LL Cool J Picks Def Jam Mount Rushmore, Leaves Some Notable Names Off

LL Cool J is causing a stir on Rap Twitter once again.

He was recently in the news for saying he wants to hear Andre 3000 rap instead of playing the flute. Now, during a recent appearance on Shannon Sharpe’s Club Shay Shay, he was asked to name his Mount Rushmore of Def Jam artists.

Shannon Sharpe rattled off a list of names that included Jay-Z, Kanye, LL, Rihanna, DMX, Ludacris, and Nas before teasing the legendary rapper about trying to avoid the question. However, LL pushed back and asked why Shannon didn’t mention Public Enemy. “It’s LL, it’s Public Enemy, it’s the Beastie Boys and it would have to be Slick Rick,” he retorted. “Because it’s Def Jam.” Shannon then asked, “Was Hov not at Def Jam?” to which LL answered, “Yeah, a thousand years later.” (It’s worth pointing out that the Queens rapper has had a long standing on again, off again cold war with Jay-Z.)

LL defended his choices by saying those were the acts that helped shape the influential rap label into the brand it is today. He also rightfully acknowledged that his answer would be dissected and debated on social media.

In the same clip, they talk about why he got offended by Canibus asking him to borrow the microphone that’s tatted on his right arm on his original verse from LL’s 1997 single “4,3,2,1.” When asked why he didn’t take it as a compliment, LL answered, “Not at that time. I was an egomaniac.”

LL famously made Canibus use another verse on the album version, but still sent shots at the young rapper on the same song. They then traded diss tracks. Canibus answered LL’s “4,3,2,1” verse with “Second Round K.O.” and LL returned serve with “The Ripper Strikes Back” effectively ending the battle.

While Rick Rubin had already released an EP of his punk band Hose, LL’s song “I Need a Beat” was the first official release on Def Jam that had a catalog number and the label’s now famous logo. His debut album Radio was released a year later in 1985 with the unique distinction of being the iconic label’s first full-length release.