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Todd compared the new Def Jam administration to the refurbished Lakers crew in the recent issue of Billboard magazine. This past season, Lakers brought in Pau Gasol as an able supplement to their one-man attacking machine, Kobe Bryant. Jay-Z, you might recall, resigned as Def Jam prez last December. Shakir Stewart was hired to replace him (well, sort of).

Todd was asked about his beef with Jay-Z for the umpteenth time. For the first time, he had something disturbing (albeit interesting) to say.

“Regarding my comments about Def Jam, if I make the world’s worst record and you accept it, then your responsibility is to promote it. If you think it’s the world’s worst record and you can’t promote it, then don’t accept it. I never made my views a personal attack on anybody at Def Jam, or tried to degrade anyone’s reputation. I’m just glad that there’s been a regime change. It feels like the new Lakers.”

The new Lakers? Eh, this is one comparison LL might want to stay away from. The new Lakers lost the championship to the new Celtics. Then again, it’s possible that he granted this interview back when Lakers were favored to beat the Celts. Magazines usually have crazy editorial lead times that can range anywhere from 1 month to 3 months.

LL Cool J has released the first official single off his last album for Def Jam, Exit 13The track features The-Dream.

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Eminem called into his SHADE 45 station on SIRIUS Satellite Radio when LL Cool J was in the studio. He pretended to be a caller from Miami reciting LL’s lyrics. Listen to the call below.

At the end, Eminem asks him, “When are we gonna hang out? I got cable at my house.”

Listen To The Prank

Sears is a company that has become almost entirely redundant, is outflanked by competitors on all sides, and stands ready to poison the reputation of the financial genius who last bought it, Eddie Lampert. The store is not as cheap as Wal-Mart, not as good as Macy’s, and not as convenient as Amazon. It’s an old retailer desperate for a revolutionary change to resurrect it from the grave. So how is Sears going to claw its way back into the competitive fashion market? By hiring LL Cool J to start a clothing line for it, of course! This is such an appropriately crappy idea.

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LL Cool J is set to release his first-ever mixtape, The Return of the G.O.A.T., put together exclusively by DJ Kay Slay. “A lot of people are under the misconception that LL is making those grown-and-sexy records, that he ain’t with the street vibe anymore,” Slay told MTV News’ Mixtape Monday. “I think he wanted to step back and let people know he’s still the G.O.A.T.” The mixtape is scheduled to feature collaborations with Busta Rhymes and will set up LL Cool J’s next album, Exit 13, which may be his last project for Def Jam. The legendary rapper will be free from his recording contract after the album drops.