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LL Cool J is a popular American rapper, singer, actor and record producer. LL Cool J is known as one of the leading exponents of new-school rap of the mid-’80s and one of the few hip-hop stars of his era to maintain a successful recording career for over a decade.
Early life
About him January 14, 1968, in Bay Shore, Islip, New York, United States of America, LL Cool J was born. His birth name is James Todd Smith and he holds American nationality. As of 2022, he is 54 years and believes in the Christian religion.
Likewise, he belongs to the African American ethnicity and has the birth sign of Capricorn. He is the son of James Smith (father) and Ondrea (mother). He often shared that he had very disturbed childhood days and, at the age of four, witnessed his father shoot his mother and grandfather, which led to his parents’ separation. he.
Additionally, her mother was in a relationship with a physiotherapist named ‘Roscoe’. In her autobiography she accused Roscoe of abusing him physically and psychologically. But Roscoe has denied all allegations.
Subtitle: LL Cool J with his mother (Source: YouTube)
Education
Looking ahead to his educational career, he completed his early education at Hillcrest High School (Queens). Later, she enrolled at Northeastern University, but abandoned her studies to pursue a musical career.
Career
From the age of 10, LL Cool J became a rapper. His mother and his grandfather were also very supportive of his musical passion. In 1984, when he was 16 years old, he met Rick Rubin, a student at New York University.
LL Cool J’s music impressed Rubin and the two created a single, “I Need a Beat.” The duo sent the single to artist manager Russell Simmons, who also liked it. Rubin and Simmons founded a record company: ‘Def Jam Recordings’.
His record company released LL Cool J’s first song, ‘I Need a Beat’, which sold over 100,000 copies. Due to his success, he released his next album, ‘Radio’, in the year 1985, which garnered positive reviews for its powerful lyrics and sold over 1.5 million copies.
In 1987, he released his next album, ‘Bigger and Deffer’, and it was a huge success. It includes songs such as ‘I’m Bad’, ‘I Need Love’ and ‘Bristol Hotel’. This album also reached #1 on the Billboard R&B charts, spending 11 weeks on it and selling over 3 million copies in the process.
Furthermore, their third album, ‘Walking with a Panther’, was released in 1989. Although the album was a commercial success, fans did not like the presence of so many ‘soft’ songs on the album.
In response to fans’ criticism, she released her fourth studio album ‘Mama Said Knock You Out’ in 1990. This album had hard-hitting themes, had a lot of energy and is one of her biggest hits to date, and it sold the most. 2.7 million copies.
Other albums and songs
He established his music label called ‘POG’, or ‘Power Of God’ in the year 1993. Furthermore, he formed the music production company ‘Rock The Bells’ which worked with artists like ‘Amyth’, ‘Smokeman’, ‘Natice,’ etc.
In 1995 he released his sixth studio album, ‘Mr. Smith’, with the song ‘Hey Lover’, sold more than 2 million copies. He released the album ‘All World: Greatest Hits’, a collection of his best songs so far in 1996.
Similarly, he released his eighth studio album ‘GOAT’ in 2000, which debuted at number one on the Billboard album charts. Later, she released her next album, ’10’, in 2002, which was her ninth studio album (tenth overall, including her greatest hits compilation, All World).
He made his last album with ‘Def Jam Recordings’ called ‘Exit 13′ (2008), which featured a host of other artists, such as ’50 Cent’, ‘Sheek Louch’, ‘Fat Joe’, ‘Ryan Leslie’, etc
Subtitle: LL Cool J performing in concert (Source: Rolling Stone)
After the breakup of ‘Def Jam Recordings’, he founded a record label called; ‘Boomdizzl’ in 2008. In October 2012, he released a new single from Authentic Hip-Hop called ‘Ratchet’. Later, she released her second single ‘Take It’, a collaboration with Joe and producers Trackmasters.
Subsequently, he released his thirteenth studio album, ‘Authentic’, in April 2013. Additionally, he announced his retirement on social media in March 2016. He re-signed with Def Jam for future album releases in September 2019.
Recently, he canceled his performance at Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest 2022 after testing positive for COVID-19. Additionally, he hosted the 2022 iHeartRadio Music Awards on March 22, 2022.
Interim
Apart from his musical career, he is a well-known actor. He made his first appearance as a rapper in the movie Krush Groove. Halloween H20, In Too Deep, Any Given Sunday, Deep Blue Sea, SWAT, Mindhunters, Last Holiday and Edison are some of his other film appearances.
He currently plays NCIS Special Agent Sam Hanna on the CBS crime drama television series NCIS: Los Angeles. Additionally, he was also the host of Lip Sync Battle on Paramount Network.
Awards
Caption: LL Cool J showing off his Grammy award (Source: GRAMMY.com)
As a singer and actor, he has collected several awards throughout his career. He has won two Grammy Awards, two MTV Video Music Awards, four NAACP Image Awards and three Soul Train Music Awards.
Additionally, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2016. He earned an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from Northeastern University for his contributions to hip-hop culture. As an actor, he has been able to win three NAACP Image Awards (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014), Blockbuster Entertainment Awards (2000) and Teen Choice Awards (2013).
LL Cool J – Net worth 2023
As an American hip-hop artist with several hit albums, he has earned a huge sum of money in his career. As of 2022, her net worth is estimated to be around $120 million and her salary and income are still missing.
civil status
Talking about his relationship status, LL Cool J married his wife Simone Smith in 1995. The couple met in 1987 and have four children whose names are Najee Laurent Todd Eugene, Samaria Leah Wisdom, Nina Simone and Italia Anita Maria Smith .
Caption: LL Cool J with his wife (Source: Hollywood Life)
He has his charitable foundation called ‘Jump & Ball’, which is based in his hometown of Queens, New York, and offers a sports and team-building program for youth. Additionally, he is involved in many charitable causes of literacy, music and art programs for children and schools.
LL Cool J – Body Measurements
Talking about his body statistics, LL Cool J stands 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighs around 96 kg. Furthermore, he has black eyes with black hair and his body measurement measures 42-16-32 inches. Likewise, he wears a shoe size of 11 US.
Social media
On his Instagram page ‘@llcoolj’ he has 3 million followers. Likewise, he has more than 7.2 million followers on his Facebook page and more than 5 million followers on his Twitter page ‘@llcoolj’. Likewise, there are more than 628,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel named after him.
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Categories: Biography
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