Ice-T signed to Sire Records in 1987 when he was 18 years old.
Tracy Lauren Marrow ( born February 16 , 1958 ) , better known by his stage name Ice-T , is an American rapper , metal vocalist and actor . He began his career as a rapper in the 1980s and was signed to Sire Records in 1987 , when he released his debut album Rhyme Pays , one of the first hip-hop albums to carry an explicit content sticker .