In just three years, Isis Gaston went from ringing up customers at Wendy’s and folding clothes at the Gap to holding the record for the most Billboard top-five hits in a year and starring alongside Denzel Washington in a Spike Lee film. We explore how Ice Spice softened the gritty edges of Bronx drill into global pop appeal.

This is also a cautionary tale about what happens when a carefully engineered internet persona collides with the messy realities of real-world fame, from leaked texts and tour disputes to a surreal lawsuit over custom wigs.

• Her Bronx upbringing, notes-app lyric writing, and hybrid pop-rap influences
• The Munch explosion and Drake’s cosign that changed everything
• Her record-breaking 2023 run with Nicki Minaj, Taylor Swift, and PinkPantheress
• The Y2K album’s divided critical reception and her pop-art defense of simplicity
• The escalating controversies, from the SpongeBob premiere outfit to a McDonald’s altercation