MCA Dead at 47; but the Right to Party Continues…

Today is a sad day for the world of hip-hop. 1/3 of the one of the greatest (if not the greatest) hip-hop groups ever has passed. While the details on Adam “MCA” Yauch’s death are scarce we think it’s safe to assume that his long battle with cancer is the culprit.

What does this mean for music or hip-hop? Right now. It means nothing. MCA (with Mike D and King Ad Rock) fought for our right to party, and succeeded. While the group admittedly hated their most known song and refused to play it live, it was a game changer (much like everything else in the bands decade spanning career).

What started off as hardcore punk band between Adam and Mike Diamond (Mike D) eventually involved into one of the most influencial and important hip-hop groups ever (Only comparable to Run DMC and N.W.A.).

The Beastie Boys exploded in 1986 with their ground-breaking debut Licensed to Ill which took the Run DMC’s mix of rock and rap found on Raising Hell to the next level. The album even featured guitar playing from Slayer’s Kerry King on their single “No Sleep Til Brooklyn”.

Three years later the trio made a dangerous decision. Instead of making their follow-up album a carbon copy of their massive debut they crafted the greatest rap record in history. Paul’s Boutique was a flop by all standards when it was released, but now the weird sample heavy album has even been called the Sgt. Pepper of Hip Hop (which makes sense since The Beatles were sampled a few times on it).

After a three year break the Boys exploded in popularity throughout the 90’s with Check Your Head, Ill Communications and Hello Nasty. The group was never one to repeat themselves. They’d pick up their instruments and record their own beats for Check Your Head, they’re record straight hardcore punk songs and release them as singles (Sabatoge) and they’d experiment with all types of different styles with Hello Nasty.

In the 2000’s their experimentation continued to grew with the release of The Mix-Up (an all instrumental jam album) and the Concert movie Awesome, I Fucking Shot That! where 50 audience members received camcorders at their 2004 Madison Square Garden Concert and became the ‘directors’ of the concert film.

In 2009 they planned to release the album Hot Sauce Committee Part 1, however when Adam Yauch was diagnosed with cancer the album was pushed back multiple times until finally getting it’s release last year (with the name changed to Hot Sauce Committee Part 2). The album proved that the Beasties were still relevant and the most energetic performers out there.

So what does the death of MCA mean for the group? I love the Beastie Boys but to me this is the end of the band. The three piece will never find a new MCA and touring and recording as a duo won’t work. Run DMC hung up their microphones after the Death of their DJ Jam Master Jay. I can almost guarantee that the surviving Beasties will take a note from their hip-hop mentors.

It is a sad for the hip-hop community and the music world. The Beastie Boys allowed people like Eminem and Atmosphere to exist in today’s music. The best story of the group I read in a Rolling Stone magazine about the 500 greatest groups in music. Reverend Run told a story about the Beastie Boys touring with DMC and Public Enemy. He described the first show of the tour as being in the deep south and the whole tour thinking “This crowd is going to kill these three white boys.” Instead they stole the show.

“Real respects Real” said the Reverend. “They weren’t white guys acting black, they were white guys rapping about their lives. They rapped about White Castle burgers, Beer and Chicks.” Plus they were pretty damn good at doing it.

Below is a live performance they group did on Letterman in 2004 to promote To the 5 Boroughs. I think it best shows (a) why 3 Jewish White guys showed the world what Rap can sound like and (b) the level of imaginative and creative performances that will be sorely missed.