In an unexpected development, Ice-T is transitioning into a new role behind the camera for Fame and Fentanyl, a two-hour special on A&E set to air on August 25 at 9 P.M. ET. The program highlights the lethal impact of fentanyl across the United States and its ongoing cost to human life, including the tragic losses of Prince, Mac Miller, and Coolio.
The revered figure in hip-hop serves as both the host and executive producer of the documentary. The narrative intertwines distressing accounts from bereaved families, law enforcement personnel, and the music industry’s most heart-rending fatalities.
The objective of the project is to reveal the magnitude of the devastation caused by fentanyl and to educate viewers about its deadly presence in the drug market.
“Fentanyl, for me, came out of nowhere. By the time I learned about the drug, I had already lost people to it. It’s a poison in the drug world, and I wanted to do everything that I could to make people aware of its danger,” Ice-T revealed in a statement regarding the project. “Everyone knows someone who has fallen victim to fentanyl.”
The documentary premieres at a time when the U.S. is experiencing a significant reduction in deaths due to overdose.
As reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug-related fatalities decreased from 110,037 in 2023 to 80,391 in 2024—a 27% reduction. It is speculated by fans that opioid overdoses, including those involving fentanyl, fell from 83,140 to 54,743 during the same period. However, fentanyl remains the primary cause of overdose deaths, constituting nearly 70% of all drug-related fatalities.
“These are the stories that everyone needs to hear,” Ice-T further commented.
The documentary features the tragic deaths of artists who inadvertently consumed substances contaminated with fentanyl. Prince succumbed in 2016 after ingesting counterfeit painkillers containing the synthetic opioid.
Mac Miller died in 2018 due to a lethal combination of fentanyl, cocaine, and alcohol.
Coolio, famed for “Gangsta’s Paradise,” passed away in 2022 with fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine in his system.
The tragic list extends to Rich Homie Quan, who died in 2024 from a mixture of fentanyl, codeine, alprazolam, and promethazine.
The documentary explores the fact that fentanyl is often unknowingly consumed as it is frequently mixed with other substances.
Data from the Drug Enforcement Administration reveals that in 2024, 5 out of every 10 pills tested contained a potentially lethal dose of fentanyl, a decrease from 7 out of 10 the previous year.
The CDC has also noted that overdose rates continue to be disproportionately high among Black, Hispanic, American Indian, and multiracial populations, with the highest death rates observed among adults over 55.
