With his loyalty to rap and ear for pop, long standing rapper LL Cool J is renowned for making hip hop accessible. 

Queens born and bred, L.L began rapping at the age of nine. The gift of a DJ system from his grandfather at the age of 11 changed the game. He began producing his own demo tapes, luckily being picked up by infant label Def Jam. Little did he know, under his new stage name acronym for Ladies Love Cool James, he would become one of the forefathers of pop rap and an international heartthrob.

His first album Radio skyrocketed himself and label into the spotlight. The single ‘I Need a Beat’ sold over 100,000 copies. L.L is now regarded as one of the first hip-hop acts to achieve mainstream success, alongside Kurtis Blow and Run-D.M.C. From releasing a total of thirteen studio albums and given he’s also an actor, TV presenter, fashion icon, and entrepreneur, it seems unlikely the world will forget the name of LL Cool J any time soon.