Songoftheday 10/21/17 - Don't call it a comeback I've been here for years, I'm rocking my peers puttin' suckers in fear...

"Mama Said Knock You Out" - LL Cool J
from the album Mama Said Knock You Out (1990)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #17 (one week)
Weeks in the Top-40: 9

Today's song of the day comes from rapper LL Cool J, whose fourth album Mama Said Knock You Out had landed him his first top ten pop hit with the smooth as syrup "Around The Way Girl" in the spring of 1991. The title track from the album was released as the follow-up, and "Mama Said Knock You Out" was the highlight of the record, with an angry LL putting down all who come to dis him - and to this day obliterates every single one of those braggadocio "battle tracks" that's come after. And the music video, which places the rapper in the boxing ring, has become iconic, with a cute cameo from his own grandmother at the end...

"Mama Said Knock You Out" became LL's fifth top-40 pop hit in June of 1991. The record climbed to #12 on Billboard's R&B chart, while it what his fourth record to top their Rap Singles list (along with this album's "Around The Way" and "The Boomin' System"). The remixes on the 12" vinyl/CD single helped it peak at #7 on their Dance Club Play tally. Internationally, the track reached #37 in Australia, but just missed the top-40 in the UK at #41. At the 1992 Grammy Awards, LL Cool J won the Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance.

A fifth single from the album, "6 Minutes Of Pleasure", got to #26 on the R&B chart, and slipped on the pop Hot 100 in America at #95.

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Here's local hero LL rocking the hell out of Live At The Apollo promoting the single. Possibly the best live rap performance I've ever seen. And the time younger me fell in lust...

..and the house music-inspired "7AM Mix" had helped it up to the top 10 on the dance chart...

LL Cool J was one of the first rap performers at the Grammy Awards, where he did "Mama Said Knock You Out"...

In 1991, LL appeared on the seminal rap version of MTV Unplugged. You need to fast-forward to 12:25 to get to "Mama Said Knock You Out", but it's soooooooooo worth it...

In 2013, alternative metal band Five Finger Death Punch and rapper Tech N9ne teams up for a remake that reached the rock song sales chart top ten...

Finally, at another awards show, LL Cool J segues into the song with full band and everything...

Up tomorrow: Female rappers question your advances.