I want to make a crazy album.'"
But there was one conspicuously missing during that stretch of time: rapper.
“We haven’t seen our SantanaSupernaturalmoment.
LL Cool J.Chris Parsons
“Mad Squablz, Don Pablito, and J-S.A.N.D.
Chris Parsons
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Your main collaborator onThe ForcewasQ-Tip,who produced it.
How did you decide to work with him?
LL Cool J.Chris Parsons
LL COOL J:So the way that happened was, I had a dream about Phife Dog.
Phife Dog was a member of A Tribe Called Quest, may herest in peace.
I said, “Yo, I can’t call Phife, so let me call Q-Tip.”
So I call Q-Tip up.
I’m like, “Yo.”
He’s like, “What up, big bro?”
I said, “Yo, I want to make an album, man.”
He’s like, “What you want to make?”
I want to make a crazy album.”
He said, “Let’s do it.”
And how was it?
And he’s a real musician.
So when you listen to it, it’s real musicians playing..
It’s not only samples.
Yes, of course we use samples.
You know, I never felt like I was done with music.
But that’s a different conversation from being done, because I’m an artist at heart first.
And you don’t retire from being an artist.
It doesn’t quite work the way sports does.
Their souls and minds are still athletes.
So, nah, I never considered not doing it.
How autobiographical was that?
I got this mask on, I got this hoodie, I got these shades.
She doesn’t know who I am.
All of that was real me looking over at people, people sitting across from me.
It was like, who is it, Scar inThe Lion King?
Like seeing Scar’s smile.
Like there was something about it that had that vibe.
Both “Basquiat Energy” and “The Vow” include versions of your origin myth.
What made you want to look back on your arrival into this world?
[Laughs] I was reminded about why I’m doing this, why I loved it.
Knew we had to blow.”
And then “The Vow,” that one was more about the fantasy.
It was like I actually got reintroduced to my imagination.
[Laughs] Nah, I think it’s cool, man.
I think people are just seeing the light, bro.
You know, we all have different sides.
That wasn’t the sentiment.
That wasn’t the intention.
It may have been abrasive and aggressive, but it wasn’t coming from a place of hating people.
It was coming from a place of passionate expression of whatever the subject matter may have been.
[Laughs] Dude, I ain’t torn at all.
I’m from New York, man.
[laughs] I’m from Queens, baby.
It’s like a little old man who came over here from… you name the country.
Estonia, I don’t know, wherever you want to name.
They’re from where they from, man.
You talking to Queens, man.
The Forceis out now.
