Ice-T Loves Bangkok's Bootlegs

Rap veteran Ice-T has a particular fondness for Bangkok - because he can buy hordes of bootleg merchandise in the Thai capital.

The hip-hop star, real name TRACY MARROW, made his first visit to the Asian city early on in his career, and he's since become a huge fan, after picking up bundles of street bargains.

He says, "I like Bangkok... But if you're going over there for prostitution you gotta be a hard-up cat 'cause them chicks look read bad!

"I like it 'cause you can buy a lot of bootleg stuff. I'm into bootleg. Anything that's cheaper than what the designers are trying to get for it: clothes, bootleg DVDs, bootleg anything. Knock it off and I'm buying it. I love it!"

Ice-T, who plays a policeman in the popular series LAW + ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT, is particularly proud of his bootleg Giorgio Armani jeans.

He adds, "These cost $20, Giorgio's cost $120, so the only difference is I still got $100 in my pocket!"