LL COOL J Challenges Hip-Hop Age Norms
LL COOL J is standing on business when it comes to fighting against ageism in Hip-Hop, aiming to redefine the genre’s boundaries.
With his latest album, The FORCE, his first in ten years, the rapper is determined to demonstrate that seasoned artists can be just as relevant in today’s music scene.
In collaboration with Hip-Hop stalwart Q-Tip, LL COOL J said he believes he has hit the mark with this project.
“When I told people, ‘Yo, I wanna do a culturally relevant album’ in the middle of all these younger artists, people looked at me like I had nine heads,” LL COOL J told Billboard. “They looked at me like I was a hydra – a hydra! – looking at me crazy like that, not because they had any ill will, but just ‘How can you do that?’”
Comparing his achievement to breaking the four-minute mile, LL COOL J explained how defying expectations can pave the way for others.
“Nobody thought it could be broken until Roger Bannister did it, and then a lot of people started breaking it,” he said, explaining his ambition to challenge the status quo within Hip-Hop.
With “The FORCE,” LL COOL J aims to inspire others to believe that longevity in Hip-Hop is attainable. “Now you’ll see, when “The FORCE” has success, you’ll see people believing that they can make it happen, and it’s gonna extend the life of Hip-Hop in general,” he explained.
He believes that his endeavors, such as the Rock the Bells festival, are crucial for demonstrating the cultural relevance of veteran artists.
“But if somebody doesn’t do it, if I don’t do Rock the Bells and festivals and show that guys without records in the marketplace still can be relevant, and if I don’t tell you that a guy who’s been out for a long time can make a new record and be relevant – if nobody does it, it never happens,” LL COOL J stated.