"Colors" is a song by American rapper Ice-T, issued as the title track for the soundtrack to the film of the same name. The song was released as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

in 1988.Ice-T - Colors (Vinyl)
Discogs.com, Retrieved July 17, 2010. In 2008, it was named the 19th-greatest hip hop song of all time by VH1.VH1's 100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs
Stereogum.com, Retrieved July 17, 2010. The song was Ice-T's first to chart on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, where it peaked at number 70.The song samples "Ain't We Funkin' Now" by

The Brothers Johnson The Brothers Johnson were an American funk and R&B band consisting of American musicians and brothers George ("Lightnin' Licks") and Louis E. Johnson ("Thunder Thumbs"). They achieved their greatest success from the mid-1970s to early 1980s, ...

. Ice-T himself re-recorded the song with his band

Body Count A body count is the total number of people killed in a particular event. In combat, a body count is often based on the number of confirmed kills, but occasionally only an estimate. Often used in reference to military combat, the term can also r ...

in 2020 for the album, ''

Carnivore A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other sof ...

''. In 2021, gang scholar and sociology professor Stefano Bloch called "Colors" "the greatest sociological text ever written on gang activity and identity".

Charts

Cover versions

*In 1996, the song was covered by

Society Burning Society Burning is an American Industrial metal, coldwave industrial rock band composed of Daveoramma (born Dave Mansfield, aka Dave Creadeau), Twitch, and Boom chr Paige (born Boom Fernandez). The group was founded in Las Cruces, New Mexico, in ...

for the

electro-industrial Electro-industrial is a music genre that emerged from industrial music in the early 1980s. While EBM (electronic body music) has a minimal structure and clean production, electro-industrial tends to have a grittier, complex and layered sound ...

various artists compilation, ''

Operation Beatbox ''Operation Beatbox'' is a various artists compilation album released on September 17, 1996 by Re-Constriction Records. The album compiles covers of popular hip hop tracks performed by electro-industrial acts, many of whom were part of the Re-Co ...

''. *The song was covered by the

groove metal Groove metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. The genre achieved success in the 1990s and continued having success in the 2000s. Inspired by thrash metal and traditional heavy metal, groove metal features raspy ...

band

Machine Head A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses and others, and ar ...

and released on the 1997 bonus disc version of their album, '' The More Things Change...'' *

C-Murder Corey Miller (born March 9, 1971), better known by his stage name C-Murder, is an American rapper and songwriter. He initially gained fame in the mid-1990s as a part of his brother Master P's label No Limit Records, primarily as a member of the ...

made a remake called "Cluckers" (featuring Fiend) on his debut album, '' Life or Death'', in 1998.

References

1988 singles 1988 songs Ice-T songs Gangsta rap songs Songs written by Ice-T Songs written by Afrika Islam Songs about crime {{Hiphop-song-stub