O'Shea Jackson Sr., known professionally as Ice Cube, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor, and film producer. His lyrics on N.W.A's 1988 album Straight Outta Compton contributed to gangsta rap's widespread popularity, and his political rap solo albums AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted (1990), Death Certificate (1991), and The Predator (1992) were all critically and commercially successful. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of N.W.A in 2016.
Friday is a 1995 American buddy comedy film directed by F. Gary Gray and written by Ice Cube and DJ Pooh. The first installment in the Friday trilogy, it stars Ice Cube, Chris Tucker, Nia Long, Tiny "Zeus" Lister Jr., Regina King, Anna Maria Horsford, Bernie Mac, and John Witherspoon. In the film, unemployed friends Craig Jones and Smokey (Tucker) face troubles after becoming indebted to a drug dealer while also contending with the neighborhood bully in South Central Los Angeles.
Christopher Tucker is an American stand-up comedian and actor. Tucker made his debut in 1992 as a stand-up performer on the HBO comedy series Def Comedy Jam, where he frequently appeared on the show during the 1990s. He made his feature film debut in House Party 3 in 1994 and gained greater recognition in Friday the following year. In 1997, he co-starred in the films The Fifth Element and Money Talks, and appeared in a supporting role in Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown. Tucker gained widespread fame and popularity in the 2000s for playing Detective James Carter in the Rush Hour film series.
Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. was an American stand-up comedian and actor. He reached a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most important stand-up comedians of all time. Pryor won a Primetime Emmy Award and five Grammy Awards. He received the first Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 1998. He won the Writers Guild of America Award in 1974. He was listed at number one on Comedy Central's list of all-time greatest stand-up comedians. In 2017, Rolling Stone ranked him first on its list of the 50 best stand-up comics of all time.
Kirk Jones, better known by his stage name Sticky Fingaz, is an American rapper, record producer and actor best known as a member of multi-platinum hardcore rap group Onyx.
Omar Hashim Epps is an American actor, rapper, and producer. Epps's film roles include Juice, Higher Learning, The Wood, In Too Deep, and Love & Basketball. His television work includes the role of Dr. Dennis Gant on the medical drama series ER, J. Martin Bellamy in Resurrection, Dr. Eric Foreman on the Fox medical drama series House from 2004 to 2012, and Isaac Johnson in the TV series Shooter from 2016 to 2018. He has been awarded nine NAACP Image Awards, two Teen Choice Awards, one MTV Movie Award, one Black Reel Award, and one Screen Actors Guild Award.
Tommy Debo "Tiny" Lister Jr. was an American character actor and occasional professional wrestler known for his roles as the neighborhood bully Deebo in the 1995 film Friday and its 2000 sequel, and as President Lindberg in The Fifth Element. He had two short professional wrestling stints, with Hulk Hogan in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) after appearing as Zeus in the 1989 film No Holds Barred and resuming the feud as Z-Gangsta in 1996 for World Championship Wrestling (WCW). He was born with a detached and deformed retina and was blind in his right eye, which drooped, a unique look that he turned to his advantage in film. He played in both comedies and dramas, usually cast as 'the heavy/big bully'.
Paul Michael Slayton, better known by his stage name Paul Wall, is an American rapper and DJ. He has spent much of his career affiliated with Swishahouse, and has released several albums under the label and collaborated with numerous other rappers signed to the label. He began his career performing alongside fellow Houstonian Chamillionaire, with whom he released several albums, including 2002's independently released Get Ya Mind Correct. By 2005, he was signed to Atlantic Records and became successful with his major label debut The Peoples Champ, which was followed up by Get Money, Stay True released in 2007. He has been nominated for one Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance as a Duo or Group for the song "Grillz", his collaboration with rapper Nelly.
Next Friday is a 2000 American stoner comedy film and the sequel to the 1995 film Friday. It is the first film to be produced by Ice Cube's film production company Cube Vision, and to be written by Cube himself. It was directed by Steve Carr and stars Ice Cube, Mike Epps, John Witherspoon, Tamala Jones, and Tommy "Tiny" Lister Jr. It is the second installment in the Friday series. It tells the story of Craig Jones as he goes to live with his uncle, who just won the lottery, and cousin in Rancho Cucamonga after the neighborhood bully Deebo escapes from prison where Craig contends with three criminal brothers known as the Joker Brothers. Next Friday was theatrically released on January 12, 2000, grossing $59 million worldwide. The film has received generally negative reviews from critics.
Joseph Guillermo Jones II, better known by his stage name Jim Jones, is an American rapper and record executive. He is a founding member of the hip hop collective the Diplomats, which he formed in 1997 with fellow Harlem native Cam'ron.
John Witherspoon was an American actor and comedian who performed in various television shows and films. He played Willie Jones in the Friday series, and starred in films such as Hollywood Shuffle (1987), Boomerang (1992), The Five Heartbeats (1991), and Vampire in Brooklyn (1995). In addition, Witherspoon made appearances on television shows such as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1994), The Wayans Bros. (1995–1999), The Tracy Morgan Show (2003), Barnaby Jones (1973), The Boondocks (2005–2014), and Black Jesus (2014–2019). He wrote a film, From the Old School, in which he played an elderly working man who tries to prevent a neighborhood convenience store from being developed into a strip club.
All About the Benjamins is a 2002 American buddy action comedy film directed by Kevin Bray, starring Ice Cube and Mike Epps as a bounty hunter and a con artist who join forces to find a group of diamond thieves: the former for glory, and the latter to retrieve a lost winning lottery ticket. The film was released in theaters in March 2002 to negative reviews. Despite this, the film was a moderate box office hit. The film's title was taken from the popular 1997 hip-hop song performed by Puff Daddy "It's All About the Benjamins". Ice Cube and Mike Epps also starred together in the Friday series and the (2009) film Janky Promoters.
Tyree Cinque Simmons, known professionally as DJ Drama, is an American disc jockey (DJ), record executive and music promoter. He initially gained recognition as the DJ for Atlanta-based rapper T.I., and continued to gain prominence hosting mixtapes for other hip hop artists. His trademark Gangsta Grillz series is present on releases of which he has compiled; it has been popularized by artists including Lil Wayne, Tyler the Creator, Snoop Dogg, Yo Gotti, YoungBoy Never Broke Again, Fabolous, Jeezy, Meek Mill, and Gucci Mane, among others. Alongside record producer and fellow Philadelphia native Don Cannon, he co-founded the record label Generation Now in 2015, an imprint of Atlantic Records which has signed artists including Lil Uzi Vert and Jack Harlow.
Friday After Next is a 2002 American stoner comedy film directed by Marcus Raboy and starring Ice Cube, Mike Epps, John Witherspoon, Don "D.C." Curry, Anna Maria Horsford, and Clifton Powell. It is the third installment in the Friday trilogy as tells the story of Craig and his cousin Day-Day getting jobs as security guards at a shopping center when a robber dressed as Santa Claus breaks into their apartment and steals their presents and the rent money that is to be given to their landlady. The film was theatrically released on November 22, 2002, to generally negative reviews.
Steven Harold Carr is an American film director, music video director, and film producer from Brooklyn, New York. After studying fine arts on a full scholarship to Manhattan’s School of Visual Arts, Carr founded design firm The Drawing Board with Cey Adam to create iconic album artwork for Def Jam Recordings artists such as Beastie Boys, Public Enemy, LL Cool J and more. Asked to take his vision to film, Carr created groundbreaking videos for influential hip-hop artists from Slick Rick to Jay-Z, and was signed to Quentin Tarantino's A Band Apart Music Video production company in Los Angeles, CA.
The Friday franchise consists of American stoner buddy-comedies created by Ice Cube and DJ Pooh; including three theatrical films and one animated spin-off TV series. The series takes place in South Central Los Angeles and follows the exploits of perpetually unemployed Craig Jones, who, along with his friends and relatives, is thrust into various issues that happen to occur on a Friday.
Tauheed K. Epps, known professionally as 2 Chainz, is an American rapper and actor. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, he initially gained recognition as one-half of the Southern hip-hop duo Playaz Circle, alongside hometown rapper Earl "Dolla Boy" Conyers. The duo signed with fellow Georgia-based rapper Ludacris' Disturbing tha Peace label and became best known for their 2007 debut single "Duffle Bag Boy".
David Lawrence Brewster Jr., known professionally as Dave East, is an American rapper. East began his career in 2010, and gained attention in 2014 for his eighth mixtape, Black Rose. Its release caught the attention of fellow New York rapper Nas, who signed East to a recording contract with his label Mass Appeal Records in 2014, which entered a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings two years later.
Terry Sanchez Wallace Jr., known professionally as Tee Grizzley, is an American rapper. He first began posting music online in 2011; following a two year prison sentence, he released the song "First Day Out" in 2017. It quickly gained viral status—earning two million views on YouTube in under three weeks—due to a social media challenge enacted by basketball player LeBron James, after which the song peaked within the top 50 of the Billboard Hot 100 and led him to sign with 300 Entertainment. Its release preceded his debut mixtape My Moment (2017), and was followed by the single "From the D to the A", which received double platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His collaborative mixtape with Lil Durk, Bloodas (2018), was followed by his debut studio album, Activated (2018).
The Upshaws is an American television sitcom created by Regina Y. Hicks and Wanda Sykes. The series stars Sykes, Mike Epps, Kim Fields, Diamond Lyons, Khali Spraggins, Journey Christine, and Jermelle Simon. The series premiered on Netflix on May 12, 2021. In June 2021, the series was renewed for a second season, with the first part being released on June 29, 2022. The second part of the second season premiered on February 16, 2023. In October 2022, the series was renewed for a third season, which premiered on August 17, 2023. In December 2023, the series was renewed for a 10-episode fourth season, also called part 6. The six-episode fifth part of The Upshaws, the second half of season 3, premiered on April 18, 2024. In June 2024, the series was renewed for a 12-episode fifth and final season, also called part 7.
