Did LL Cool J attend acting school?
Northeastern University
LL Cool J/College
Hip hop legend and actor LL Cool J never graduated from high school or college after signing with Def Jam Records as a teenager in 1984. But last week, the rapper born James Todd Smith received an honorary doctorate degree from Northeastern University.
What neighborhood is LL Cool J from?
Queens
Born and raised in Queens, New York, L.L. still lives in St. Albans, a black middle-class neighborhood, with his grandmother, Ellen Griffith. Her red brick house has been home to L.L. since he was three years old. His parents are separated.
Did LL Cool J go to Harvard?
LL Cool J is many things: hip-hop artist, actor, TV host, and, now, Ivy League grad. The Queens-bred rapper, whose real name is Todd Smith, shared the news via Instagram, posting a pic of himself raising his hand in a class at Harvard Business School.
Where did LL Cool J go to middle school?
Robert Moses Middle School
LL- Absolutely, I went to Robert Moses Middle School. That’s amazing I never meet anybody from there (laughs). MW- So from Long Island to Hollis, Queens. From your incredible rap career to the set of NCIS: Los Angeles, you’ve always been very versatile.
Which rapper graduated from Harvard?
Ja Rule can now be called a Harvard grad. Well, sort of. The platinum-selling hip-hop star, whose real name is Jeffrey Atkins, has completed his online studies at Harvard Business School.
Where was LL Cool J born and raised?
LL Cool J was born to James and Ondrea Smith in Long Island, New York, and was christened as James Todd Smith. Todd, as he was often addressed, had a very turbulent childhood and at the young age of four, he witnessed his mother and grandfather getting shot at by his own father which led to his parents’ separation.
When did LL Cool J make his first song?
Later that year, Simmons and Rubin founded their record company– ‘Def Jam Recordings’ and launched LL Cool J’s first song, ‘I Need a Beat’, which sold more than 100,000 copies. This success gave Todd confidence as he dropped out of school and started working on an album, ‘Radio’, which got released in 1985.
When did LL Cool J get inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?
In 2017, LL Cool J became the first rapper to receive the Kennedy Center Honors. In 2021, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with an award for Musical Excellence. James Todd Smith was born on January 14, 1968 in Bay Shore, New York to Ondrea Griffith (born January 19, 1946) and James Louis Smith Jr, also known as James Nunya.
When did LL Cool J retire from hip hop?
Even though his film career has taken off, he hasn’t forgotten his love of hip-hop music. In 1998, he was planning to retire from hip-hop and just concentrate on his film career, but he later decided to keep dividing his time between both fields. L.L. is not only known as one of the greatest MCs of all time, but he is also known as a great actor.