Grammy winner LL COOL J joins "CBS Mornings" to talk about his new docuseries, "Hip Hop Was Born Here," featuring interviews with legends like Big Daddy Kane, Rev Run and Roxanne Shanté.

New York

LL Cool J, serving as host, co-creator, and executive producer, leads a new docuseries exploring the origins and cultural significance of hip-hop in New York. The series aims to provide viewers with a deeper understanding of hip-hop's roots, moving beyond popular perceptions of the genre to highlight its messages of empowerment and the personal journeys of its artists.

Through interviews with influential figures such as members of Run-DMC, Doug E. Fresh, and Salt of Salt-N-Pepa, the docuseries uncovers the motivations and inspirations behind the music. LL Cool J emphasizes the importance of authenticity and personal drive in both hip-hop and his own career, encouraging viewers to connect with the true spirit of the genre. The series is available for streaming on Paramount Plus.

LL COOL J returns to NYC to explore hip-hop's roots in new docuseries

LL Cool J is here, he's the series host, the co-creator and the executive producer. Welcome, welcome, welcome. Thank you, thank you. Nate and I, we were all talking about, because you did so many interviews for this, and you were so good with all of them. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's part of the fun of watching it. But this is the thing about this docuseries, because they said hip hop was just a fad, it's not gonna last. 50 years later, still standing, still thriving. But you say it starts here. Yeah. It starts here. Yeah, you know, it's about hip hop being born here, not just its roots and its origins in New York, but where it came from, from an artistic sense. Because nowadays, when most people think about hip hop, they think about a bunch of guys with a whole bunch of diamonds, and showing off money, and it's become, you know, there's a place for that, but it's become pretty shallow. And a lot of people view it from that perspective, or at least that's kind of the way, the rabbit hole that has been driven down. What this does is gives people an understanding of where hip hop really comes from. The spirit behind it, the messages of empowerment that are there, the dreams of making it out of, you know, a marginalized group of people looking to make something of themselves. That's what this is about. So if you really wanna understand hip hop, and you really wanna understand the true origins of it, from a spirit, from the spirit sense, this is the kind of docuseries you watch. Because this is not about, oh, who's on the cover of Forbes this week? Or who has this? Or who's buying this? It's more really about that empowerment and the real message behind hip hop culture. Yeah, it's beautiful, it's beautiful. Listen, you're a man of many talents. Rap, act, philanthropist, you give back. But I gotta add a journalist answer to that. Because the way that you were navigating these interviews, it was beautiful. And like Gil said, yeah, it's about the origins of hip hop. And the reason I loved you doing this is because you are in love with her. You are in love with hip hop. And you know it. Like, you didn't have note cards with you. As soon as one of the artists started rapping a song, you knew the lyrics. So for a guy who I recognize, knows just about every darn thing about this genre, you still were learning things about it? I learned so many new things in this docuseries. How is that possible? Because a lot of the stories are really personal. Like, you know, when you talk to the run of Run-DMC, he's talking to you about his personal, like what was the genesis of his, you know, why he got into it. You think about a group like Run-DMC, you think about, you know, Doug E. Fresh or Salt of Salt and Pepper. She's talking about what really moved her. And so it's really a story about the artists, the craft, the inspiration behind the art, why they went so hard, how this thing went from the street corners to the world, to the entire globe. Yeah. It was fun too. It was fun too because you talk about TDK tapes. I remember those. Yes, yeah. 100%. And the boombox, the boombox. Oh, yeah. It was definitely a fashion statement. A fashion statement. The bigger, the better. There's the answer to that too. Of course. You know, it comes with the territory. And yes, a big boombox definitely works very well. Hey, let's talk about legacy. You ask everyone in the documentary, Doctor Series, what legacy means to them. So let's put the question to you. What does legacy mean to you? I think, you know, ultimately no one really gets to decide what their legacy is going to be. That's actually decided by the people that you leave behind and the world that you leave behind. You really can never speak to that. I think ultimately the most you can do as a human being is contribute to your legacy by doing the things that you're inspired to do and living out the truth in your life in that way. And then the rest takes care of itself. But it was nice to see your evolution because we see young LL Cool J laying up in the sky and you go, I want to be like that plane up there in the sky soaring. You tell the story about being on a train with a trash bag with your clothes in it, thinking I'm gonna make it. And you sit here today, still at the top of your game, getting higher. What does it mean though to you when you look at your own journey? It's just part of the fun watching it. It means anything is possible. It means that, you know, we as human beings, we're all on this planet for a reason and everybody has a different journey. And the one thing that I think is most important is that you want the things that you want for you. And what I did, what I was blessed and lucky enough to have happen to me is I knew what I wanted for me early on. See, a lot of people, they want things because other people want them for them. Oh, my parents want me to want this. My friends want me to want this. My social circle wants me to want this. Like you have somebody say, oh, I could never pull that off. But they're not really thinking about themselves. They're thinking about how others will perceive them. And so, you know, hip hop culture has always been about, you know, going inside and tapping into that true you. You know what I'm saying? And that's what hip hop was born here is all about. You know what I'm saying? It's beautifully done. Well done. Bravo to you. Thank you. Thank you so much for coming to see us today. My absolute pleasure. LL Cool J, hip hop was born here streaming on Paramount Plus which, as you may have heard, like CBS is part of Paramount Global.

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