Witness The Birth Of Def Jam w/ Rick Rubin As He Revisits The NYU Dorm It Was Launched From

Def Jam's 30th anniversary is here folks. What better way to ring in the big three-oh than a chronicle of the legendary hip-hop label's storied past from one of its founders? Rick Rubin (the gawd and sole creative director) recently went back to room 712 of NYU's famed Weinstein Dorm to relive some of those formative moments. He tells tale after tale of hip-hop history, delving into how he met Uncle Rush, how Ad-Rock of The Beastie Boys played an integral roll in the discovery of LL Cool J and in so doing, procured the label's first major star.

And let's not forget how he and three kids from New York went from throwing epic parties in college dorms in 1984 to touring with Madonna in 1985. That's a pretty big leap for a bunch kids. The clip features interviews with Russell Simmons, Ad-Rock, Lyor Cohen, Rubin's roommate and first intern at Def Jam and a slew of others. It's a proper history lesson in how a group musical bandits changed the game forever. Watch as Rick Rubin breaks down the birth of Def Jam in the college dorm that reared it below.