history

Seminal rap label Def Jam is preparing to publish a memoir of its own storied history, with the humbly-titled 'Def Jam Recordings: The First 25 Years of the Last Great Record Label.' The 304-page tome is written by hip-hop legend Bill Adler and writer Dan Charnas, with prefaces by Def Jam titans Rick Rubin, Russell Simmons, Lyor Cohen and Kevin Liles, and will be published by Rizzoli in September.

Before the Internet and MP3 players, there was the boombox. It was the first democratic and public way to listen to your favorite music in high fidelity and one of the coolest fashion accessories of its day. In a new book by photographer and collector Lyle Owerko entitled 'The Boombox Project,' the box is explored in all its shapes and forms along with a photographic history of the urban environme