What is this?

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“I Need Love” is LL Cool J’s first big hit, peaking at #14 in the US and reaching the top 10 in five European countries.

It is considered the first rap ballad to be an international success and helped expand LL’s image beyond simply being a braggart into heartthrob. Even Playgirl Magazine named him one of the ten sexiest men at the time.

The music of “I Need Love” came from a song that producer Bobcat of LA Posse had written previously titled “Friends by Day, Lovers by Night”.

Despite the success of “I Need Love”, some hip-hop artists “hated it and thought it was soft and wrong”. His reputation suffered over the next few years, bottoming out with being booed at the Apollo Theater in 1989 – an incident that would inspire the harder tracks on his 1990 album Mama Said Knock You Out.

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What is this?

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Messy Situationz, the album this song was on, was released on a label called Trigga Lock Records.

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What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

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The King of Prussia Mall is the biggest shopping mall on the East Coast of the United States.

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What is this?

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An undercover agent who works for the San Francisco Police Department.

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What is this?

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Crest is short for Country Club Crest, a neighbourhood in Vallejo, CA. Mac Mall, and his mentor Mac Dre are from this neighbourhood.

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What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

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What is this?

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A “L” is a joint for which 2 papers are crossed so you can make it bigger.

Also a reference to The Pack member Young L

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The intro to DeamsThe Legacy EP, no performance by Deams on here but an intro by Gang Starr member DJ Premier.

A line from Redman’s verse on LL Cool J’s 4, 3, 2, 1 is scratched in the song in the beginning and end.

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A sample off Redman’s verse on LL Cool J’s classic 4, 3, 2, 1

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What is this?

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Referring to two of 2Pac’s hits, I Get Around & California Love

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