LL Cool J Reminds The World That He Opened Doors for Artists Like Drake to Rap About Love

LL Cool J reminded us why they call him ‘Big Elly’ in a recent interview. We’re still not sure if anyone has actually really called him that, but one thing that can’t be denied is his everlasting impact on Hip Hop.

“I’m very grateful, very thankful and I’m glad that it created a genre,” he recently told Complex. “I’m glad that now, years later, a Fabolous can go out and do his thing and still be very well-respected as a lyricist,” he said. “A Jadakiss can do his love song and still be well-respected as a lyricist.”

“I put that love [and] female [based] vibe in there that gives dudes, like, you know, these guys a lane,” he continued. “People compare me to Drake all the time, but we’re very different artists because I have a lot of hard records and I’m very diverse. But in that aspect of my career, it paved the way for guys like that…who I’m happy for. I like a lot of his music too.”

LL Cool J told no lies here. His stage name stands for Ladies Love Cool James and he caught a lot of heat for making songs like “I Need Love” and “Hey Lover” while Gangsta Rap was on the rise.

Check out the full interview below: