“No Sleep til Brooklyn” — When the head-banger’s head falls off. Priceless. These guys always made the best videos.

Verbal’s Post — Your Strawberries line cracked me up and it’s always a pleasure to read stories about your mulligan. Thank you. Good post. I’m glad you had a story to tell, rather than simply pass the word like these other shit-bumb blogs.

A few Beastie memories…

-I had tickets to see them in 2000 with Rage and Busta. I think No Doubt may have been on that bill, too. Mike D had some sort of injury from bicycling and the whole show was cancelled. I was never able to see them in concert.

-When we were kids, my copy of Ill Communication skipped on a few tracks so I stole MC Frow’s. He called me out on it minutes afterwards and I gave it back. I’ll steal his new copy later today once I’m out of work.

-Most recited BB line: “Uhh ruh-ruh.” Props to all those who know.

-The Check Your Head chapter of Brian Coleman’s Check the Technique charged my appreciation for these guys. It was one of the only chapters in the entire book that made me say to myself; “Wow, these guys are so fucking cool.”

-Pre-four-eyes, a few people had told me I looked like MCA. I never really saw it.

-I am admittedly Ad Rock’s biggest fan-boy. I bite his style daily and praise his rhymes over most.

—

White rappers; Signing to Def Jam; First rock-rap group/record; Topping the Billboard; Dust Brothers sampling on Paul’s Boutique; The self-produced Check Your Head; “Sabotage”; Releasing Aglio e Olio, a ten-minute-long punk record directly after Ill Communication; Three emcees cutting an all instrumental album. That’s an unfuckwitable career.

RIP MCA

*cries in coffee shop*

CM <3 CP 4 Life.

- Beavis and Butthead watching the “Sabotage” music video during Butt-Bowl II. I think I was 10 or 11. RIP Nathan Wind aka “Cochese”

- Rapping “Intergalactic” on the mic at my 7th grade dance. I think it was some kind of set up to humiliate me because I wore my sardine can Beastie Boys t-shirt days 2 days in a row one week but jokes on them. I rocked that shit. (no connection to this and the fact that I was a virgin for a billion years)

- My brothers ex-alien head hating on them for the song, “Girls” — She was awful. The truth is out there, homie.

-The only hip hop WBRU would play outside of their Sunday rotation. I always thought that was funny, never quite understood it, but we’ll take it.

- I love the VMAs and my favorite moments are when people use it as a platform to make everyone uncomfortable (what up, 1997 Fiona Apple!) — MCA using the ceremony to speak out against stereotyping Muslims as terrorists is something that threw me for a loop at the time but looking back on it…that sentiment was so ahead of its time. Their collective stance on women’s rights always made me happy–hip hop I can listen to without feeling like the ultimate betrayer. With that, “The New Style” is still my jam. “Oooooh-oohhhh Oooooooooo-ooh.”

-In 2009 I bought All Points West tickets to see the Beastie Boys in New Jersey. This would be my second attempt to see them. No dice. Adam Yauch was diagnosed with cancer that year and Jay-Z took the Beastie Boys’ place. Now, I know your feelings on Jay-Z but his tribute to Adam Yauch at the beginning of his set was the coolest thing I’ve ever witnessed. It was so touching to see thousands of people rapping along to, “No Sleep Till Brookyln” and just totally bugging out. It was fitting. Fuck cancer, let’s celebrate how awesome MCA is.

Everyone (minus aforementioned alien heads) is a Beastie Boys fan. My brother always says that everyone likes at least one Beatles song. I feel that way about the Beastie Boys. That’s hard to do. Love you, MCA.