Def Jef (born
Jeffrey Forster) is an American
alternative hip hop artist and rapper of the late
1980s and early
1990s. His debut album was
1989's
Just a Poet With a Soul, which won critical acclaim for sociopolitical lyrics and original beats. He was unable to live up to the expectations for his second album, however, and
Soul Food[?], was a critical and commercial failure. Def Jef moved into
production, working with
Nas,
Snoop Doggy Dogg and
Tupac Shakur, among others, as well as appearing in films like
Deep Cover[?] in
1992 (see
1992 in film).