LL Cool J
Grammy-winning American rapper and actor, star of NCIS: New York
LL Cool J (Grammy-winning American rapper and actor, star of NCIS: New York) has appeared as a guest on 1 episode in TMT. Topics they speak about most include Hip-hop, Artificial intelligence, Def Jam Recordings.
In their words
Positions and remarks grouped by topic, each with the exact quote and where it was said.
Hip-hop
LL Cool J says he prioritized how lyrics feel over technical complexity, likening his approach to James Brown's.
“I was more in the James Brown zone of, how does it feel?”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 1:14:04
LL Cool J says the Public Enemy logo is a silhouette of his friend E-Love taken from a photo of them on stage.
“Chuck D. from Public Enemy took a picture of my man standing next to me on stage and put him in silhouette”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 38:47
LL Cool J argues that gold chains in early hip-hop signaled toughness and survival in the neighborhood rather than displays of wealth.
“See, jewelry back then was a message. You know, any neighborhood. It was, I can wear this in this neighborhood”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 30:08
LL Cool J says hip-hop was the first time he heard kids like himself sound empowered, at a time when Black youth on TV appeared mainly in handcuffs.
“Hip-hop was the first time that I heard young kids like me sound empowered”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 27:57
LL Cool J observes that while the world has become more public, music listening has become more private.
“In a weird way, even though the world is more public, music has become more private”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 3:37
Artificial intelligence
LL Cool J warns that human bias is often built into AI through how machines are trained.
“the way they, you know, you code and write these, you know, inform these machines, the bias a lot of times is built into”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 2:12:58
LL Cool J points out the contradiction of people who say they hate AI while relying heavily on chatbots.
“People hate AI, but then they run around on ChatGPT all day long and have damn near have a relationship with ChatGPT and Claude”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 2:11:15
LL Cool J argues AI is unavoidable and people must choose to use it as a tool rather than be overrun by it.
“So the question is, are you going to... Use it as a tool or are you going to allow it to steamroll you?”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 2:10:02
Def Jam Recordings
LL Cool J says Rick Rubin stripped down hip-hop production, earning a 'reduced by' credit on his debut album.
“Like, my first album, Radio, it says, reduced by Rick Rubin”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 1:04:38
LL Cool J recounts that after rejections from labels, his mother used her tax refund to buy him a drum machine for his demo.
“She took her tax return and bought me a Korg drum machine”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 1:07:39
LL Cool J says Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons formed Def Jam as a label and that he was its first act.
“Rick and Russell together formed Def Jam, the label, and I was the first act”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 2:26
NCIS: New York
LL Cool J says NCIS: New York is shot on location across the city, which he calls the star of the show.
“We're shooting all over the city. And New York is like the star of the show”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 2:31:48
Unidentified flying objects and government disclosure
LL Cool J says that if he had to bet, he would say Earth is being visited by others.
“I think it's high probability. If I was going to bet, I would say yes”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 2:04:38
Boxing
LL Cool J says he only learned of the boxers in his lineage, including John Henry Lewis, through DNA research on Finding Your Roots.
“I didn't even know that I had all of these boxes in my family till I did my DNA research with Henry Louis Gate on Finding Your Roots”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 50:13
Fame
LL Cool J describes himself as an artist who became famous as a consequence of his work rather than seeking celebrity.
“I'm a celebrity by consequence, like as a result of what I did. I'm not a guy who's celebrity minded”
The Joe Rogan Experience: #2561 - LL Cool J (Oct 6, 2026) · Listen from 8:18
Appearances
#2561 - LL Cool JThe Joe Rogan Experience · Oct 6, 2026 · 2 h 38 min
Joe Rogan and LL Cool J discuss the birth of hip-hop and Def Jam, discipline and mastery, martial arts, lost civilizations, time travel and artificial intelligence.
Often appears with
- Joe Rogan · 1 shared episode