DJ Kool Herc Overcome With Emotion As LL Cool J Inducts Him Into The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame

The godfather of hip-hop, DJ Kool Herc, inducted by LL Cool J received the Musical Influence Award at this year's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

In 2021, LL Cool J was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Two years later, he joined the induction ceremony for the father of hip-hop, DJ Kool Herc.

Along with Missy Elliot, The Spinners, Chaka Khan, and Don Cornelius, the man credited with starting hip-hop culture was inducted into this year’s Class of 2023. On the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, Herc was honored for his contribution to this genre. He received the Musical Influence Award.

.@llcoolj honored the creative genius and boundless innovation of @DjKoolHerc and his remarkable impact on music history. Stream #RockHall2023 NOW on @DisneyPlus!
📷: Getty Images / Rock Hall pic.twitter.com/mk2Oa194TM

— Rock Hall (@rockhall) November 4, 2023

At the ceremony, the “Mama Said Knock You Out” rapper took to the podium to introduce, acknowledge, and honor Herc to give him his just due.

“Sometimes it takes a while for the true significance of an action to become apparent. The neighborhood party that took place on August 11, 1973, in the rec room of 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx is one of those things. Cindy Campbell, a high school student at the time, she wanted to raise some money for back-to-school clothes. So she invited all her friends and charged them 25¢ for the ladies; 50¢ for boys—and most importantly, she also asked her older brother Clive, who was 18, to DJ. Now we don’t know how much money Cindy managed to make that night or what clothes she was able to buy, but we do know that she changed the course of history—music history. That party has come to be recognized as the birthplace of hip-hop. Her brother Clive, better known to the world as DJ Kool Herc, has been justly called ‘the Father of Hip-Hop,” LL Cool J said.

Herc came to the stage and started to cry, overcome with emotion. LL held him up as he stood there with his sister, whom he has always acknowledged when speaking about the start of what we’ve come to know as hip-hop. After thanking his parents and other influences in his life, Herc told the world once again, “My sister, she needs some props, too.”

Congratulations go out to DJ Kool Herc and the newest inductees of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.