The Beastie Boys were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, but could not take part in the ceremonies. The reason? It's not that they were following the lead of Axl Rose and dissing the Hall. Hardly. One of the founding members of the group was simply unable to attend, and so the Boys couldn't perform.
Adam Yauch, better known as MCA, passed away earlier today, losing a lengthy battle with cancer at 47. Yauch was first diagnosed with the cancer in his neck in 2009, which pushed back the release of a CD that ultimately came out last year, and perhaps will be the final Beastie Boys album.
In the course of their 26 years together, the Beastie Boys went from just a trio of frat-boy white rappers to a gifted, versatile combo that could also play instruments as well as throw down rhymes. The adjustments had to be made in order to stay relevant in hip-hop, of course, but it also allowed the Boys to remold their image, getting away from the frat party imagery cultivated by their 1986 debut hit, "Fight For Your Right (To Party)", and moving forward to more adventurous visual efforts, including 1998's "Intergalactic", and 1994's homage to 70's crime drama, "Sabotage", which I've chosen to represent the Beasties at their best as we pay tribute to MCA today. The video comes from EMI's VEVO channel. Rest in peace, Adam.
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