Def Jam Recordings

Def Jam on vinyl: the hip-hop label from New York

In short: Rick Rubin started Def Jam in 1984 in his room at a New York University dorm, soon together with Russell Simmons. With LL Cool J, the Beastie Boys and Public Enemy, Def Jam put hip hop on the album format in a big way. Today the label belongs to Universal and also releases pop and R&B. The Vinyl Room currently has 23 Def Jam records.

From our stock

Def Jam first pressings

Conscious, hardcore & boom bap

R&B & pop rap

New in

→ Public Enemy · Ghostface Killah · Boom bap · Hip hop on vinyl

What makes Def Jam special?

We have classics of the golden era: Public Enemy’s “It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back” (1988), Slick Rick’s “The Great Adventures Of Slick Rick”, 3rd Bass with “Derelicts Of Dialect” and LL Cool J with “Mama Said Knock You Out”. From the Wu-Tang circle come Method Man with “Tical 2000” and Ghostface Killah with “Fishscale”, plus DMX and Pusha T.

Later Def Jam also became a home for pop and R&B: Rihanna with “Rated R” and “Talk That Talk”, Justin Bieber with “Purpose” – and Kanye West with “Donda” (2021).

FAQ

Who founded Def Jam? Rick Rubin, in New York in 1984, soon after together with Russell Simmons.

Which single launched LL Cool J at Def Jam? “I Need A Beat”, released in 1984, was one of the label’s early releases.

Does Def Jam belong to a major group today? Yes, to Universal Music.

What do you have on Def Jam? Hip hop from the eighties to today, plus R&B and pop – 23 records in all.