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How a Teenage LL Cool J Helped Turn Def Jam Into a Hip-Hop Empire

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Hip-hop wouldn’t have been the same if LL Cool J hadn’t blown up. At the peak of his powers, he was unstoppable in his ability to blend tough bravado with a soft spot for the ladies. Had he not fallen in love with the culture or felt too discouraged to keep going, we might not have seen Def Jam become the juggernaut it did in hip-hop.

In fact, LL nearly gave up his dreams before he was even able to give them his demo. At 10 years old, he started rapping, trying to emulate groups like The Treacherous Three at the time. By 16, he was recording numerous demo tapes and sending them to every label he could find the address for.

The........

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