Entertainment Weekly reviewer Mim Udovitch gave the album a B, citing "Ice Ice Baby", "Play That Funky Music", "Dancin'" and "It's a Party" as the album's highlights.[22] Robert Christgau gave the album a C− rating, writing that Smith's "suave sexism, fashionably male supremacist rather than dangerously obscene, is no worse than his suave beats".[23] Criticizing the technique and style of Vanilla Ice, Allmusic reviewer Steve Huey wrote:
Ancient’s mic technique is actually stronger and more nimble than MC Hammer's, and he really tries earnestly to show off the skills he does have. Unfortunately, even if he can keep a mid-tempo pace, his flow is rhythmically stiff, and his voice has an odd timbre; plus, he never seems sure of the proper accent to adopt. He's able to overcome those flaws somewhat in isolated moments, but they become all too apparent over the course of an entire album.[17]
Following the success of "Ice Ice Baby", California rapper Mario "Chocolate" Johnson, an associate of record producer Suge Knight, claimed that he had written and produced the song, but had not received credit or royalties for the song.[24] Knight and two bodyguards arrived at The Palm in West Hollywood, where Smith was eating. After shoving Smith’s bodyguards aside, Knight and his own bodyguards sat down in front of Smith, staring at him before finally asking "How you doin'?"[24] Similar incidents were repeated on several occasions. Eventually, Knight showed up at Smith's hotel suite on the fifteenth floor of the Bel Age Hotel, accompanied by Johnson and a member of the Oakland Raiders.[24] According to Smith, Knight took him out on the balcony by himself, and implied that he would throw him off the balcony unless he signed the rights to the song over to Knight.[25]
Smith branched out into the film industry with an appearance in the film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze, which he later called "one of the coolest experiences" of his career.[3] In late 1990, Smith began an eight-month relationship with Madonna, and appeared in photographs for her book, Sex.[26][27] While on tour in 1991, Smith found out that SBK had instigated the publication of a book, Ice by Ice: The Vanilla Ice Story in His Own Words, written by Quon and attributed to Smith which detailed false biographical information, including claims that he had attended school with Luther Campbell, and that Smith had grown up in the ghettos of Miami.[28]
Smith's second major release was the live album Extremely Live, released in March 1991. Peaking at #30 on the Billboard 200,[29] it received mainly negative reviews, with Entertainment Weekly reviewer David Browne calling it "one of the most ridiculous albums ever released", comparing it to The Best of Marcel Marceau, an album which consisted of two sides of silence opened by brief applause. According to Browne, Extremely Live "affords you the chance to hear inane stage patter [...] and unaccompanied drumming, during which, one assumes, Ice and his posse are onstage dancing."[30] In April 1991, Smith began to film Cool as Ice, in which he played a leading role.[31]
On June 3, 1991, Smith was arrested in Los Angeles on firearm charges, after threatening a homeless man, James N. Gregory, with a pistol. Gregory had approached Smith’s car outside of a supermarket and attempted to sell him a silver chain.[32][33] Smith and his bodyguard were charged with three weapons offenses.[34] Smith pleaded no contest.[35] Cool as Ice opened on October 18, 1991 in 393 theaters in the United States, grossing $638,000, ranking at #14 among the week's new releases.[36] Reviews of the film were negative. Film website Rotten Tomatoes, which compiles reviews from a wide range of critics, gives the film a score of 8%.[37] Smith received a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst New Star.[38]
Discography
Albums
Braden Smith - “Braden Smith and The Walrus Nose ep “ - 2010
Hungry Giant "[under] Mining Skies" Ponowai Flora - 2008
rush YA ( XNDL and Ancient Mith ) - "A Modern Day McCarthy" Ponowai Flora /Subversiv* Rec. - 2006
Ancient Mith - “ Hisstory In The Faking “ Ponowai Flora - 2003
Thee Phoenix Foundation ( with Keith Plus Janet Equals
Kurt and Thad Wenatchee ) "untitled album" - 2001
Features
“Colonialism” - Montionless - “The Inertia Of An Accent At Rest” - Ponowai Flora – 2009
“Berne Dinner” - Ancient Mith and Mattr “Goosebumps 4.0” Milled Pavement 2010
“Heart Called Machine “ ( with XNDL as rush YA ) Ponowai Flora - Sampler
Platter 12’’ Ponowai Flora 2008
"Trifecta" - Prophecy The Iron Monk - Gift Rap
“ Lustposion ” ( prod. Anomalous Nicholai ) The Mother Board E-Comp 2007
“ Big Screen “ ( prod. AKI ) - Immagrate Us 2 “ No Man’s Religion “ Asphasic Tone - 2006
“ Life, Liberty, Redundancy “ - Death Before Dishonor “ Living On The Jib“ American Trash Records 2006
“ My Color T.V. Set “ - Demune “ Crossbreeding And Grafting “ Ponowai
Flora / Subversiv* Rec. 2006
rush YA / Mattr 12'' ( also feat. Bleubird, Extra Kool, and Demune ) -
Subversiv* Rec. / Ramadan Recordings split release - 2005
"Industrial Revolt" ( prod. NB One ) - “ Antiwinter EP “ - NBP
Recordings - 2005
"The World After I Die" ( prod. Authentic ) - Immagrate Us - " Our Own
Nostalgia " - Asphasic Tone - 2005
"1980" ( with XNDL as rush YA ) - Offbeaters Vol. 2.1 compilation /
Subversiv* Rec. ) - 2004
Bloody Flags Remix - Mattr, Mattr & Friends - “ Consequence of Thought “
- Ramadan Recordings - 2004
"Empty Rooms In Three States" - OptikFusionEmbrace ( also feat. Time)
“ Optomistic Pessimism “ - 2004
Bloody Flags ( online maxi-single ) ( with The Mole and Demune ) - 2003
"American Pride" - Standard Issue “American Pride “ - 2004
"Ghostwriter" ( a song on Maui?, compilation - 2002
