I Make My Own Rules Essay, Research Paper

LL Cool J, born Todd James Smith, has made many great accomplishments in his life due to his upbringing. This autobiography explains about his choices, the good, the bad, the wrong and the right. Through all of his experiences he is able to say, ?I Make My Own Rules.?

Experiences that would change Todd?s life began before he was born. One night, after a party his parents had been attending, his mother and father got into an argument in their car driving on a highway in New York City. Todd?s father became enraged and threw his wife out of the car. She was nine months pregnant with Todd at the time.

On January 14, 1968, at 8:46 p.m., Todd James Smith was born at South Side Hospital. He was born with his right arm paralyzed, but sure enough, a few months afterwards, he was able to move his arm for the first time. Todd and his mother, Ondrea, lived with James Smith, Todd?s father, until a few years later when Todd and his mother moved to live with Todd?s grandparents. It was there that James found Ondrea and shot her and her father. They both survived the shooting.

After the shooting, Todd?s mother could barely walk. That is how she met Roscoe. He was an assistant to a physical therapist and he was the one who helped Ondrea walk again. After the help Roscoe gave Ondrea, she began to fall for him and her and Todd moved to live with Roscoe. It was there that Todd began his life of child abuse. While his mother worked, he was beaten and taken advantage of by Roscoe. About five years later Ondrea found out about it and left Roscoe.

As Todd grew up, he became more and more of a fan of hip-hop. At one point in life he changed his name to Ladies Love Cool J, which was shortened to LL Cool J. He began to right rhymes and performing at block parties. A man named Rick Rubin, who helped him get signed by DEF JAM, discovered him. He made his first album, Radio, which went platinum. His success with Radio, as well as his other more recent albums, made him what he is today; a famous rap star and a trendsetter.

His crazed sex life began at the age of thirteen, when LL lost his virginity. His wild sex life took off when he began touring. He would have sex with any groupie who was good-looking and able. He was also heavily into pornography. It was during this period that he had abandoned his girlfriend and the two children she bore him, Najee and Italia.

The life Todd led wasn?t working for him. He noticed this while he was doing what he says to be the sickest thing he has ever done. He began to take action one night at about two o?clock in the morning when he placed all his pornographic material in a garbage bag and threw it out.

At the start of his new life he married his girlfriend, Simone, because he did not want another illegitimate child born. A few months after the wedding, they had their third child, Tally.

With more albums and a few roles in movies such as Toys and Out of Sync, LL Cool J became better known by all. He has been around for a while and that is what truly makes him famous. But without his great way of expressing his talents to the world, LL would not be in exsistence.