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LL Cool J

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LL Cool J <tr style="text-align: center;"><td colspan="3">Image:Lcj.JPG
LL Cool J wearing the Queens Fitted
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Background information

<tr><td>Birth name</td><td colspan="2">James Todd Smith</td></tr><tr><td>Also known as</td><td colspan="2">LL, Cool James, Uncle L, Mr. Smith, Big L'y, Future of the Funk</td></tr><tr><td>Born</td><td colspan="2">January 14, 1968</td></tr><tr><td>Origin</td><td colspan="2">St Albans, Queens, New York City, New York, United States</td></tr><tr><td>Genre(s)</td><td colspan="2">Hip Hop</td></tr><tr><td>Occupation(s)</td><td colspan="2">Entertaining</td></tr><tr><td>Instrument(s)</td><td colspan="2">Vocals</td></tr><tr><td>Years active</td><td colspan="2">1984</td></tr><tr><td style="padding-right: 1em;">Label(s)</td><td colspan="2">Def Jam Recordings</td></tr><tr><td>Website</td><td colspan="2">LL Cool J's MySpace Page</td></tr>

James Todd Smith III (born January 14, 1968), better known as LL Cool J, is an American hip hop artist and actor. He is best known for romantic ballads like "I Need Love" as well as hardcore rap like "I Can't Live Without My Radio", "I'm Bad", "Boomin' System", & "Mama Said Knock You Out". He has also appeared in several films. He is seen as a sex symbol and a ladies' man, due to his "flirtatious" lip-licking and his muscular body. LL Cool J represents an important figure within the hip hop community, and is one of a few hip-hop stars of his era to sustain a successful recording career for more than two decades. He has released 11 albums and a greatest hits album so far, with the much anticipated Todd Smith Pt. 2 to be released in late 2006. The album will be the last on LL's record deal with Def Jam, a deal which has lasted more than twenty years.

Contents

[edit] Early years

Born in the St. Albans neighborhood of Queens in New York City, James Todd Smith grew up in the working-class neighborhood as the only child of James Smith, Jr. and Ondrea Smith. Todd, as he would be known, sang in the church choir and was in the Boy Scouts.

Unfortunately, LL's parents had a troublesome, often violent, relationship. As a result, his mother left his father when LL was four and they moved in with her parents in St. Albans. The relationship turned bloody, when late one night in 1972, his father shot his mother after she returned home from work. According to LL Cool J, who recounted the event in the song "Father" from his Phenomenon album, the elder James was seeking revenge after being abandoned by his family. LL's father shot his mother as she ran into her parents' house for safety. She was hit in the legs and back. LL's grandfather was also shot in the stomach. Both survived the attack.

LL's mother later began dating a man who would also bring much pain into the young rapper's life. The man, who LL named Roscoe in his autobiography, would routinely beat him, often while his mother was at work. These beatings had a profound effect on young LL. He stated that around this time he began compulsively wearing hats.

LL found that hip hop music and rapping were ways of escaping his problems. He grew up in a musical family; his grandfather played tenor sax, his mother played accordion and his grandmother, Ellen Griffith, sang in the choir. By age 11, LL was rapping. By age 12 he'd made his first studio recording.

[edit] Music Career

[edit] Building Def Jam

The album cover to LL's debut, Radio.
LL Cool J, an acronym for Ladies Love Cool James, has admitted that he would buy hip hop records to get the label's address so he could send his demo tapes. He then sent a tape to Def Jam. Ad Rock of the Beastie Boys found his tape while hanging out in Rick Rubin's dorm room and convinced Rick & Russell Simmons to sign LL Cool J. He was signed to Def Jam in 1984 and released the underground hit "I Need a Beat" (see 1984 in music). The song was the first hit record for Def Jam, and its success persuaded him to drop out of school to record Radio (1985 in music).

The album was released to critical acclaim, as LL Cool J was one of the first rappers to use conventional song structure to make pop-oriented rap. "I Can't Live Without My Radio" and "Rock the Bells" were successful and helped the album go platinum. In 1987, he released Bigger and Deffer. The ballad "I Need Love" was one of the first pop-rap songs to be a hit. Critics generally denounced this direction, and by the release of Walking With a Panther (1989), he was booed at a Harlem rally for slain teenager Yusef Hawkins.

[edit] "Don't call it a comeback"

Around the late 1980s, hip-hop began experiencing a shift in consciousness away from the music's early themes of partying and braggadocio, to more socially aware issues such as drug abuse, race and racism, and economic empowerment. LL Cool J, as a result, experienced a drop in popularity due to the view that his music was behind the times and materialistic.

Following this, LL released Mama Said Knock You Out, generally leaning towards a tough street image. The record re-established his reputation in the hip hop community. It spawned three hit singles, "The Boomin' System," "Around the Way Girl," and the title track, which received special notice after LL Cool J's dynamic performance of it during an episode of MTV Unplugged. It was also featured in the film "The Hard Way." The album included themes of police misconduct, spirituality along with back-to-basics hip-hop party rocking. Mama Said... eventually went on to sell over 2 million copies. It marked the first of many self-reinventions LL Cool J would undergo to adapt to hip-hop's often changing atmosphere.

After acting in The Hard Way and Toys, he released 14 Shots To The Dome (1993) to muted sales and mixed reviews, despite producing the small hit "Back Seat of My Jeep." He starred in In the House, an NBC sitcom, before releasing Mr. Smith (1995), which went on to sell over 2 million copies. Its singles, "Doin' It" and "Loungin", were two of the biggest songs in 1996 and both songs' music videos were hugely successful on MTV. Another of the album's singles, "Hey Lover," featured Boyz II Men sampling Michael Jackson's "Lady of my Life," which eventually became one the first rap music videos to air on American VH1. The song also earned LL a Grammy.

In 1996, LL also helped to launch a clothing line named FUBU; the name is an acronym for "For Us, By Us", meaning that the clothes were made for and marketed to black people by other black people. Around this time he became partially involved in the East Coast-West Coast hip hop rivalry when 2Pac dissed him, apparently in response to LL Cool J's "I Shot Ya" and its remix, both of which were featured on his "Mr. Smith" album. Neither of the songs however mention 2Pac or the simmering East Coast/West Coast conflict.

[edit] Life after "Mr. Smith"

After the double platinum status of "Mr. Smith", LL's albums have not been able to regain the same levels of success. In 1997, he released the album Phenomenon. The first single, "Phenomenon" was a minor hit but the autobiographical single "Father" was a major hit.

The second single from Phenomenon was "4,3,2,1" which featured Method Man, Redman, DMX and Canibus. In the original version of the song, Canibus rapped "Yo L, is that a mic on your arm? Lemme borrow that", referring to LL's tattoo of a microphone. LL heard the verse and responded to it with his own verse. This essentially created a battle between two emcees in the same song. In an attempt to calm tension, LL later called Canibus to say he saw the line as disrespect, and asked him to change it, to which Canibus complied. LL did not remove his verse, believing that with Canibus' verse gone no one would know who he was referring to in his verse. However, the original version of the song was leaked to the public. This would set up a rivalry. Canibus released his single "Second Round K.O.", containing lyrics dissing LL, who later responded with "Ripper Strikes Back". In this song he not only dissed Wyclef, Canibus' producer, but went on to berate ex-friend Mike Tyson for appearing on "Second Round K.O.". LL did another less powerful diss, with "Back Where I Belong". Canibus replied to both tracks with his "Rip The Jacker" where he used LL's "Im Bad" backing track.

In 2000, he released the album G.O.A.T., which stood for "Greatest of All Time." The critically acclaimed album debuted at Number One on the Billboard 200, giving him his first chart-topper on that chart. Nonetheless, the album failed to produce the numbers of LL's previous releases.

LL Cool J's next album 10 from 2002, which denoted LL's 10th studio album, did not fare much better than his 9th. Although it included the popular singles "Paradise" (featuring Amerie), "Luv U Better," and the hit 2003 Jennifer Lopez duet, "All I Have," the album also failed to reach platinum status. His 11th album, The DEFinition, released in 2004, saw some hits but ultimately went unheralded.

LL's latest studio album, Todd Smith, was released April 11, 2006. It includes collaborations with 112, Ginuwine, Juelz Santana, Teairra Mari and Freeway. The first single was the Jermaine Dupri produced "Control Myself", another song with singer Jennifer "J-Lo" Lopez. LL and J.Lo shot the video for "Control Myself" on January 2, 2006 at Sony Studios, New York. The second video, directed by Hype Williams, was "Freeze" featuring Lyfe Jennings.

LL is launching a clothing line (also called "Todd Smith") in Autumn 2006, which is aimed towards the higher end of the market whilst a less expensive range will be released called "T.S". Consultancy work by Dolce & Gabbana and Marks & Spencer is an influence on the designs. LL partnered with fashion executives, Ronald and William Gallo to form a company called Standard Fashion, where Ronald & Smith are both co-managing directors. The aim of marketing for the clothes line is to be oriented towards the clothing rather than LL Cool J. Smith had previously dabbled in fashion, having worked behind the scenes with Hip-Hop sportswear line TROOP and, as mentioned earlier, he helped launch the Hip-Hop fashion line FUBU in the 1990s.

LL and with his personal trainer, Dave "Scooter" Honig are currently working on a book called "LL Cool J's Platinum Body" which will give people detailed information on how and what LL does physically in terms of his diet, workout, philosophy and ideology. The book is to be published by Rodale Press and scheduled to be released in January 2007.

In July 2006, LL announced details about his final album with Def Jam recordings, the only label he has ever been signed to. The album is tentatively titled Todd Smith Pt. 2: Back to Cool. The album will reportedly be executively produced by fellow Queens rapper 50 Cent. The duo have worked together previously on the remix to the single "Freeze" from the Todd Smith LP, which was titled "Bump This". Todd Smith, Part 2 has been slated for a fall 2006 release. It will be LL's final Def Jam Album, and he's rumored to sign with Columbia Records.[1]

[edit] Acting Career

LL has had his share of acting roles and cameos in various television shows and movies. One of his first roles was as Captain Patrick Zevo, the militant cousin of Robin Williams in the cult classic Toys.

For 5 seasons, LL played the role of Marion Hill in the NBC and UPN sitcom "In the House". They originally centered around the interaction between Marion and Jackie Warren (Debbie Allen), but with the introduction of new characters the show turned to the story behind his sport clinic. The show received rave reviews for its depiction of African-American males (Marion was a vegetarian, meditated, and rarely swore).

LL was also a guest host on Madtv.

He also played a running back alongside Cameron Diaz and Al Pacino in Any Given Sunday.

[edit] Trademarks

  • LL is rarely seen without a hat.
  • His infamous lip-licking, although seen as flirtatious, is actually a nervous habit he picked up when he was younger.
  • He is also known for his infectious laugh, which can be heard at the end of his song "I'm The Type of Guy".

[edit] Honors and Dedications

[edit] Trivia

In order to meet Wikipedia's quality standards, this article's trivia section requires cleanup.
Content in the trivia section should be integrated into other appropriate areas of the article.
  • In Sheila E's video for "Love Bizarre", the name "LL Kool J" can be seen on the wall to the right of Shelia.
  • LL Cool J surprised Pawtucket, Rhode Island students when he showed up at Shea High School unannounced. He met with students and signed autographs.[citation needed]
  • Was named the 10th greatest hip hop MC of all time by MTV.
  • Was the first rap artist on MTV Unplugged series
  • LL Cool J's grandfather who he always refers to as one of the more influential people in his life had migrated to the United States from the island of Barbados.
  • He was a paperboy before his rap career.[2]
  • LL has been seen at Republican Party fundraisers and was a supporter of New York governor George Pataki in the past.
  • Has had rivalry with MC Shan, Ice-T, MC Hammer, Kool Moe Dee, Wyclef Jean, Jamie Foxx & Canibus. He has also shown his disapproval of Mike Tyson and Naomi Campbell in his songs, "The Ripper Strikes Back" and "Rasta Imposta" respectively. His rivalry with Ice-T has presumebly ended as they both appeared at Vh1 Hip Hop Honors both had individual live acts, and both were seen enjoying each others performances.
  • LL has lyrically battled Jay-Z and Jaz-O whilst at an industrial party early on in his career.
  • LL Cool J is the author of two books, with the children-oriented book called “And The Winner Is...” and his autobiography co-written with Karen Hunter, “I Make My Own Rules”.
  • LL is also a producer, producing tracks for himself and for other artists such as MC Lyte.
  • LL writes for other rappers, for example, Run DMC's hit "Can You Rock It Like This"
  • LL performed with the Red Hot Chili Peppers for the song "I Make My Own Rules" for the Private Parts soundtrack, but his name was not credited due to Def Jam threatening legal action if Warner Bros. had placed his name in the credits. LL said, "It was something that I wanted to do because I think that as an artist I should explore all different avenues of music, and I think that [Def Jam] was afraid that me doing a rock record might tamper with [the image I have] from some of the other music like 'Hey Lover' and 'Doin' It'."
  • In the early 1990s, one of LL's earliest acting gigs was a guest appearance as the teacher Mr. Throneberry on the cult Nickelodeon children's series The Adventures Of Pete & Pete.
  • LL was originally in the film Rugrats Go Wild! as the voice of a Piki doll, but his character was cut from the film.
  • Bruce Lee is LL's inspiration and influence for doing movies. LL has said, "The person that made me want to make movies, and the reason I do films, is Bruce Lee. He was an incredible actor, and he had a lot of charisma. Handsome, action, you know, everything was there. I love Bruce Lee." [3]
  • LL was turned down from Tommy Boy Records and Sugar Hill Records before being signed to Def Jam.
  • Started his own music label in 1993 called P.O.G. (Power Of God).
  • Formed company Rock The Bells to produce music.
  • Once dated Kidada Jones (daughter of Quincy Jones).
  • ABC hired him for its pregame music during its coverage of the 2003 NBA Finals.
  • Bob Dylan has admitted to being a fan of LL, playing a track by LL on his radio show.
  • Fat Joe cited LL as his favourite rapper and main inspiration in his appearance on MTV's Cribs.
  • Former Def Jam CEO Lyor Cohen has cited LL Cool J as his favorite rapper; in an edition of the hip-hop magazine XXL, Cohen stated "All you other fly guys, holler at me when you're twenty albums deep, then maybe I'll have a little drink with you."
  • LL Cool J was seen at the VMA's with 50 Cent and announced he's working with him.

[edit] Aliases

  • James Todd Smith (Birthname)
  • Future of the Funk
  • The G.O.A.T. - Greatest Of All Time
  • Jack the Ripper
  • John Mickens (based on the movie character John "Goldie" Mickens from the film The Mack).
  • L
  • LL Cool J (Ladies Love Cool James)
  • Mr. Smith
  • Uncle L
  • LL
  • Legend in Leather
  • Living Legend
  • Big L'y

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

[edit] Filmography

Upcoming:

[edit] Awards

MTV Video Music Awards

NAACP Image Awards

  • 2003 - Outstanding Male Artist
  • 2001 - Outstanding Hip-Hop/Rap Artist, for "G.O.A.T."
  • 1997 - Best Rap Artist, for "Mr. Smith"
  • 1996 - Best Rap Artist, for "Mr. Smith"

Grammy Awards

Soul Train Music Awards

Blockbuster Entertainment Awards

The New York Music Awards

  • 15 New York Music Awards

Soul Train Awards

  • 10 Soul Train Awards

Billboard Awards

  • 1 Billboard Awards

Rock The Vote Award

  • 1997 - "Patrick Lippert Award"

Source Awards

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