LL Cool J has "humbly" declared himself to be the "most important" rapper in existence.
During a recent appearance on Apple Music's Le Code, the rapper-actor argued that he is the artist who has made the biggest impact on rap and hip-hop culture.
"I'm (going to) say this humbly, but I really mean this. I think one day people are going to wake up and realise that LL Cool J is the most important rapper that ever existed. I truly believe one day people are going to say that," he told host Mehdi Maïzi. "They're gonna look and say, 'Wow, when it comes to the jewellery, this is the guy that introduced all the diamonds, and the ice and the jewellery and the Champagne.' They're gonna say when it comes to the love songs, they're gonna say, 'This is the guy that introduced the love songs and all the love s**t.'"
LL Cool J, real name James Smith, went on to point out that he was one of the people who originated the acronym G.O.A.T. or "greatest of all time".
Reflecting on the title of his 2000 album, the Rock the Bells hitmaker described how he had been inspired by basketball player Earl "The Goat" Manigault and boxer Muhammed Ali.
"When it comes to the bad boy vibe, they're gonna realise that this is the guy who introduced all the rebellious, bad boy vibes before it was done. When it comes to the G.O.A.T terminology, they goin' say, 'This is the guy who came up with all the G.O.A.T stuff.' I could go on and on and on," the 56-year-old continued.
Elsewhere in the conversation, LL Cool J gave himself props for creating the path for rappers to pursue careers in film, TV, and business.
"I've done so much for the culture, it's almost unfathomable," he maintained. "Every artist that you can name, the biggest billionaire artists were launched on the label that I launched on. I'm saying this with love, I'm not trying to be funny-style, I'm not trying to be arrogant, I really sincerely... when I look at the epicentre of what it really is... it's almost unfathomable."
