LL Cool J, Queen Latifah, and more celebrate 50 years of hip hop at Rock The Bells Festival

A legendary lineup of hip hop’s kings and queens packed out Forest Hills Stadium to celebrate 50 years of rhymes and culture on Saturday (Aug. 5). A reported 13,000 people flocked to Queens, New York, as the Rock The Bells Festival served as the ultimate summer block party to honor the genre’s undeniable influence throughout the years.

Rock The Bells founder and CEO LL Cool J capped the daylong event with a stellar set of hits featuring The Roots and DJ Z-Trip. But before he rocked the mic, a roster of hip hop titans, including Run-DMC, Queen Latifah, Ludacris, Big Daddy Kane, De La Soul, Salt-N-Pepa, and more, got the crowd jumping.

“This is a special year for the culture and for Rock The Bells in curating this experience, bringing together the icons of hip hop,” said LL when the festival’s return to Forest Hills was announced. “I’m doing this for Queens, for NYC, and for the hip hop culture. There’s no better place for me to perform during this moment in hip hop than my hometown,” added the “I’m Bad” emcee.

The women of hip hop were also well-represented throughout the epic concert. Latifah put “Ladies First” during her 20-minute set with appearances from Yo-Yo, Monie Love, Remy Ma, and MC Lyte. In total, 20 different acts performed throughout the sold-out nine-hour event.

The grand fete, dubbed hip hop’s homecoming, is a testament to the global genre’s staying power, a vision that naysayers were unable to foresee taking place. “There was a time [when] there was no money involved. It was just something that was a hobby, something that people liked,” DJ Kid Capri told CBS News. “At the end of the day, people told us that it wasn’t going to be around, it was just going to be noise, it’s just going to be a fad, and then 50 years later, to be able to have this milestone going on, you know, it’s amazing.”

LL Cool J previously hit the stage to pay homage to the genre at the Grammys in February. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee is currently gearing up for “The F.O.R.C.E. Live Tour,” which kicks off on Aug. 11 in Baltimore.

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