Def Jam co-founder and music mogul Russell Simmons has announced the launch of a new YouTube channel, All Def Digital, a collaboration between Rush Digital Media, Simmons’ media company, and Dreamworks Animation subsidiary Awesomeness TV, one of the most teen-trafficked video platforms. Partnered with Google/YouTube and GlobalGrind.com, All Def Digital will serve as a new source for urban music, comedy, and spoken word.
“I’ve worked my entire professional life to promote up-and-coming talent and the new art forms they create and YouTube is the perfect platform for this new generation,” wrote Simmons in a press release. “Just as our talent will benefit from being able to engage directly with their fans, YouTube will benefit from having a network that reflects the incredible diversity of the new America.”
All Def Digital will host original series including “Odd World: MellowHigh,” which follows hip-hop trio MellowHigh (Hodgy Beats, Left Brain, and Domo Genesis) as they record their next EP and tour the country with the rest of Odd Future; “B-Rock,” an animated series that re-imagines Barack Obama in the White House; and “Dr. Reasons,” a couples-counseling show helmed by YouTube phenom Spoken Reasons (born John A. Baker, Jr.).
There are also plans in the works for original music programming in the form of All Def Music, which is scheduled for debut sometime this fall, and All Def Poetry, which will showcase spoken word videos.
This announcement follows the July unveiling of All Def Music, a “record” label helmed by Simmons, Steve Rifkind (CEO and partner of All Def Music), and film director/producer Brian Robbins (founder and president of Varsity Pictures, director of “Hardball,” “Varsity Blues”), focused on the development and promotion of artists via YouTube.