LL COOL J RAPPER TURNED ACTOR!

LL Cool J has come a long way from his days growing up as James Todd Smith in St. Albans and Bay Shore.

After meeting producer Rick Rubin at the age of 16, LL Cool J, which stands for Ladies Love Cool James, became a world-renowned MC with songs like “Mama Said Knock You Out” and “I Need Love.” Not satisfied with the success of his music, the behatted hip-hop artist then launched a writing and an acting career that featured four books and roles in the movies “Deep Blue Sea,” “Any Given Sunday” and “S.W.A.T.”

He stars in the popular CBS show “NCIS: Los Angeles” and will serve as host of the Grammy Awards on Feb. 12.

On doing his own stunts : “Yeah, I do most of them. You know, if a horse or a mule needs to kick me in the head I’ll use a stuntman. Let him go into a coma but I try to do the majority of my stunts because I want people to know that I’m invested in the character and I want to give them the real experience, you know. I wouldn’t have a stunt person on the stage rapping for me, you know what I’m saying? ‘Yo, go on tour for me. You look like me!’ So, I’d rather do my stunts when I can.” (DailyActor.com)

On getting his start : “Rick Rubin gave me my break. I went down to his dorm at NYU and met with Russell [Simmons], let them hear my demo. And they formed Def Jam and put my first record out.” (Vanity Fair)

On reconciling his rap lyrics with having a daughter: “You know, I’m not a bad person. It’s just that I made this record, and the record maybe has some intense energy on it. But it’s not like I’m being a bad human being. I’m like a writer who just had sex with his wife three times that night, then has to get up and focus on writing a children’s story, when his mind is totally somewhere else. But I don’t know how to deal with that yet. I’m still trying to figure it out.” (NYRock.com)

On returning to New York : “Every now and then on the weekends, I’ll shoot back. I do come home. I relax and enjoy my time on Long Island. There’s nothing like being on the East Coast and New York. That’s home for me. I get off the plane and I feel great.” (Long Island Pulse)

On why good music comes from Queens : “I think that Queens is kind of a place where it’s slightly more middle class and people just had time to really focus on the music maybe? But I don’t know, man. I don’t think it’s nothin’ in the water! I just think that you had a lotta people who saw a lot of other people can do it and it motivated them to do it. When I’m a little kid and I see Run-DMC ride by in their cars, that motivates me. Then when kids see LL ride by in his cars, that motivates the rest of the guys, and then when they see Tribe ride by that motivates someone else, and then 50 sees them ride by ... it’s a thing where a lotta people were just inspired.” (Unkut.com)

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