Def Jam Records

American record label co-founded by Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons in 1984 — from Rubin's NYU dorm room — which signed and developed LL Cool J, Beastie Boys, Public Enemy, and later Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Rihanna, making it the most influential label in hip-hop history.

Created the commercial infrastructure for hip-hop — proving it could be a viable record label business with mainstream distribution — and established the creative standard for the genre's first decade while developing the most important artists in its history.