LL Cool J – Mama Said Knock You Out LP Online now

LL Cool J s egotism is his M.O., his sex appeal, his greatest strength. He d been on top of the world since he started scoring hits as a teenager, but anyone who s been in the rap game for five years, as he d been when Mama arrived, has something to prove. So he came out swinging-literally-with the title track, which claims boxing trash talk as proto-rap and turns it into a declaration of ongoing mastery. Beyond that, Mama, with it s ultra-hard Marley Marl production, pumps up his love-man rep (the sweetly affectionate Around the Way Girl and an even hornier remix of Jingling Baby ) and his ego (pretty much everything else). It s mostly just old-school boasting, but damn if it isn t deserved.