LL Cool J is the longest lived rapper in history.

Born James Todd Smith in 1968, Cool J had a difficult childhood. After watching his father shoot his grandfather and mother, he was later abused by his mother's new boyfriend, which turned Cool J into a predator. He left Queens for the City at 16 and created the name LL Cool J (which stands for Ladies Love Cool James). With the help of his grandfather, who bought him his first DJ system, Cool J sent demo tapes to record companies everywhere and earned the interest of Def Jam. The small label, run by NYU students Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin, released his single "I Need a Beat" in 1984. With over 100,000 copies sold, both Def Jam and Cool J were put on the map. His debut album, Radio, appeared a year later and was a huge hit.

That same year, Cool J started acting. He appeared in the film Krush Groove, an autobiographical account of Def Jam's beginnings. He appeared in a few other movies before deciding to pursue music fulltime. Over the next few years every album he released went platinum. In 1993 after more success in the music business, NBC record executives approached Cool J about a role in the upcoming television series In the House. He became a permanent member of the cast and continued to record, with 1995's Mr. Smith, a double-platinum album with two mega-hits, Boyz II Men duet "Hey Lover" and "Doin' It."

By 1997 he was married and had three children. He continued to take acting roles, including a part in 1998's thriller Halloween H20 20 Years Later, and has since acted alongside Hollywood greats like Al Pacino, Dennis Quaid, Whoopi Goldberg and Samuel L. Jackson.