Earlier this month, Sarah Lewitinn (Ultragrrrl) brought her label, Stolen Transmission, back to the bedroom after leaving Island/Def Jam. This was just one of many things that signaled more changes for the major, and now it turns out that the president of Def Jam, Jay-Z, is stepping down from his position. The NY Times reports:Jay-Z made the announcement with Def Jam’s parent, Universal Music Group, as his employment contract was expiring. Under a separate long-term......

Subway station is better than no subway station. That's the lesson we're taking from the NY Sun's story about surging subway ridership at some unlikely stations. The fast growing station? The J/M/Z station at Bowery and Delancey, which now has 1,771 people entering the station daily, versus 308 in 1995. The station's growth seems to be a reflection of the intense Lower East Side development. The second fastest growing station is Beach 98th Street......

With the US Open heading to its climactic weekend, there have been some fun articles about the ball boys and girls at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Take the NY Times' US Open blog post about "Ballbabes": Male spectators seem to love some of the ladies wearing the Ralph Lauren designed outfits (sleeveless and short, while the ball boys get less revealing polo shirts and shorts) and boo when their favorites get rotated......

Mother Nature must have realized she ignored us during the summer, as yesterday's rainfall broke records and caused lots of problems. Over 3.5" inches of rain fell yesterday, and with rain on deck for today and tomorrow, it's possible October's rainfall will exceed the 10.53" that fell in July, August and September combined. The NY Times spoke to an AccuWeather meteorologist, who said with the winds coming, it'll be "our first really good northeaster." Well,......

- Augusten Burroughs runs with Gothamist Interviews - City's economy picks up some - NYC Concert questions: How close can you get to Ad-Rock and why did Morrissey leave the stage early? - Wine and cheese pairing suggestions from our own (Tamara)Lover - Gothamist Sports on college football's top 15 - Feral cats rule city streets - The J-E-T-S have a 4-0 start - Commuting by pod in NJ might happen - Food carts......

Jon Setzen, Designer...

Yesterday, a mysterious incident caused the Williamsburg Bridge to be shut down, both on the roadway and subway, yesterday morning. The J, M, and Z were affected, and proving that some people do ride the J, M, and Z, one reader wrote to Gothamist about the incident, feeling that it was impromptu and a pain, "as more or less mellow cops directed thwarted hipsters to the L," adding, "I don't know how those hipsters stand......