LL Cool J Didn't Let Kobe Bryant Drop a Gangsta Rap Album

Kobe Bryant wasn't as successful as a rapper as his Lakers buddy Shaq, but he did like to mess around in the genre and even had a record deal in the late 90s.

According to LL Cool J, Kobe almost took his rap career up a few notches with the release of a gangster rap album.

LL convinced him otherwise.

"He played me this album, this gangsta rap album and I was like, 'Kobe,' I said, 'Come on dog. That's not what you need to be doing,'" LL told Entertainment Tonight. "He had a gangsta rap album. He played me that album, we're sitting in a parking lot. I was confused, I was sittin' there like, 'What are we doing? You got endorsements, what are you doing?'

As for how it sounded ...

"It had to be the funniest moment of my life, listening to him do gangsta rap," LL said. "Yeah, we're not gonna pretend like we wasn't laughing," he continued, also referencing Kobe's 'K.O.B.E' track featuring Tyra Banks. "Like yeah yeah yeah the world was laughing, that was not — but you know, he took his shot. He took his shot."