{"id":94342,"date":"2025-05-12T03:30:10","date_gmt":"2025-05-12T03:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/94342\/"},"modified":"2025-05-12T03:30:10","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T03:30:10","slug":"the-only-person-rick-rubin-thought-good-enough-for-def-jam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/94342\/","title":{"rendered":"The only person Rick Rubin thought good enough for Def Jam"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Rick<\/p>\n

(Credits: Far Out \/ YouTube Still)<\/p>\n

Sun 11 May 2025 22:00, UK <\/p>\n

If one were forced to pinpoint hip-hop<\/a>\u2018s essential pivot in its over 50-year story, it\u2019d be hard to argue against Def Jam Recording\u2019s founding in 1984. Birthed in the Black and working-class South Bronx neighbourhoods ten years earlier, DJ Kool Herc\u2019s novel turntablism and extended breakbeat technique spread across the borough\u2019s famed block parties and across New York City as the musical template for the emerging hip-hop culture encompassing graffiti art, MCing later dubbed rapping, and breakdancing.<\/p>\n

Yet it took several years for hip-hop to cut records for a mass audience. Weaving its way into the concurrent disco that dominated the charts, early stars like The Sugarhill Gang or Kurtis Blow cut singles that showcased the new rapping technique set to conventional R&B and funk backing tracks. While popular, an infinitely more potent and uncompromised slice of hip-hop would be blasted from Kool Lady Blue Productions\u2019 Ruza Blue\u2019s weekly DJ sets at Chelsea\u2019s The Roxy.<\/p>\n

Paying attention was a young Rick Rubin<\/a>, enamoured with the innovative presence of the DJ mastering the famous scratches and mixes just like any artist learns an instrument.<\/p>\n

Keen to nurture the \u2018new school\u2019 hip hop, moving away from the disco-oriented nature of the \u2018old school\u2019, Rubin teamed up with Russell Simmons to launch Def Jam as a venture to bolster the exciting MC and DJ dynamic evolving\u2014stylising the logo with emphasis on the \u2018D\u2019 and \u2018J\u2019 accordingly.<\/p>\n

Having already semi-officially issued T La Rock & Jazzy Jay\u2019s \u2018It\u2019s Yours\u2019, Simmons and Rubin\u2019s joint efforts oversaw key early releases from LL Cool J, Beastie Boys and, crucially, Run-DMC\u2019s \u2018Walk This Way\u2019 rap rework with the original\u2019s creators, Aerosmith. The new commercial attention, coupled with the rapidly evolving sampling technology available to budding producers and beat makers, saw Def Jam ride hip-hop\u2019s second wave as its leading champion and sonic innovator.<\/p>\n

Eager for the next vital artist to join the Def Jam roster, a tape of Long Island WLIR\u2019s Super Spectrum Mix Hour caught Rubin\u2019s attention. Hosted by Chuck D, spun demos of his newly formed Public Enemy with Flava Flav struck Def Jam HQ with such bold character and commanding style Rubin breathlessly sent an intern to convince the pair to join the label\u2019s roster.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was the guy,\u201d Rubin told New York in 2014. \u201cPublic Enemy was a very self-contained group, and between them and the Bomb Squad, they had their own thing going, and I just supported their trip. I can remember when Spike Lee decided to enlist Chuck to do \u2018Fight the Power\u2019. Spike shot the video, and that was a breakthrough for Public Enemy. That took them to a whole new level\u201d.<\/p>\n

Given a boost by supporting Beastie Boys on their Licensed to Ill<\/a> tour, Public Enemy\u2019s politically charged lyrical attack and arresting visual identity would see the ensemble pushed to the world\u2019s most essential act\u20141988\u2019s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back routinely celebrated as rap\u2019s greatest album. Hip hop was here to stay, and its enduring place in popular music owes a debt to the passionate burnishing that took place between Rubin\u2019s svengali passions and Public Enemy\u2019s groundbreaking creative and social vision.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Related Topics<\/p>\n

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