On this date in 1985, Hip Hop mogul Russell Simmons, alongside acclaimed filmmaker Michael Schultz, introduced the early glory days of Def Jam Information to life with the Warner Brothers-distributed movie Krush Groove.

Half drama, half musical, Krush Groove captured the uncooked power and ambition of the tradition’s golden period. What made the movie distinctive was its authenticity—a lot of Hip Hop’s greatest acts of the time performed themselves on display. The Fats Boys, Run-D.M.C., Kurtis Blow, Jeckyll and Hyde, the Beastie Boys, and Sheila E. all appeared as themselves, whereas Simmons was portrayed by a younger Blair Underwood. The story loosely adopted the rise of Def Jam Information, co-founded by Simmons and a younger Rick Rubin, showcasing their hustle earlier than they turned business icons.

The movie even gave followers a glimpse into how Def Jam’s first solo artist, LL Cool J, earned his spot on the roster—bursting into the label’s NYU dorm “workplace” to audition and delivering his now-famous line, “Field!” earlier than performing “I Can’t Reside With out My Radio.”

The Krush Groove soundtrack turned a time capsule of the mid-80s Hip Hop sound, that includes The Fats Boys’ “All You Can Eat,” LL Cool J’s “I Can’t Reside With out My Radio,” and Kurtis Blow’s “If I Dominated The World”—a file later reimagined by Nas and Lauryn Hill right into a timeless basic. The title observe, “Krush Groove (Can’t Cease the Avenue),” united an all-star lineup referred to as The Krush Groove All Stars, additional cementing the movie’s legacy.

4 a long time later, Krush Groove stays one in every of Hip Hop’s most influential cinematic moments—a mirrored image of the motion’s rise from block events to the massive display.

Salute to Russell Simmons, Michael Schultz, Jam Grasp Jay, Run-D.M.C., The Fats Boys, LL Cool J, and each legend who helped make Krush Groove a endlessly basic in Hip Hop historical past.