Robert Matthew Van Winkle (born October 31, 1967), known professionally by his stage name Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, actor and television personality.
Born in Dallas, Texas, and raised in Texas and South Florida, he released his debut album, Hooked, in 1989 through Ichiban Records, before signing a contract with SBK Records, which released a reformatted version of the album in 1990 under the title To the Extreme; which became the fastest-selling hip hop album of all time and contained Ice's best-known hits: "Ice Ice Baby" and a cover of "Play That Funky Music". "Ice Ice Baby" was the first hip hop single to top the Billboard charts and has been credited with helping to diversify hip hop by introducing it to a mainstream audience.
In late 1990, Ice began an eight-month relationship with Madonna, and appeared in photographs for her book, Sex. In April 1991, Ice began to film the SBK-produced Cool as Ice, in which he played a leading role. Cool as Ice opened on October 18, 1991, in 393 theaters in the United States, grossing $638,000, ranking at #14 among the week's new releases. Reviews of the film were negative and he received a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst New Star.
