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Adam Yauch

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Adam Yauch
Yauch performing in 2007
Yauch performing in 2007
Background information
Birth nameAdam Nathaniel Yauch
Also known asMCA
Nathanial Hörnblowér
Born(1964-08-05)August 5, 1964
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
DiedMay 4, 2012(2012-05-04) (aged 47)
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.[1]
GenresHip hop, rap rock, hardcore punk, alternative hip hop
Occupation(s)Rapper, musician, songwriter, director, film distributor
Instrument(s)MC, vocals, bass guitar, keyboards
Years active1979—2012
LabelsDef Jam
Grand Royal
Capitol
Websitewww.beastieboys.com

Adam Nathaniel Yauch (pronounced /ˈjaʊk/; August 5, 1964 – May 4, 2012) was an American rapper, songwriter, and film director. He was best known as a founding member of hip hop trio the Beastie Boys, started in 1979 in New York City. He was frequently known by his stage name, MCA, and sometimes worked under the pseudonym Nathanial Hörnblowér.

Yauch founded Oscilloscope Laboratories, an independent film production and distribution company based out of New York City. A Buddhist, he was involved in the Tibetan independence movement and organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert.

Early life

Yauch was born an only child in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Frances, a social worker, and Noel Yauch, who is a painter and architect.[2] His father was Catholic and his mother was Jewish, and he was raised in a non-religious home.[3][4]

Yauch attended Edward R. Murrow High School in the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn. In high school, he taught himself to play the bass guitar.[5] Yauch formed the Beastie Boys with John Berry, Kate Schellenbach, and Michael Diamond.[6] They played their first show — then still a hardcore punk band in the vein of Reagan Youth — on his 17th birthday. He attended Bard College for two years before dropping out.[7]

Career

When Yauch was 22, the Beastie Boys, now performing as a hip hop trio, released their first album Licensed to Ill on Def Jam Records. Under the pseudonym "Nathanial Hörnblowér", Yauch directed many of the Beastie Boys' music videos.[7][8]

In 2002, Yauch built a recording studio in New York City called Oscilloscope Laboratories. He began an independent film distributing company called Oscilloscope Pictures.[9] Yauch directed the 2006 Beastie Boys concert film, Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That!, although in the DVD extras for the film, the title character in "A Day in the Life of Nathanial Hörnblowér" is played by David Cross. He also directed the 2008 film Gunnin' For That #1 Spot about eight high school basketball prospects at the Boost Mobile Elite 24 Hoops Classic at Rucker Park in Harlem, New York City. Yauch produced Build a Nation, the comeback album from hardcore/punk band Bad Brains. Oscilloscope Laboratories also distributed Adam Yauch's directorial film debut, basketball documentary Gunnin' For That #1 Spot (2008) as well as Kelly Reichardt's Wendy and Lucy (2008) and Oren Moverman’s The Messenger (2009).[10]

The Beastie Boys had sold 40 million records worldwide by 2010.[7] In April 2012, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Yauch was inducted in absentia due to his illness.[5] His bandmates paid tribute to Yauch; a letter from Yauch was read to the crowd.[11]

In 2011, Yauch received the Charles Flint Kellogg Award in Arts and Letters from Bard College, the college he attended for two years. The award is "given in recognition of a significant contribution to the American artistic or literary heritage."[12]

Personal life

Yauch was a practicing Buddhist.[13] He became an important voice in the Tibetan independence movement. He created the Milarepa Fund, a non-profit organization devoted to Tibetan independence, and organized several benefit concerts to support the cause, including the Tibetan Freedom Concert.[5][10][14]

He and his wife, Dechen Wangdu, had a daughter, Tenzin Losel, in 1998.[5][15]

Illness and death

In 2009, Yauch was diagnosed and treated for a cancerous parotid gland and a lymph node and underwent surgery and radiation therapy delaying the release of Hot Sauce Committee Part Two and the subsequent tour.[16][17] He was unable to appear in music videos for the album.[5][10] Yauch became a vegan under the recommendation of his Tibetan doctors.[18] At the time, Yauch described the cancer as "very treatable".[19]

Yauch died at age 47 on May 4, 2012.[1][20] The cause of death was not immediately known.[21] Upon his death, Russell Simmons of Def Jam Records" said that Yauch "was incredibly sweet and the most sensitive artist, who I loved dearly." Ben Stiller tweeted that Yauch "stood for integrity as an artist."[7] Joel Madden of Good Charlotte said of the Beastie Boys: "We wanted to dress like them, talk like them, and we wanted to make music like them."[6]

References

  1. ^ a b "Beastie Boys Co-Founder Adam Yauch Dead at 47". Rolling Stone. May 4, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  2. ^ http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/index.ssf/story/adam-yauch-dies-at-47-beastie-boy/bc75e8598d8129c6da6b0dedbd4663cd
  3. ^ By Anthony DeCurtis (May 28, 1998). "Adam Yauch on His Spiritual Journey: 'I Don't Care If Somebody Makes Fun of Me' | Music News". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
  4. ^ Anderman, Joan (August 26, 1998). "From Beastie Boy to a man of the spirit". Boston Globe.
  5. ^ a b c d e Gray, Madison. "Adam Yauch, MCA of the Beastie Boys, Dies After Cancer Complications". Entertainment.time.com. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  6. ^ a b "Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch dies at age 47". Content.usatoday.com. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
  7. ^ a b c d "Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys dies at 47". Boston.com. May 2, 2008. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  8. ^ "Nathanial Hornblower bio". oscilloscope.net.
  9. ^ Ryzik, Melena (September 8, 2008). "Offstage, a Beastie Boy Enters the World of Independent Film". The New York Times. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  10. ^ a b c 2:08 PM By Rafer Guzman. "Beastie Boys rapper Adam Yauch dead at 47". Newsday.com. Retrieved May 4, 2012.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ By WENN.com. "Yauch misses Hall of Fame ceremony | Music | Entertainment | London Free Press". Lfpress.com. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  12. ^ "Academics – Bard College Catalogue". Bard.edu. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  13. ^ Van Biema, David; McDowell, Jeanne (October 13, 1997). "Buddhism in American". Time Magazine.
  14. ^ "Tibet supporter Yauch of Beastie Boys fights with cancer". www.phayul.com. July 21, 2009. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  15. ^ "Adam Yauch Dead: Beastie Boys' MCA Dies After Battling Cancer". The Huffington Post. May 4, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  16. ^ Thomson, Katherine (July 20, 2009). "Beastie Boy Adam Yauch has 'very treatable' cancer". Associated Press. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  17. ^ Yauch Announcement on YouTube
  18. ^ "Beastie Boy 'hopeful' over cancer". BBC News. October 8, 2009.
  19. ^ "The Associated Press: Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys dies at 47". Google.com. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
  20. ^ "R.I.P. Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys". Pitchfork Media.
  21. ^ By Jim HarringtonOakland Tribune. "Adam Yauch, member of groundbreaking hip-hop band Beastie Boys, dies at age 47 – San Jose Mercury News". Mercurynews.com. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
Interviews

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