The Truth About LL Cool J's Marriage

Rap icon LL Cool J, born James Todd Smith, has had quite a career. In addition to his two Grammy Award wins, multi-platinum albums, and eight top 10 hits on the US Hot 100, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2021. In recent years, LL Cool J has put music on the back burner, but has continued to remain in the spotlight by venturing into acting and television presenting.

LL Cool J's personal life has been a topic of discussion ever since his rise to fame. When he was just 4 years old, his dad shot both his mother and grandfather. Both survived the grueling event, but it definitely impacted LL Cool J's relationship with his dad. During an interview with Oprah Winfrey on "Oprah's Next Chapter," the "Luv U Better" hitmaker explained how he managed to reconcile with him. After his mom chose to forgive him, LL Cool J's dad came back into his life. The rapper explained his dad "made amends for a lot of things" by helping LL Cool J with his start in music. Even though he is aware of his father's wrongdoing, LL Cool J notes that he "did a lot of things right." On his 1997 album, "Phenomenon," LL Cool J released the auto-biographical single titled "Father," which detailed his past.

Fortunately, LL Cool J's love life isn't as tragic as his childhood — but it's had its fair share of its ups and downs.

LL Cool J and his wife, Simone Smith, have been married for over 25 years and share four children together. As noted by Parade, LL Cool J married the jewelry designer in 1995, eight years after forming a romance and meeting her in the 1980s. While making an appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" (via HuffPost), the "Hush" hitmaker recalls his first encounter with Smith was when he was 19 years old. "It was Easter and I was driving down the block in my mother's car," LL Cool J explained before mentioning he stopped the car to say hello to a friend. When the friend asked whether LL Cool J wanted to meet his cousin, he told him he had somewhere to be. However, upon seeing her, he quickly changed his mind.

Nevertheless, their romance has had a few complications. After having his first two children with Smith, LL Cool J left his wife twice, according to AmoMama. Smith even admitted to not speaking to LL Cool J after their honeymoon for two weeks after his video for "Doin' It" saw him getting intimate with another woman. "I was so upset over that video," she told Oprah Winfrey during her "Oprah's Next Chapter" interview with her husband. "At the beginning of our marriage, he was 'Ladies Love Cool J.'"

LL Cool J's wife, Simone Smith, was diagnosed with stage 3 chondrosarcoma – a rare type of bone cancer — in 2004, according to Parade. The cancer was in her right tibia bone, between her knee and her ankle. In order to replace the bone, the jewelry designer had to undergo a 15-hour surgery. During her recovery, she had to relearn how to walk. Luckily for Smith, her husband was by her side the whole time. LL Cool J even put his huge music career on pause in order to focus on his wife's health. "You don't abandon someone in that foxhole," he told Oprah Winfrey on "Oprah's Next Chapter," adding, "You gotta be there in that foxhole with them." 

Smith insists the whole situation made their marriage stronger. So strong, in fact, that LL Cool J offered to donate his bone to his wife. "I remember sitting in the doctor's office, and he wanted to give his fibula bone ... because he felt that his fibula bone would be bigger and stronger," she told Entertainment Tonight (via SurvivorNet).

With their relationship still secure, LL Cool J and Smith remain one of Hollywood's power couples. In August 2020, they celebrated their 25th anniversary with a romantic dinner. Smith wrote on Instagram, "We Still Do! After 25 years of marriage. It's not always easy, but it's always worth it!!"