Tweet: "You supported me and my music throughout the years.. Thank you Doug.. .. my love to your family.. #ripdougbanks". Rapper/actor LL Cool J pays tribute to longtime Chicago radio DJ Doug Banks following his death on Monday (11Apr16), aged 57. He passed away due to complications with diabetes.
Fact: LL Cool J is to be honoured with the 2,571st star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Queen Latifah and Sean 'Diddy' Combs will be part of the rapper's unveiling ceremony in front of the Hard Rock Cafe on 21 January (16).
Fact: Rapper/actor LL Cool J makes a point of taking a power nap every lunch time. Co-stars and crew members on his hit TV series NCIS: Los Angeles are required to keep the peace near his trailer to let the star sleep. He says, "I need that nap... It's like plugging in your phone."
Quote: "Me and Em have a song. He just recently let me hear his verse and it's crazy. He's chainsawing s**t. I think people are gonna be pleasantly surprised when they hear me and him on a record together. It's our first time we ever did something together. This is a record that I think people are gonna be excited (about). To miss out on this G.O.A.T. 2 album would be a travesty for hip-hop. You can't miss this s**t." Rap veteran LL Cool J has lined up a song with Eminem for his forthcoming album, G.O.A.T. 2. The 2015 project, which will mark the star's 30th year in the music industry, will also feature collaborations with T.I. and Raekwon.
Quote: "I got arrested for humping a couch. I was singing one of my songs... I Need Love... I was simulating making love to a girl - on the couch, and they just felt, like, you know, they didn't need a black man humping a couch in Georgia... Something about it didn't seem right to them, I guess... I got caught up in the frenzy and just went at that couch... I hope it (arrest) got expunged; I haven't had any problems getting into the U.K. recently." Rapper/actor LL Cool J on his odd 1987 arrest.
Quote: "The country has gotten better in a lot of ways... I think that every life is valuable and I don't think that young black men should be getting shot for no reason... but there was a time where we couldn't even eat in the same restaurant, so things have gotten better; it's just they need to get even better - it's like going from an F to a D (grade) and now you're trying to get to a B or a C... At the end of the day we have a great country and you find that out when things like 9/11 happen." Rapper/actor LL Cool J offers up his race report card for America.
Fact: Hip-hop superstars LL Cool J and Jay Z and his wife Beyonce were among the celebrities who enjoyed a night out at the theatre on Saturday (14Jun14) as they took in one of the final performances of Denzel Washington's Broadway show A Raisin in the Sun. The new production of the Lorraine Hansberry play, which recently won three Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Play, closed on Sunday (15Jun14) after a limited 14-week run.
Fact: LL Cool J and T.I. gave the Tony Awards a rap makeover on Sunday night (08Jun14) when they joined host Hugh Jackman for a hip-hop makeover of Broadway tune The Music Man. After the performance, which was created by The Roots star Questlove, Jackman joked, "Ll just gave me my rapper name - Biggie Tap Shoes."
Quote: "The fact that there is so much controversy is proof that the conversation needed to be had... In clarifying my intent, in no way was I saying that slavery is Ok, that would be heartless. We have to remember that those things that happened to us were absolutely terrible, but you can’t let your past hold your future hostage... If me and Brad has caused the world to have a conversation about this topic then I am happy and I stand by it 1,000 per cent." LL Cool J is happy with the controversy surrounding his new Brad Paisley collaboration Accidental Racist.
Fact: Grammy Nominations Concert Live co-hosts Taylor Swift and LL Cool J stunned fans at the Nashville, Tennessee event on Wednesday night (05Dec12) when they switched genres for a burst of the country star's hit Mean. LL Cool J sang part of the song while six-time Grammy winner Swift showed off her human beatbox skills and then joked, "I'm, like, 100 per cent sure that we're not gonna be nominated for that collaboration."
Tweet: "Rip Emanuel (sic) Steward. The fights over but you won. Sleep well champ." Rapper/actor LL Cool J pays tribute to the legendary boxing trainer, who died on Thursday (25Oct12).
Fact: Rapper/actor LL Cool J surprised a group of five female diners at pricey Hollywood restaurant Mr. Chow's on Sunday (05Aug12) by secretly picking up the tab for their whole meal. The hip-hop veteran and his manager were seated at a table next to the women and he decided to pay for their food too when he got his own cheque, according to Tmz.com.
Quote: "My kids are not gonna be spoiled. We're not doing BMWs, it's not diamonds under the Christmas tree, it's not million dollar chestnuts roasting on an open bank account... Keep it simple... (I say), 'I can afford to get you a safe car that's durable, that's what you get'... I'm blue collar." Rapper LL Cool J insists he won't be lavishing expensive gifts on his kids.
Quote: "The news was devastating and we immediately had to jump in gear and try to figure out how we could be respectful and show her the love and appreciation that she deserves... We discussed it all night. A lot of people stayed up real late trying to figure something out and I hope that Whitney Houston's family and her friends... appreciate what we do." Grammy Awards host LL Cool J on the tragic news of Whitney Houston' death on the eve of music's big night. The rapper/actor is the first proper host of the Grammys in seven years.
Fact: LL Cool J will link his acting and rapping careers on TV in America on Tuesday night (15Nov11) by debuting his new Ne-YO collaboration on his hit crime-fighting series. No More will feature on Tuesday's episode of Ncis: Los Angeles as a backdrop to an emotional scene for LL Cool J's cop character Special Agent Sam Hanna.
Quote: "He goes to get dressed and it's like a cyclone hit the closet!" LL Cool J's jewellery designer wife Simone reveals her husband of 16 years' worst habit.
Quote: "Working with Michael was, like, the most amazing part of my life. I respect him so much, love him so much. He was incredible. He was amazing." LL Cool J on working with Michael Jackson.
Fact: LL Cool J and CHRIS O'DONNELL have a massive TV hit on their hands - the odd couple's cop series NCIS: Los Angeles is on in 195 countries around the globe.
Quote: "We were in his dorm room in NYU (New York University)... and you could hear toilets flushing and birds chirping and girls screaming and God knows what going on." LL Cool J on the early days of Def Jam Records, which started at producer Rick Rubin's college hall.
Fact: Rapper/actor LL Cool J flexed his big muscles on U.S. TV on Thursday (13May10) when he used each of The View co-hosts Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Sherri Shepherd and Joy Behar as weights, completing a number of reps before putting them back on their feet.
Quote: "I thought it was amazing... (she was) a living shower head." Rapper/actor LL Cool J was stunned by Pink's high-flying Grammy Awards performance on Sunday night (31Jan10). He was directly beneath the singer as she performed from a trapeze above the audience.
Quote: "I found out that our two fourth-graders, our nine year olds, are at opposing schools, and their basketball teams compete." NCIS: LOS ANGELES star LL Cool J has discovered he and co-star CHRIS O'DONNELL are rival dads.
Fact: NCIS: LOS ANGELES stars LL Cool J and CHRIS O'DONNELL share nine kids between them.
Quote: "I always apologise - and then she goes shopping!" Rapper/actor LL Cool J reveals the secret to his 14 year marriage to wife Simone.
Quote: "Words can't express the gratitude I feel right now. I'm truly thankful. I stand on the shoulders of those who came before me and I share the honour of this nomination with all those who helped me along the way." Rapper LL Cool J is ecstatic to be a contender for next year's (10) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
Fact: Producer DJ Jazzy Jeff is lending his talents to music video game DJ Hero. The Grammy winner is creating two special mixes for the computer game using songs by artists like LL Cool J, ERIC B. and Rakim and Tears For Fears.
Quote: "It feels like I'm doing the right thing. I'm not in the business of pretending to be a teenager my whole life." Hip-hop veteran LL Cool J is happy to be the father of two grown-up children.
Fact: Mariah Carey kicked off the inaugural Grammy Nominations Concert in Los Angeles on Wednesday night (03Dec08) with a little festive flavour. Wearing a mini-dress with a white trim, the pop superstar performed CHRISTMAS (BABY PLEASE COME HOME). R+B star NE-YO announced the first nominations for Best New Artist at next year's (09) Grammy Awards - THE Jonas Brothers, Adele, Duffy, LADY ANTEBELLUM and JAZMIN SULLIVAN. The Grammy Nominations Concert was hosted by LL Cool J and Taylor Swift.
Quote: "The world doesn't need another pair of $5,000 jeans. There is no pretending with me. You get what you see. I'm not going to run down a runway with an ascot on and be Mr Cool J next week just because I have a fashion line." Rapper LL Cool J is proud of the affordable fashion range he has launched with U.S. department store Sears.
Quote: "Some people think street carts are unsanitary. Don't get me wrong, the guy's gonna pull a wedgie out while he's making your hot dog, but it'll still be the best hot dog you've ever had." Rapper LL Cool J doesn't mind the sometimes unhygienic conditions of street vendors, because the food is so tasty.
Fact: Katy Perry performed Madonna's LIKE A VIRGIN and her own summer hit I KISSED A GIRL with 'house band' DJ AM and Travis Barker at the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday (07Sep08). The Ting Tings, Lupe Fiasco and LL Cool J also performed with the duo.
Fact: Katy Perry performed Madonna's LIKE A VIRGIN and her own summer hit I KISSED A GIRL with 'house band' DJ AM and Travis Barker at the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday (07Sep08). The Ting Tings, Lupe Fiasco and LL Cool J also performed with the duo.
Fact: Rapper LL Cool J has signed on as a guest judge on the upcoming season of TV designer contest PROJECT RUNWAY.
Fact: Rapper LL Cool J and Oprah Winfrey's TV doctor MEHMET OZ have teamed up to launch a new campaign aimed at getting obese teens fit. The odd couple will target overweight kids and present them with new diets and workouts as part of a new U.S. TV campaign.
Fact: Rap rivals 50 Cent and Fat Joe both make appearances on LL Cool J's new album.
Quote: "If you can't have an intelligent conversation with me you absolutely can't be around me. That's finito, man." Rapper/actor LL Cool J likes smart friends even though he dropped out of school when he was 14.
Quote: "People talk about my scar on my stomach. It's my appendix. I got my appendix taken out. What's the matter with you?" LL Cool J on rumours he had liposuction to maintain his famous abdominals.
Quote: "This is gonna be a very unusual album. I think people are gonna be pleasantly surprised. This has nothing to do with anything I've been doing for quite a while. I'm gonna give the world my feelings on the state of hip-hop." Veteran rapper LL Cool J on his new album, produced by 50 Cent.
Fact: Rapper LL Cool J has been announced as the host of the 38th NAACP Image Awards next month (MAR07). The show will be the first to be broadcast live when it airs on 2 March (07), reports AllHipHop.com.
Fact: Soccer stud David Beckham, LL Cool J and funnyman Jimmy Fallon have teamed up with American football star CHAD JOHNSON, dubbed Hanging With Chad, for a series of new NFL Network ads which will premiere during the Super Bowl telecast on Sunday (04FEB07).
Fact: LL Cool J had cribs custom-made for pal Sean Combs after hearing the rap mogul's baby twins had been born.
Fact: LL Cool J is putting the finishing pieces to a new diet and workout manual, called LL COOL J'S PLATINUM BODY. The book, which details his own fitness regime, will be released at Christmas (06).
Quote: <p>"I was really, really silly. I had 10 cars at my grandmother's house and I was still in the basement. I felt like the coolest guy in school." LL Cool J on his early success - at 16. </p>
Quote: <p>"I'd build a church... and get tickets to get on one of those shuttles that are heading into space." Rapper LL Cool J on what he would do if he was told he was dying. </p>