Exclusive: LL Cool J on new album The FORCE: ‘We don’t have to bow out’

By William E. Ketchum III ✓ Link copied to clipboard! To get an idea of how far back LL Cool J’s contributions to hip-hop go, take a close listen to his recollection of a conversation with Q-Tip that became the genesis of his new album The FORCE. Q-Tip is one-fourth of the revered rap group A Tribe Called Quest; their penchant for meshing jazz samples with thoughtful, Afrocentric lyricism made them one of the most original acts of the 1990s. Tribe is widely acknowledged as a noted predecessor to superstars including Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, Ms. Lauryn Hill and others. For most millennials and younger, Q-Tip would be as much of a forefather as hip-hop has to offer. But when LL Cool J reached out to work with him, that emeritus status took on a different tone. “I called Q-Tip and he answered on the first ring. He’s like, ‘hat up, big bro?!'” LL remembers. He recalls the talk excitedly while speaking to Newsweek on a Friday morning Zoom call. It may seem like an indistinct epithet, but it’s a powerful one: it’s a tone of reverence. LL Cool J is an elder sibling to innumerable artists who surfaced in...