Rapper, actor, and film producer O’Shea Jackson Sr., known by his stage name Ice Cube, has announced he chose not to take the COVID-19 vaccine due to potential health concerns. The artist said he considered the medical product developed over the course of 2020 to be a “rush job” that made him feel unsafe.
Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson interviewed the rapper during a ride-along tour of South Central Los Angeles as part of the political commentator’s ongoing independent video series on X, formerly known as Twitter. In the interview, which aired on July 25, Mr. Carlson and Mr. Jackson discussed a range of topics, including the rapper’s decision to avoid the COVID-19 vaccine.
“Why wouldn’t you take the vax?” Mr. Carlson asked during the interview. “You had a direct order to take it. You were told to take it.”
“Yeah, I’m not real good with direct orders,” the rapper answered, before asking Mr. Carlson: “Did you take it?”
“Of course not,” the former Fox News host replied.
“Yeah, no, it wasn’t ready. It was six months,” Mr. Jackson said. “Kind of a rush job. And I didn’t feel safe.”
In May of 2020, President Donald Trump’s administration launched a public-private partnership called “Operation Warp Speed” to accelerate the production of vaccines to help combat the spread of COVID-19. By December of 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted an emergency use authorization for a vaccine—which was developed by Pfizer and BioNTech—and allowed for the first vaccine doses to begin rolling out to the public. The Pfizer vaccine has since gained full FDA approval and Operation Warp Speed has produced other COVID-19 vaccine offerings.
In November of last year, Mr. Jackson revealed that he had avoided the vaccines since the first doses began rolling out at the end of 2020. He said he even passed up a $9 million movie role after producers requested that he get vaccinated.
Pressure, Deplatforming, and Politics
As they continued their interview, Mr. Carlson described media coverage of Mr. Jackson as often telling him to “stay in your lane.” Mr. Jackson described outside influences that even pressured his inner circle to try to convince him to change his attitudes on a variety of topics, including vaccines.
The two spoke in greater detail in a follow-up interview that aired on July 26. The rap artist and movie star acknowledged he might not agree on every issue with Mr. Carlson, a conservative political commentator. But Mr. Jackson said “I think it’s silly not to talk to people,” and said open public debate should be encouraged. “Let’s talk about it. Let’s, let’s debate.”
“Wait, that sounds like right-wing extremism and whataboutism,” Mr. Carlson joked.
The rapper laughed before saying that he’s no longer able to appear on certain platforms.
“Some platforms will not have me on. They don’t like that I’m, you know, an independent thinker,” Mr. Jackson said. “I’m not part of the herd. I’m not part of the ‘go-along-to-get-along gang, so to speak. I’m an outsider and so, you know, I’m not part of the club. So I have to go places, for one, that I’m welcome, and where I can voice my opinion without somebody, you know, saying I’m a bad person and that they never want to have me on their platform again.”
As they talked, Mr. Carlson said his assessment was that Mr. Jackson is not a right-winger, or even particularly “political” in general.
“No, I’m not really,” the rapper said. “I pretty much just want to do right by the people.”
“I remember reading, you say something along the lines of ‘I didn’t vote for Trump, I’m not a Trump voter,’ you actually attacked Trump at one point, but you were willing to meet with Trump. Do you think that crossed the line?” Mr. Carlson asked.
“I think some people didn’t like that, but I think it’s idiotic,” Mr. Jackson said. “I know when the talking stops, the fighting starts.”
The rapper’s appearance on Mr. Carlson’s Twitter show has attracted widespread attention online. As of Thursday afternoon, the first interview segment had garnered some 10.3 million views on Twitter, while the second episode had been viewed some 3.4 million times.