Think hip-hop and you think bling: wealthy young black men driving purple Lamborghinis stuffed with bitches and/or hoes dripping with diamonds. And LL Cool J has had enough of it.
Ditching his furry Kangol hat, or whatever it is he wears these days, LL Cool J has decided to take a stand and urge his fans to be more prudent with their money. Excessive spending on unnecessary fripperies is wack, says LL Cool J, while conserving your assets by placing them in a number of low-risk fixed interest investments is fly to the motherfucking max.
These aren't good times to be a rapper. Proof is dead, Busta Rhymes' bodyguard is dead, low-level rappers like Cam'ron are getting shot in the arm and even Suge Knight doesn't seem above popping a cap in his own leg. A lack of positive role models are maybe to blame, and that's where LL Cool J comes in.
Despite a) singing songs like Mama Said Knock You Out and I Shot Ya, and b) starring in terrible films like Rollerball and Mindhunters, LL Cool J is still seen by some as hip-hop's spirit of goodness. And he's been showing that off at the Hip-Hop Summit For Financial Empowerment in New York.
The summit, organised by hip-hop bigwig Russell Simmons, took place to help fans of hip-hop with issues surrounding home ownership and personal finances. And LL Cool J was first in line to spout off about the best way to look after money:
"The biggest misconception probably comes from the hip-hop community
itself, that the money lasts forever. You have to do the right thing with it."
LL Cool J was joined by Alicia Keys and Nas, who said:
"It's time that we do something to educate our kids. We've
got to think about our future, think about tomorrow. It's beyond the
corner, it's beyond the jails. We've got to think about growing old in
this game."
We're not sure what Alicia Keys had to say on the matter. Chances are she gave a short speech about how much you'll have to spend on piano repairs if you insist on playing in in a sandy ampitheatre or in snow-filled parks all the time like she does,
Read more:
LL Cool J Urges Financial Sense – BBC
[story by Stuart Heritage]