Not Watered-Down : Still relevant in a genre unkind to many veterans, Ice Cube believes in rap’s enduring ability to communicate.

For an artist being questioned during an interview about his relevance in a music field that he helped popularize and revolutionize a decade ago, rapper Ice Cube seems amazingly indifferent.

After coming under fire during every phase of his controversial career, the rapper has learned how to face skeptical journalists asking whether he still matters. Nothing seems to faze him. He’s got too much going his way to worry about naysayers.

“I’m not really concerned with hoopla, especially in the music business,” said Ice Cube, 29. “I’m not concerned about rap fans and what they want. I’m really concerned with Ice Cube fans. I’ve been in this game too long to worry about what this hard-core [person] over here thinks, because it doesn’t matter. You either like Ice Cube or you don’t.”

For the most part, the rap world has adored Ice Cube, starting with his days in the late ‘80s with the seminal gangsta rap group N.W.A. and through his controversial and socially explosive solo recordings and his various film projects, including “Boyz N the Hood,” “Friday” and “The Players Club.”

Together, all these accomplishments have made him one of the most recognizable and influential figures in hip-hop. But this long resume has also made him a target in a field that thrives on new stars and personalities. Even such hugely respected late-’80s figures as Public Enemy have lost most of their early fan base.

Will it be any different next week when Ice Cube releases “War & Peace Vol. 1 (The War Disc),” his first solo album of new material in five years?

The early indications are that Ice Cube may have reason to be relaxed in the face of this challenge.

“Pushin’ Weight,” the lead single from the album, just spent two weeks as the country’s No. 1 rap single, creating interest in the album among old and new fans.

The single is remarkable for the way it combines classic Ice Cube musical elements, including his street-slanted raps and a pulsating beat, with the lighter, hook-minded strains that dominate today’s hip-hop consciousness.

“Based on the buzz and that people are asking about it, we’re expecting it to do well,” said Tony Gredonia, manager of the Wherehouse record store in Hollywood.

The album carries the aggression of his earlier works, including “AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted” and “Death Certificate,” but has more of a sense of controlled rage. The instrumentation on “War & Peace” is more dramatic, relying on eerie moodiness rather than punishing backdrops to create a confrontational, menacing atmosphere.

Lyrically, Ice Cube, who was born O’Shea Jackson and who lives in Encino with his wife and their three children, remains one of the few rappers to consistently and articulately examine difficult social situations. “Ghetto Vet,” a track from the album, paints a painful picture of the life of a paralyzed former gang member, while “3 Strikes You In” discusses California’s controversial three strikes law.

For Ice Cube, rap continues to be something of a social crusade--a musical style that not only reaches but in some ways also speaks for millions of young African Americans.

“How often do you see a brother on TV saying what he feels?” he asked. “If you aren’t hearing it on a rap song or if they’re interviewing some rapper, [you don’t hear it]. Athletes don’t do it, and even people that we do have in the media don’t do it. [Rap is] the only way we can get these issues discussed.”

Though “War & Peace” is his first solo album since 1993’s “Lethal Injection,” he hasn’t been devoting all his time to acting and directing films.

On the musical front, he formed the Westside Connection, a “super-group” with rappers WC and Mack 10 whose debut album, “Bow Down,” sold more than 1.5 million copies in 1996. He also launched his Heavyweight Records label earlier this year with the soundtrack for “The Players Club,” which sold nearly 850,000 copies.

But clearly Ice Cube is ready to refocus on his own music. It won’t be five more years before his next solo album. In fact, he’s close to finishing the second volume of “War & Peace,” which he hopes to release next summer.

In his film career, he has finished the script for “Next Friday,” the follow-up to “Friday,” which grossed more than eight times its $3.5-million budget. He’ll also be starring with George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg in “Three Kings,” an action film due in theaters next year.

Ice Cube shrugged off any notion that he may be spreading himself too thin.

“Nobody got me here, so can’t nobody tear me down but me,” he said. “It’s all decision-making, planning and trying to make sure everything stays afloat. I just keep on hustling.”