Rick Rubin & Russell Simmons Remember The Beastie Boys’ Beginnings (Video)

In the second (of four) installment of the 30th anniversary Def Jam Records vignettes, Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin sit down to remember Adam “MCA” Yauch. Interestingly enough, in recalling the pre-Licensed To Ill days of the New York City trio, Rick Rubin served as the Beasties’ DJ, before DJ Hurricane, and later Mixmaster Mike.

Remembering that era, Rush and Rick dive into breakthrough single “(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party).” With its character-driven video, the two founders of Def Jam recall swiping the title from a Punk song in MCA’s other band. Meanwhile, the group expressed early concern that the song’s lyrics and video would project a misogynistic, pro-drug message.

With the group taking a totally different slant in their post-Licensed To Ill albums, how do you look at Russell’s point that songs like this are merely ideas, showing anti-authoritarian views, with lyrics playing a back-seat?

Take away their early hit, how do you think the Beastie Boys’ legacy would have been effected?

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