LL Cool J sets first arena tour in 30 years, with hip-hop greats sharing the bill
LL Cool J's F.O.R.C.E. Live tour plays Brooklyn's Barclays Center on June 27. Credit: Getty Images for iHeartRadio / Kevin Winter
Bay Shore-born rapper LL Cool J will headline his first arena tour in 30 years this summer, bringing scores of classic and contemporary hip-hop acts with him.
The tour, backed by Live Nation and dubbed F.O.R.C.E. Live — the acronym stands for Frequencies of Real Creative Energy — arrives at Barclays Center in Brooklyn June 27. An online poster calls it a “one of a kind mash-up with special guests in select cities.”
Among the artists on the bill are the groundbreaking Amityville group De La Soul (whose founding member Trugoy died earlier this year), the innovative Wyandanch rapper Rakim, pioneering female duo Salt-N-Pepa, rapper-actor Queen Latifah (who co-starred with LL Cool J in 2006’s “Last Holiday”), former Outkast member Big Boi, iconic gangsta rapper Ice-T and old-school favorites Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick. Also scheduled to appear are Juvenile, Goodie Mob, Jadakiss, Rick Ross, Common, Method Man & Redman and Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.
The performances will be backed by The Roots, DJ Jazzy Jeff and DJ Z-Trip.
“This is not a moment,” LL Cool J wrote on Twitter, “it’s a movement.”
Coinciding with this year’s 50th anniversary of hip-hop, the F.O.R.C.E. tour “will have the presentation and energy of the Hip-Hop tribute at the Grammys,” according to the rapper’s website. That concert segment, organized by The Roots’ drummer, Questlove, featured an all-star parade of rappers — from early figures including Grandmaster Flash to such current hitmakers as GloRilla — bookended by appearances from LL Cool J. The tribute wowed audiences, made next-day headlines and was widely circulated on the internet.
The F.O.R.C.E. tour kicks off in Boston June 25 and will hit 24 cities in all, ending in Los Angeles Sept. 3. Tickets go on sale April 28 at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster. For more information, go to rockthebells.com.
