I love LL Cool J. Simply put. He is a legend, an icon, a forefather of the game and is as vital to hip-hop's dominance as air is to our body.
The guy is the living embodiment of hip hop - testosteroned flow, hard beats, relevant fashions, braggadocio...you name it, Uncle L has been there and done that. Dude has remained relevant for almost 27 years, a feat that none of his contemporaries can actually say. (Busta should also be considered the GOAT,too, but that is another blog) I have a great respect for James Todd Smith, but I also hold great sadness in my heart. Like Ali, the other "GOAT", he has made one too many albums and it may be time to go.
I will go on the record to say that Uncle L hasn't made a complete...hear me out now...a COMPLETE album full of bangers since Mr. Smith. The last few albums felt like bullshi*...rushed out in between the movies, sitcoms, product placement deals and etc. I had to come to grips that the LL Cool J that I loved and "crushed you like a jellybean" is no longer here... this LL is a grown man, father, businessman and actor. Exit 13, where he claims is his best album to date simply isn't.... Exit 13 can't touch "Mama Said Knock You Out."
LL has to come to grips that he A) needs help with the songs he creates now, B) simply make singles or C) call it a day and help his son Najee become the second coming - if he chooses to do so. And contrary to what we want to believe, the relevancy of LL currently is due to the movies, the abs and the lip licking. 98% of his fans DO wear high heels. LL needs a mastermind behind his album...like Marley Marl or dare I say it, Puff.
Am I saying that I won't shake my a** to "Baby", "Headsprung" or "Imagine That?" Of course not. If it's dope, I am copping it and banging it in my system and I-pod. But the days of me copping a full length LL album are long gone. Can-I-bis exposed chinks inthe armor when he gave him the "2nd Round Knockout."
That's why I think he should let it go. Release a few mixtapes if the music jones is pestering you, but i am tired of these albums where he drops one to two hot singles then leaves us unsatisfied. If his last albums were sexual prowess, most women would deem him a "preemie" or "one minute man." One.... Cap-D
I will go on the record to say that Uncle L hasn't made a complete...hear me out now...a COMPLETE album full of bangers since Mr. Smith. The last few albums felt like bullshi*...rushed out in between the movies, sitcoms, product placement deals and etc. I had to come to grips that the LL Cool J that I loved and "crushed you like a jellybean" is no longer here... this LL is a grown man, father, businessman and actor. Exit 13, where he claims is his best album to date simply isn't.... Exit 13 can't touch "Mama Said Knock You Out."
LL has to come to grips that he A) needs help with the songs he creates now, B) simply make singles or C) call it a day and help his son Najee become the second coming - if he chooses to do so. And contrary to what we want to believe, the relevancy of LL currently is due to the movies, the abs and the lip licking. 98% of his fans DO wear high heels. LL needs a mastermind behind his album...like Marley Marl or dare I say it, Puff.
Am I saying that I won't shake my a** to "Baby", "Headsprung" or "Imagine That?" Of course not. If it's dope, I am copping it and banging it in my system and I-pod. But the days of me copping a full length LL album are long gone. Can-I-bis exposed chinks inthe armor when he gave him the "2nd Round Knockout."
That's why I think he should let it go. Release a few mixtapes if the music jones is pestering you, but i am tired of these albums where he drops one to two hot singles then leaves us unsatisfied. If his last albums were sexual prowess, most women would deem him a "preemie" or "one minute man." One.... Cap-D
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2 comments:
ooooooooo, NOT a "preemie!" haha. dang--hate to admit, but you are right about the FULL album, or lack there of...
however, as artists--i aint mad at him for continuing to do music and still remaining to be SOMEWHAT relevant. yes, heavy "lab collabs" and evolution needs to take place on the musical tip fa'sho. but you know what....his clothing line at Sears (for girls) is bangin! hahah--my cuz loss all of her gear (hurrican ike) while attending univ. of texas-galveston...and my church raised money and bought her some clothes, went to Sears and got her some cute stuff from his line! kudos for the hustle unc'! hahahT
I "grew up" with LL. I remember being 13, in 8th grade, and buying his first album, RADIO, after school, and then walking home with my friend where we played the whole thing, & loved it. He was the man.
The thing about him, was that he was the first rapper who really seemed like he was one of "us." Sure, we loved Run-DMC, Whodini, Fat Boys, Kurtis Blow, etc., but they were all grown men. LL was only a few years older than us. So that's what we related to the most.
It was weird for me to see his video for "Hush," knowing that his son was co-starring in it. It was hard to accept the idea that LL now has a son who is older than I was when I bought LL's first album. It's like, dang, I've gotten old!
In any case, I mostly agree with your blog. The only thing I disagree with is that I don't think he's had a complete album sense MAMA SAID KNOCK YOU OUT. That was the last one that I could listen to all the way through without skipping. Since then, there's been 3-4 good songs, and a bunch of filler on each album.
I had high hopes for EXIT 13, because it sounded like he was really trying to prove himself, and make a statement with his final Def Jam album, but I was really disappointed when I heard it. I wanted a return to his glory days, but this wasn't it. So, maybe it's just passed.
He's definitely one of the all-time greats, but it's time for him to focus on his acting career.
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