After 20 years in hip hop: LL Cool J comes clean about plastic surgery, steroid use & heartbreak

LL COOL J runs his index finger down one side of his tongue, and his thumb down the other, all the while eyeing the sweet little number on the table. He licks his lips like only he can. The tension being created in the New York City photo studio is so thick it can be cut with a knife. But using one would be too utilitarian, too hackneyed for hip-hop's ultimate romantic. Instead of diving in, he instead uses his moistened fingers to gently toy with the goodies, his willpower to nibble at the chocolate pie catered for his photo shoot stronger than the temptation to take a bite and get his fill.

Strength of will and strength of mind is nothing new for LL, who during the last two decades has demonstrated the resolve to build a body of work--and a body--that would make most folks envious.

And it has, to the point, he says, that some people have spread rumors and downright lies about how he continues to look 20-something, 20-some-odd years after entering the music business.

"Weak" and "flawed," that's the way he describes those who say that he has taken steroids and has had plastic surgery to sculpt his abs. "There have been a lot of questions, a lot of speculation. To be real frank, there are so many people speculating over what they think that I am doing. Is he doing steroids? Did he get plastic surgery?" he says. "It speaks more about the people who are making comments than it does about me. It tells me that they cheat and they're cheaters. They are not willing to make the sacrifices necessary, and go through the pain necessary, in order to get in the best shape they can possibly be. So they don't believe I would be willing to do it either. So it is really more about their weakness, and less about mine. It doesn't make me feel anything other than that it is unfortunate that people are weak like that. They are weak. It points out their flaws"

LL calls them the "yeah right" crowd, people who have to see it to believe it. "It's like if I described everything that Michael Jordan did in a game, and you never saw it, so you didn't want to believe it," he says. "But he really did it. The reality is that I really do go into the gym, and I didn't have surgery, and I didn't do steroids. I really do work out hard, and I really do diet. I really did do it. I really did dunk."

During the three-hour photo shoot one day after performing for more than two hours at one of Manhattan's hottest nightclubs, LL seems at peace with himself, talking about everything from fatherhood to the state of hip-hop music. Since becoming the first artist on the Def Jam label in 1984, he has sold more than 20 million units worldwide. He has won Grammy Awards, Billboard Awards, the NAACP Image "Favorite Hero" Award, and Soul Train awards, including the Soul Train Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003. In addition to his music career, LL has made his mark on Hollywood, starring in such hits as S.W.A.T., Deep Blue Sea, Any Given Sunday and Deliver Us From Eva. He also has starred in a television series (In The House) and written an autobiography and a children's book.

His history-making success may lie in his ability to juggle an old-school mentality with a new-school vibe. Although he carries around his digital music on an iPod, when asked about his latest offering--a CD titled Todd Smith--he continuously refers to it as a "record," a part of him possibly refusing to let go of the turntable-and-crate days of the '80s, a time that defined him not only as an artist, but as a person.

"It's different," he says of his new CD. "It's very focused, and I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish. So in that regard, it's one of the best. I think that you will find, mark my words, a year down the line, two years down the line, as this record progresses, people are going to start listening to it and realize how great it is. It's not fast food. Everybody wants everything quick, but this is a record you have to listen to. It's a very personal record."

In the song "I've Changed," LL raps about being heartbroken and doing whatever it takes to get his woman back. When asked if he could relate to that song on a personal level, he says, "I've been in that situation before, and felt like that before. It's like when you come to your senses, then you try to get with your shorty and tell her that you've changed. There comes a time when you come to that realization. That song is saying that I will do whatever I have to do to prove my love. I've been in a position where I had to do everything I could to make it right."

He says Todd Smith is much more love-oriented than his typical "street collection." "It's definitely one of the most uplifting records I've ever made," he continues. "My focus in making this record was to put music out there that would unify people."

In that vein, every cut is a collaboration with another artist, including Mary J. Blige, Jennifer Lopez and Juelz Santana. "It kind of happened naturally ...," he says. "I feel good about it. It's nice to work with other people. It's a blessing ... it's a wonderful blessing to have these people work with me. There's a mutual respect. I think it speaks volumes about my relationship with different people in the industry."