10 Key Insights from Vanilla Ice's 1991 Memoir, Ice by Ice

Vanilla Ice, the hip-hop icon, rose to fame with his 1990 album To the Extreme, which sold a staggering 7 million copies, and its hit single, “Ice, Ice Baby.” He also made a memorable appearance as himself in the 1991 film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze. After his initial success faded, he tried to reinvent himself as a Rasta-inspired rapper, complete with dreadlocks.

Before this transformation, Ice, born Robert Van Winkle, authored Ice by Ice in 1991. This “autobiography,” though lacking a co-author credit, likely owes its writing to Randi Reisfeld, whom Ice thanks in the foreword for “organizing my thoughts.” At a concise 164 pages, it’s a must-read for fans curious about details like his iconic hairstyle (“the beak”) or his advice on what catches his eye in women (“dressing super-sexy”). Here are 10 fascinating takeaways from this candid and opportunistic paperback.

1. Vanilla Ice styled his own hair.

Even during his peak fame, Vanilla Ice was meticulous about his signature hairstyle, “the beak,” featuring shaved lines on the sides and a distinctive stripe at the front. He took a hands-on approach to maintain it, stating, “I position myself with a mirror behind me and hold another in front so I can see my entire head.”

Ice was so particular about his hair that anything less than flawless would lead him to avoid being photographed. “I refuse to be in pictures unless my hair looks perfect—that’s why you’ll often see me wearing baseball caps,” he writes.

2. Vanilla Ice never sheds tears.

“I don’t cry, and I can’t explain why,” Ice reveals. Even after breaking his ankle in a motorcycle accident as a teen, he remained tear-free. The closest he came to crying was when he received platinum record plaques. “My eyes welled up a bit… that’s the most emotional I’ve ever been.”

3. Vanilla Ice was stabbed in the buttocks and lost four pints of blood.

As Ice’s fame surged, critics questioned his stories of growing up in tough neighborhoods in Miami and Dallas, where he allegedly joined a gang after his stepfather moved the family for work. Some accused him of exaggerating his past to seem more like a hardened street kid. Ice expressed frustration at having to prove his authenticity, even showing the scar on his butt from a knife attack at 18. He recounts a street fight that escalated when an assailant stabbed him in the thigh and buttocks, leading to a lengthy hospital stay after losing four pints of blood. “They used something like a Q-tip soaked in alcohol to seal the artery,” he writes. (And no, he didn’t cry.)

4. Vanilla Ice wore mismatched shoes to school.

As a child, Ice frequently changed schools and struggled with the instability of being the new kid. To cope, he embraced eccentric fashion choices, like wearing mismatched footwear. “I’d have a boot on one foot and a sneaker on the other,” he recalls, “or jeans with one leg full-length and the other cut off—things like that.”

5. If Vanilla Ice faced a problem, (yo) he’d handle it.

Ice insists he was never one to share his emotions openly. His mother, who raised him alone until marrying his stepfather when he was eight, attempted to send him to therapy to address his disruptive behavior at school, but Ice remained silent. “I never felt the need to discuss my issues with anyone,” he explains. “While many people rely on talking things out, I’ve never been able to open up like that. It’s just not in my nature. That’s where the line ‘If there was a problem, yo, I’ll solve it’ in ‘Ice, Ice Baby’ comes from.”

6. Vanilla Ice occasionally used explicit language.

During his early rap battles, Ice sometimes resorted to profanity—not out of preference, but because his opponents used it, and he had to match their intensity. “I wouldn’t curse unless another rapper started insulting me and the crowd responded positively,” he writes. “If the audience enjoyed the swearing, I had to curse back to win them over.” However, Ice emphasizes that his recorded tracks were always clean, as “I don’t need vulgar words to convey my message.”

7. Vanilla Ice was first known as Vanilla M.C.

Ice began his career performing at City Lights, a Dallas dance club owned by Tommy Quon, who later became his manager. Realizing “Robert Van Winkle” wasn’t a catchy stage name, Ice adopted the nickname “Vanilla M.C.,” given to him during his teenage years while beatboxing and rapping in his neighborhood. However, Quon noted the abundance of “MCs” in the industry, like M.C. Hammer and Young M.C., and suggested a change. “Your style is smooth, smooth as Ice,” Quon remarked. Ice agreed, and Vanilla M.C. became Vanilla Ice.

8. Vanilla Ice prioritized physical attraction in women.

Ice openly admits that his initial interest in women is based on their appearance. “My first impression is always about looks. I know it’s not fair, but that’s how I am. After that, I see if their personality matches,” he explains.

Once Ice finds a woman both intellectually engaging and stylishly dressed, he enjoys taking her to upscale restaurants. However, he prefers places with a romantic ambiance over overly pretentious ones. “I like candlelit dinners, but not at places where the menu is so complicated I can’t even understand it,” he says.

9. Vanilla Ice was offered a role in a Nightmare on Elm Street sequel.

After the success of To the Extreme, Ice’s career could have taken various paths. He appeared in a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles sequel and starred in the 1991 film Cool as Ice. Amid these projects, he was offered a minor role in a Nightmare on Elm Street sequel, likely to be killed off by Freddy Krueger, but he declined due to a packed schedule.

10. Vanilla Ice was pursued by a Satanist.

Although Ice doesn’t mention this in his book, it’s a noteworthy anecdote. During the peak of his fame in the 1990s, he revealed to Rolling Stone that a woman stalked him, trying to convert him to Satanism. She first caught his attention at Wembley Stadium by flashing him in a trench coat. Later, she followed him to Japan and left a Satanic Bible under his hotel door, urging him to join her cause—apparently because his birthday is on Halloween.