Beastie Inspirations: Adam Yauch’s five favourite songs
Over the years, New York City’s concrete pavements have produced a wealth of groundbreaking artists, musicians, and filmmakers. Everyone from Sonny Rollins to Sonic Youth has provided a soundtrack to the East Coast city, but few artists have managed to replicate the incredible songwriting, artistry, and ethos of Beastie Boys founding member Adam Yauch—better known by his stage name, MCA—who helped revolutionise the world of hip-hop.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, Yauch was the archetypal New York teenager, ingrained with the inherent attitude of the city and the eclectic range of artistic influences that came along with that. The city was a strange and dark place during the 1970s, which inspired the development of the punk rock movement, which would soon define the music scene of NYC. Although Yauch was only a teenager during this period, he was keen to get in on the action and establish his interest in the world of music by forming the hardcore punk outfit Young Aborigines, soon to be renamed Beastie Boys.
During the early years of the group, Yauch and company remained dedicated to that punk rock ethos, spurred on by fellow New York groups like Reagan Youth and influences from further afield like Washington D.C.’s Bad Brains. Known for their blending of laidback dub reggae and defiant hardcore punk, Yauch had always admired Bad Brains, even before starting his own punk outfit. Even during the height of Beastie-mania, MCA could be seen on stage with the album cover of Bad Brains’ debut record splashed across his shirt.
Although Beastie Boys were a highlight of New York’s hardcore scene, as their early recordings confirm, Yauch and the boys found a natural home in the blossoming hip-hop scene. Pretty soon, the band’s sound would almost exclusively adhere to the hip-hop genre, and a lot of the inspiration for this move came from fellow New Yorker Spoonie Gee. Although Gee did not reach the dizzying hip-hop heights of some later artists, he always remained a favourite of MCA.
Yauch’s bandmate, Mike D, once recalled to The Tonight Show, “Yauch was a master of memorising every word, cadence, and style of the rapper Spoonie Gee. I was a little more into Treacherous Three, but then Treacherous Three and Spoonie Gee had a song together [The New Rap Language], so we could all meet.” Thus, the definitive era of the Beastie Boys was born.
After their switch to rapping and the smash-hit success of their debut album Licensed To Ill, Beastie Boys found themselves with a certain level of power and authority over the music scene of New York. Instead of exploiting this power, however, Yauch and the band took the opportunity to espouse the brilliance of some fellow artists. After forming their own record label, Grand Royal, in 1992 after leaving Def Jam, one of the first artists the band signed were Manhattan alternative rockers Luscious Jackson, who released ‘Daughters of the Kaos’.
As well as Luscious Jackson, Beastie Boys were integral to the success of some fellow hip-hop icons, like Public Enemy. During the early years of Chuck D’s group, they were invited on tour by the Beastie Boys, which allowed them to reach a much wider audience. Yauch, in particular, was a huge fan of the group, once sharing, “They inspired a lot of people who believed that you can effect change through music, and they’re still inspiring to me.”
He added, “‘Rebel Without a Pause’ [was] unlike anything I had ever heard before. It blew my wig back.”
Although Beastie Boys formed an integral part of the hip-hop scene, both in New York and further afield, Yauch always maintained a healthy appreciation for the punk rock that first inspired him to songwriting greatness. As such, when MCA married Tibetan-American activist Dechen Wangdu in 1998, he needed a suitably punk rock wedding band. Enter ska punk icon Rancid, who played – what you can only assume – was a euphoric, adrenaline-fueled set at Yauch’s wedding.
The world lost Adam Yauch in 2012, as the legendary musician died as a result of parotid cancer at the age of only 47, providing a tragic end to the anarchic story of the Beastie Boys. Nevertheless, the legacy of the defiant songwriter lives on to this day through the countless artists and musicians he inspired. Testament to the punk ethos of Yauch, his last will and testament included a clause that his music could never be used in advertising, which seems a fitting epitaph for the rapper. His intentions were never monetary; he simply had something important to say.
