“Def Jam has been a trusted, iconic home for some of the most important R&B artists, songs videos, writers, moments and so much more, alongside hip-hop,” Alex Boateng tells Apple Music. Boateng’s reputation as a respected music executive was solidified back in 2020 when he and his twin brother Alec, aka Twin B, became the presidents of 0207 Def Jam, the newly established London-based arm of the renowned label co-founded by Rick Rubin in 1984. In celebration of Def Jam’s 40th anniversary, Boateng recruited DJ Ace, who has long been a champion of R&B music, to bring the label’s past, present and future together in one irresistible mix of music to, in Twin B’s words, “break up, make up, shake up and take up to”. R&B, Lovers condenses four decades of Def Jam history into just over an hour. The mix spins through timeless cuts from legends such as JAY-Z, Mariah Carey, Rihanna and more, era-defining anthems by Ja Rule and DMX, and rising stars tendai, Fridayy and Elmiene like a roulette wheel where every pocket wins the jackpot. Curating this reminder of “Def Jam’s sick legacy and future stars” was no easy feat, but for Alex there were some no-brainers. “If we’re talking Def Jam R&B you can’t leave out anything from Ashanti, Dru Hill, Ne-Yo or [Def Jam era] Mariah,” he says, tipping “Is This Real Love?” by up-and-coming UK soul star Debbie as “a new classic”. As for his personal favourites, he continues: “LL COOL J and Boyz II Men’s ‘Hey Lover’ reminds me of when I was little and probably not supposed to be listening to LL trying to steal someone’s girl mad smoothly, [and] all the rap love songs from DMX, Meth and Fabolous, ’cause no one shows love in a certain way like rappers.”