Frederick Jay "Rick" Rubin (/ˈruːbɪn/; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer and former co-president of Columbia Records. Along with Russell Simmons, he is the co-founder of Def Jam Recordings and also established American Recordings. With the Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Public Enemy, Geto Boys, and Run-DMC, Rubin helped popularise hip hop music. He also produced a number of top-selling artists from a variety of other genres including heavy metal (Danzig, Slayer, System of a Down, Metallica), alternative rock (The Strokes, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Weezer, The Cult), and country (Johnny Cash, The Chicks). In 2007, MTV called him "the most important producer of the last 20 years," and the same year, Rubin appeared on Time's "100 Most Influential People in the World".