When i first bought this book, I was hoping for more stories about the artists that he has signed to his hip hop record label, Def Jam. There are quite a few interresting stories in the book, but it seems as though the more you read the less interrested you become. Don't get me wrong, this book isn't all that bad, i just hoped for more on his record label and less on his other ventures that no one has ever heard of. If i had the choice in the future to purchase this book, I'm fairly confident that i would choose something else instead.
Second, this is a very interesting story about a self-made millionaire who pioneered and profited from an industry that didn't exist 30 years ago. However, this book leaves a lot to be desired.
Life & Def sets sail with a strong start. Simmons details his childhood and introduces his creative family. He explains the strong influence of his mother (the free-spirit painter who encouraged her children to seek non-traditional occupations), and his father (the writer who believed in a 9-5, but encouraged artistic expressions and even wrote lyrics for Run DMC!) Despite the strong start, the ship soon goes off course. Simmons bombards you with names, (random) dates, and industry specific terms. He gives brief overviews of important milestones such as his successful HBO show Def Comedy Jam, only to return (briefly again!) later in the book.
My love of hip-hop and desire for entrepreneurial success pushed me through the choppy waters of this book. I especially struggled to stay afloat during the last 30 pages. By this time I was mentally exhausted from wading through oceans of acronyms, abbreviations, and run-on sentences. Simmons offers a plethora of advice. He candidly shares his mistakes and regrets in an attempt to save the reader from the same. However, he gives you a map for success omitting the last leg of the trip! At the end of the book, I was lost at sea searching for answers to the many issues that plagued the author. The best example of this is the recurring theme of drugs. Simmons readily admits that he heavily indulged in everything from marijuana, to cocaine, to angel dust (his hallucinogen of choice.) He then briefly (3 pages!) outlines how yoga led him in his quest for spirituality. He never mentions when (or if?) he discontinued the heavy drug use.
Despite the poor writing, this book is a must read for any hip-hop lover or entrepreneur. He does provide facts, tips, do's, and don't's, of any business. However, this book does his story no justice. Call me old fashioned, but I still think that the best way to write an autobiography is in chronological order. As an avid reader and aspiring writer, Life & Def reinforced the importance of a good EDITOR.
Buy it today!