Released: May 29, 1987

Songwriter: LL Cool J

Producer: DJ Pooh L.A. Posse

(LL Cool J)
That's right y'all this is the LL Cool J party
Move it, move it, move it, get on the floor baby
That's right, don't try to front like your fly
GET OUT THERE!

(LL Cool J)
To rappers I'm a nightmare on Elm Street
Hellafied hotter than heat, guess why the other's can't eat?
Cause I'm a carnivore and I can eat much more
Than a fat man after a pack-a-jam
L.L.'s thicker than butter, well-known throat cutter
When I'm involved all the amateurs stutter
They're scared and can't believe that their whole crew
Ain't a rapper alive that can fill my shoes
I'm dope on a rope, virgins wanna elope
I do the hustle and the shuffle and the rope-a-dope
Cause I'm the hardest hard rock in the hard rock town
I gotta .357 and I break it on down

(LL Cool J)
Three hundred and fifty seven reasons
Why you gotta get your butt on the floor right now
We ain't playin, we came here to get ill
Iller than ill, LL youknowI'msayin?

(LL Cool J)
Just like Ali Baba and the 40 thevz
So nasty you don't know whether to stay or leave
More feared, than even Blue Beard, I serve Primrose
A picture of me, is like one of Michelangelo's
I don't play the banjo will you ever understand yo
Servin I mean the matter how old I go Rambo
Cock-strong, half a block long
Illy ill fire starter hittin harder than King Kong
Not a battle-axe, not run-of-the-mill
Not easily knocked out or easily killed
Cause I'm the hardest hard rock in the hard rock town
I gotta .357 and I break it on down

(LL Cool J)
A hundred and ninety five pounds, punk
More bounce to the ounce and I say what counts
KnowI'msayin?
Now get yourself on the floor
Stop actin like a sissy

(LL Cool J)
Boy, I'm better than better is, badder than badder is
I won't scare em or dare em I'll just splatter his
Guts kick his butt while Bob is rockin the cuts
Wanna step in the ring with me, you must be nuts
Not Isis in a crisis, or Freddy when he's ready, or Jason when he's chasin'
My silhouette, a scene I mean I'm icin' and acin'
Amateurs who lack it, can't hack it, I attack it, that's why I wanna crack it
They're sellin' the soul of little kids who can't roll
I told em, scold em, teach em and mold em
Get paid ten knots at a time and then I fold em
I remember the blood and I remember what told em
I can, can't cause I'm down with E yet you have the audacity
To try and mess with M-E
Hypersonic is weak and Supersonic is wack
Sneak around after midnight, like a Siamese cat
Pellum (1, 2, 3) catch twenty-two I'm H-A-R-D
I'm the hardest hard rock in the hard rock town
I gotta .357 and I break it on down

(LL Cool J)
A beatdown can be arranged
Yo baby you look fine spread em
Yo homeboy get up against the wall, what's this in your pocket
What is this?
Move it, move it, move it

(LL Cool J)
I'm a nappy, sappy crappy imitator of who
If I ever imitated it wouldn't be you, ooooh
You don't know so many have died when the LL growl was amplified
Get back better yet step back get dat
Like Shaft and The Mack, cause I'm mad and I'm black
I'm the perfect blend, a good boyfriend
I'm the reason rap rules the country, I'm Cool
J-A-M-E-S; fresh as a cliche, but soul is my forte
Disco is out, rhythm and blues is old news
P's and Q's keep me in new shoes
And you're dissin me because I'm young and I'm strong
And I'm capable of making a platinum LP
Wrong you was, you assumed I was all in
But boy is for ballin they'll never say I'm fallin
Callin all cars for the brother in black
L-E-L the Mack back bone of this track
The force full of force to put you on your back
Makin' hit after hit, while you search for a contract
Hotter than hot now watch how hot I can get
Leavin' rappers freeze-dried and skimmer's dimmer's wet
Cause I'm the hardest hard rock in the hard rock town
I gotta .357 and I break it on down

(LL Cool J)
Now the LL posse is now handin out speed knots
To all those who don't want to get busy
That's right baby get your body on the floor
Move it, move it
.357 at point blank range ain't nothin strange
You're havin a heart attack is at your back
Now listen to me bring it, bring it on, on down, down, down, down, down, down

LL Cool J

Deriving his name from the statement “Ladies Love Cool James,” LL Cool J became a superstar rapper after his Def Jam debut in 1984. He mixed a hardcore hip-hop style from songs like “I’m Bad” with R&B style on songs like “I Need Love,” which led him to multi-platinum success and several awards. He would later venture into movies and television, write several books, and start different business ventures.

Born January 14, 1968, Queens, New York native James Todd Smith began rapping at the age of nine and started to seriously pursue rapping when he was 16 years old after his grandfather bought him music equipment, which he used to create a demo tape that was sent to numerous labels. He was signed by upstart independent label Def Jam, working with founders Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin to release his debut single “I Need a Beat” in 1984, which sold over 100,000 copies. This success helped Def Jam secure a distribution deal with Columbia Records.

LL released his debut album Radio in 1985, which achieved platinum status with help from the hit singles “I Can’t Live Without My Radio” and “Rock the Bells.” After working exclusively with Rick Rubin on his debut, LL worked with the West Coast production crew L.A. Posse on his second album Bigger and Deffer, released in 1987. The album featured two of LL’s signature the hard-edged “I’m Bad” and the “rap ballad” “I Need Love,” which was a Top 20 pop hit, helping the album achieve double platinum status.