LL COOL J is a two-time Grammy Award-winning hip-hop icon whose trailblazing career is singular in its longevity and accolades: 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, millions of albums sold, the first rapper to receive a Kennedy Center Honor, successful actor and author, NAACP Image Award winner, co-founder/CEO of the Rock The Bells hip-hop festival and so much more. LL COOL J exploded onto the scene in the 1980s with pioneering hit singles like the rap-rock hybrid “Rock the Bells” and beatbox classics like “I Need a Beat” and “I Need Love.” The rapper’s confrontational, occasionally romantic lyricism would propel the genre to new heights on 1990’s multi-platinum Mama Said Knock You Out. Considered one of rap’s first superstars, LL COOL J has performed on sold-out tours with legends like Run-D.M.C., Janet Jackson and the Beastie Boys.