Ice-T Melts

It managed to enrage a lot of people, from small-town police officers to congressional leaders to a former National Security Council aide named Oliver North. It put actor Charlton Heston in a prominent new role as the Tipper Gore of Beverly Hills. The stormy controversy revolved around rap star Ice-T's Cop Killer, a song that, many argue, condones murder and fuels hatred of police officers. Last week the L.A. rapper, who made a foray into heavy metal on his latest album, Body Count, moved to withdraw Cop Killer from that record.

Ice-T said he made the decision on his own as a response to the growing wave of protest against the album's distributor, Warner Bros. Records, and its parent company, Time Warner. The rapper claims that Warner Bros. Records staff members had received death threats. Police groups had called for a boycott not only of the album but of all Time Warner products. Some record stores had already pulled Body Count off their shelves.

The company has ceased manufacturing the album in its current version and has asked retailers to return unsold CDs and cassettes to Warner Bros. Records for full credit. The company will reissue the album, minus the Cop Killer track, in the next few weeks. But Ice-T fans will still be able to get their hands on the single. The rapper said he'll give away old versions of Body Count at concerts. "I'll bring it back to South Central," he proclaimed, referring to L.A.'s riot-torn neighborhood.