Rapper and actor Ice-T talks new show 'The Mediator with Ice-T'
When Ice-T was first approached about doing a new series for Fox Television Stations, he had one rule: No robes.
"They had an idea to do conflict resolution. I was like, 'I don't want to be no judge! I'm not a judge. I don't want to wear a robe … that's corny, that's fake.'"
And if there’s one thing the superstar musician and actor isn’t — it’s fake. So, instead of judging, Ice-T will be mediating on his new show, "The Mediator with Ice-T," premiering Monday on FOX 5 Atlanta.
"'The Mediator' is two people with any level of problem — it doesn't even have to have money involved — it's just a problem, and we try to get between them and solve their problem so they can live happily ever after," says the legendary rapper. "I listen to the problem, and then I have a group of people I go to; one of them is Freddie Foxxx from hip-hop, they call him Bumpy Knuckles, who has his way of handling things. I have attorneys, I have psychologists, I have relationship experts. They give their two cents, I come back, I give a recommendation, and you either take it or leave it."
The half-hour series, which will air weekdays on FOX 5 Atlanta over a four-week preview period, is filmed in a virtual way, meaning the complainants join the host via streaming video. Ice-T says every case is real — and relatable.
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"We had this one girl who just thought her sister should take care of her because she is the youngest and the cutest," he says with a laugh. "This little girl went on a trip with her sister, knowing she had no money. She had no money! But, 'My sister's gonna take care of it.' I'm like, 'You just knew she would,' and it bothered me, so I checked her. And I got her to understand, ‘Your sister loves you, but this could be all over real quick.’"
As for mediating the beef between Buck Lanford and a certain handsome feature reporter, Ice-T says he’s up to the challenge.
"I'll mediate it over the phone! We have a mediation app that's coming, so we'll be promoting that over the show. So, I have no problem getting in between two people that's fighting, because I'm not fighting!"
You can catch "The Mediator with Ice-T" weekdays at 12:30 a.m. on FOX 5 Atlanta -- and you can follow the show on Instagram and Twitter.
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