Hard to believe that Def Jam Records has been around for 25 years! I remember the first time I heard of Def Jam, it was when I discovered The Beastie Boys classic debut “Licensed To Ill” a release that managed to bring hip-hop, punk, rock and mainstream audiences together with the universal call to “Fight for Your Right to Party!” Something any 13 year old (my age in 1986) can stand behind, even though I really didn’t know what “partying” was yet.

The label was started by the now-infamous record producer Rick Rubin in his dorm room at NYU and its first release was a single by his punk group Hose. Shortly after that, Vincent Gallo introduced Rubin to Russell Simmons. The label would then focus more on hip-hop and urban music but would also count thrash-metal band Slayer among its ranks, proving its diversity and desire to bring the rock and hip-hop communities together. Throughout the late 80s and early to mid 90s, Def Jam would dominate the pop charts with ground breaking releases by Public Enemy, LL Cool J and EPMD and then into the new millennium with chart-toppers Rihanna, Jay Z and Kanye West.

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Rubin left the label in 1988 to form Def American Recordings (bringing Slayer with him) which would eventually evolve into American Recordings. American gained notoriety for the Rubin-produced, career-reviving Johnny Cash recordings that would define the latter part of the country legend’s lifetime. Russell Simmons has since become the third richest man in the hip-hop community with an estimated worth of $340 million.

Tomorrow night in Seattle, Experience Music Project presents “Def Jam25: The First 25 Years of the Last Great Record Label,” a lecture and book event celebrating the pioneering hip hop label. The Def Jam25 lecture series will be conducted by the co-authors of “DEFinition: the Art and Design of Hip-Hop,” and Def Jam Recordings founding staff members, journalist and biographer Bill Adler and creative director Cey Adams. This is a great opportunity to get the inside stories behind possibly the greatest hip-hop label ever and a chance to see how they rose from humble beginnings to the top of the heap. Tickets are still available right over here so get yours before they’re gone.