Ice Cube and the best diss track of all time – No Vaseline

Ice Cube 1991

Introduction

On October 29, 1991, Ice Cube released his second solo album, Death Certificate. The album closes with No Vaseline, one of the hardest-hitting diss tracks of all time. Kendrick Lamar came remarkably close with Not Like Us, but No Vaseline remains in a league of its own, even today.

Diss Tracks

But what exactly is a diss track? Also known as a diss record or diss song, it is a track in which someone, often another artist, is verbally attacked. The word “diss” is short for “disrespect” or “disparage.” Diss tracks are often part of an escalating conflict, commonly referred to as a “beef.” The term diss track originated in hip-hop.

That doesn’t mean diss tracks didn’t exist long before hip-hop came along. Yankee Doodle (1755) can be considered one of the earliest diss tracks ever written, in this case with a political slant. In 1941, Irving Berlin wrote When That Man Is Dead and Gone, a song attacking Adolf Hitler. In 1954, Woody Guthrie wrote Old Man Trump about none other than the father of the current US president, targeting his greed and discriminatory practices.

In 1971, one of the best-known diss tracks appeared: John Lennon’s How Do You Sleep?, aimed at his former Beatles bandmate Paul McCartney. A year later, Carly Simon released her worldwide hit You’re So Vain, reportedly aimed at Warren Beatty. Queen’s Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to…) was an attack on their former manager, Norman Sheffield.

Fleetwood Mac – Rumours

In 1977, Fleetwood Mac released the album Rumours, a record shaped by breakups, crumbling relationships, and tensions within the band. The album is full of songs directed at one another, including Dreams, Go Your Own Way, and, most notably, Silver Springs, which was dropped from the album at the last minute.

That same year, the Sex Pistols joined in with E.M.I., a song aimed at the record company of the same name, and New York, a swipe at the inauthentic New York Dolls. In 1979, American punk band the Dead Kennedys released the single California Über Alles, targeting Senator Jerry Brown’s political campaign.

The first hip-hop entry dates back to 1981, when Kool Moe Dee took aim at fellow artist Busy Bee Starski in Battle w/ Busy Bee. Three years later, 14-year-old Roxanne Shanté released the seven-minute Roxanne’s Revenge in response to hip-hop trio U.T.F.O. The track became a sensation, particularly in the local scene.

N.W.A.

N.W.A.

In 1988, hip-hop truly broke through with classics such as Public Enemy’s It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back and N.W.A.’s Straight Outta Compton. N.W.A., in particular, found themselves embroiled in scandals and run-ins with the police and the law, not least because of their track Fuck Tha Police. In late 1989, rapper and principal lyricist Ice Cube left the group over royalty disputes and embarked on a solo career.

On May 16, 1990, Ice Cube released his debut album, AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted (number 41 on my all-time top 50 albums list). In August of that year, N.W.A. followed up with the EP 100 Miles and Runnin’. The title track was a reference to Ice Cube.

We started with five, but yo
One couldn’t take it, so now it’s four
Cuz the fifth couldn’t make it

On the song Real Niggaz the diss is even more prominent.

How the fuck you think a rapper lasts
With your ass sayin’ shit that was said in the past
Yo, be original, your shit is sloppy
Get off the dick, you motherfuckin’ carbon-copy

…

We started out with too much cargo
So I’m glad we got rid of Benedict Arnold, yo

Benedict Arnold was an American general who became infamous as the most notorious traitor in US history. In June 1991, N.W.A. released their album Efil4zaggin, which included the track Real Niggaz. Ice Cube had responded relatively mildly on his EP Kill At Will, but when his second solo album, Death Certificate, was released on October 29, 1991, all hell broke loose.

Ice Cube – No Vaseline

No Vaseline

N.W.A. had challenged Ice Cube, the group’s original and most gifted lyricist, and he was more than ready to take them on. The first minute of No Vaseline references N.W.A.’s interlude Message to B.A.. Then the music and beat hit hard. That alone is thrilling, confrontational, and utterly relentless.

Ice Cube always raps with fire and bravado, but here he sounds even more convincing than usual. The aggression, contempt, and anger are unmistakable in his voice. And then there’s the lyrics, which mercilessly go after the remaining N.W.A. members—Dr. Dre, MC Ren, DJ Yella, and Eazy-E—as well as their manager, Jerry Heller.

Lyrics

Goddamn, I’m glad y’all set it off
Used to be hard, now you’re just wet and soft
First you was down with the AK
And now I see you on a video with Michel’le
Looking like straight bozos
I saw it coming, that’s why I went solo
And kept on stompin’
While y’all motherfuckers moved straight outta Compton
Living with the whites
One big house and not another nigga in sight
I started off with too much cargo
Dropped four niggas, now I’m making all the dough
White man just ruling
The Niggas With Attitudes? Who you foolin’?
Y’all niggas just phony
I put that on my mama and my dead homies
Yella Boy’s on your team, so you’re losing
Ayy, yo, Dre, stick to producing
Calling me Arnold, but you been a dick
Eazy-E saw your ass and went in it quick
You got jealous when I got my own company
But I’m a man and ain’t nobody helpin’ me
Trying to sound like Amerikkka’s Most
You could yell all day, but you don’t come close
‘Cause you know I’m the one that flow
You done run a hundred miles, but you still got one to go
With the L-E-N-C-H M-O-B
And y’all disgrace the C-P-T
‘Cause you’re getting fucked out your green by a white boy
With no Vaseline

The bigger the cap, the bigger the peeling
Who gives a fuck about a punk-ass villain?
You’re getting fucked real quick
And Eazy dick is smelling like MC Ren’s shit
Tried to tell you a year ago
But Willie D told me to let a ho be a ho, so
I couldn’t stop you from getting ganked
Now let’s play big bank take little bank
Tried to diss Ice Cube, it wasn’t worth it
‘Cause the broomstick fit your ass so perfect
Cut my hair? Nah, cut them balls
‘Cause I heard you like giving up the drawers
Gang-banged by your manager, fella
Getting money out your ass like a motherfucking ready teller
Giving up the dollar bills
Now they got The Villain with a purse and high-heels
So don’t believe what Ren say
‘Cause he’s going out like Kunta Kinte
But I got a whip for you, Toby
Used to be my homie, now you act like you don’t know me
It’s a case of divide and conquer
‘Cause you let a Jew break up my crew
House nigga gotta run and hide
Yelling Compton, but you moved to Riverside
So don’t front, MC Ren
‘Cause I remember when you drove a B210
Broke as a motherfucking joke
Let you on the scene to back up the first team
It ain’t my fault, one nigga got smart
And they ripping your asshole apart
By taking your green, oh, yeah
The Villain does get fucked with no Vaseline

I never have dinner with the president
I never have dinner with the president
I never have dinner with the president
And when I see your ass again, I’ll be hesitant
Now I think you a snitch
Throw a house nigga in a ditch
Half-pint bitch, fuckin’ your homeboys
You little maggot, Eazy-E turned faggot
With your manager, fella
Fucking MC Ren, Dr. Dre, and Yella
But if they were smart as me
Eazy-E would be hangin’ from a tree
With no Vaseline, just a match and a little bit of gasoline
Light ’em up, burn ’em up, flame on
‘Til that Jheri curl is gone
On a permanent vacation, off the massa plantation
Heard you both got the same bank account
Dumb nigga, what you thinking ’bout?
Get rid of that devil real simple, put a bullet in his temple
‘Cause you can’t be the Nigga 4 Life crew
With a white Jew telling you what to do
Pulling wools with your scams
Now I gotta play The Silence of the Lambs
With a midget who’s a punk too
Tryin’ to fuck me, but I’d rather fuck you
Eric Wright, punk, always into something, gettin’ fucked at night
By Mister Shitpacker, bend over for the goddamn cracker
No Vaseline

Motherfuckin’ nosejob having ass
Motherfuckin’ Jheri curl lite, Ambi wearing motherfuckin’ bitch

© 1991 Ice Cube

Ice Cube 1991

Samples

The album credits only Brick’s Dazz as a sample, but according to the online sampling bible whosampled.com, no fewer than 18 samples were used. Given the buildup during the first minute alone, I’m inclined to believe it.

Reactions

No Vaseline was widely acclaimed for its razor-sharp lyrics and merciless brutality. I wholeheartedly agree. N.W.A. never responded to No Vaseline. The attack was so convincing and devastating that the group could never have come up with a response to match it. N.W.A. overplayed their hand with their initial attacks, and Ice Cube proceeded to verbally steamroll the group.

Review

Well, what more is there to say about No Vaseline? Pure excitement, energy, aggression, a killer flow, irresistible funk, and a delivery I’ll never forget. Every time I hear the track, I can’t help chuckling at the lyrics and the relentless torrent of words. Ice Cube doesn’t just take his opponents down a peg, he completely pulverizes them. Once again, Ice Cube proves that he was the lyrical mastermind behind N.W.A. The regret the group must have felt over launching that initial attack must have been immense. Ice Cube rules!

Ice Cube has never attained the legendary status often bestowed upon rappers such as KRS-One, Chuck D., 2Pac, Eminem, and Kendrick Lamar. But in 1990 and 1991, he was at the absolute top of his game. The flow on No Vaseline is unparalleled, and the attacks are so vicious that they still shock today. Above all, though, it is the commanding delivery that makes the track a high point in hip-hop. Ice Cube recorded the rap in a single take, making the end result even more impressive than it already was.

2Pac – Hit ‘Em Up & Kendrick Lamar – Not Like Us

Life after No Vaseline

Many more exciting and confrontational diss tracks have been released since No Vaseline, including those that emerged during the East Coast–West Coast feud, in which Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. played major and, ultimately, deeply tragic roles. Diss tracks by Jay-Z, Eminem, Nas, Lil’ Kim, Nicki Minaj, Taylor Swift, Kanye West, Beyoncé, Drake, Pusha T, Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott, Megan Thee Stallion, and Cardi B have also found eager audiences.

The most recent major feud was between Drake and Kendrick Lamar. It unfolded between March and May 2024, with both artists trading attacks across a series of hip-hop tracks. Kendrick Lamar emerged as the clear winner, releasing several tracks that hit their mark. His final salvo, Not Like Us, is widely regarded as one of the greatest diss tracks of all time, alongside 2Pac’s Hit ‘Em Up and Ice Cube’s No Vaseline.

And what about Ice Cube himself? Has he released any more diss tracks? Absolutely. In 2018, he released Arrest the President, a blistering attack on Donald Trump. Responding to various best-of lists of diss tracks in 2024, Ice Cube argued that No Vaseline was, by definition, the greatest of them all—better than Kendrick’s, better than 2Pac’s. His reasoning? Ice Cube single-handedly, without any outside help, made four former N.W.A. members and their manager implode…

No Vaseline is the best diss song in the history of hip-hop, and I’ll tell you why. One MC, myself, took out four motherfuckers and their manager. You can’t beat that…

In closing

What’s your tajke on No Vaseline? Let me know!

Video/Spotify
This story contains an accompanying video. Click on the following link to see it: Video: Ice Cube and the best diss track of all time – No Vaseline. The A Pop Life playlist on Spotify has been updated as well.