MCA on the “most important MC in hip hop”
The Beastie Boys were an exciting collective when they first arrived in the 1980s. The Brooklyn group, comprised of Michael ‘Mike D’ Diamond, Adam ‘MCA’ Yauch and Adam ‘Ad-Rock’ Horovitz, akin to Run-DMC, the trio brought the genres of rock and hip-hop together in a clever way and made an indelible mark on the culture.
The collective was formed in 1978 and first achieved success with their comedy hip-hop song ‘Kooky Puss’ in 1983. However, feeling that they were not taking hip-hop to its full potential by fusing it with humour, the Beastie Boys ultimately decided to take their craft more seriously in 1984.
As part of the Def Jam fold alongside acts like Run-DMC and LL Cool J, with the help of Rick Rubin, the Beastie Boys exploded into the mainstream with their 1986 debut album Licensed to Ill and never looked back. The project became the first rap record to ever debut at number one on the Billboard 200, and the Beastie Boys went on to sell over 20million records in the US.
However, they were inspired by several artists before they touched the microphones themselves. In an interview, Adam ‘MCA’ Yauch revealed who he believes is the “most important MC in hip-hop.”
Recalling the early 1980s in New York, Yauch recounted the anti-establishment, counterculture wave that took over the city when Public Enemy arrived, asserting, “No one has been able to approach the political power that Public Enemy brought to hip-hop. I put them on a level with Bob Marley and a handful of other artists — the rare artist who can make great music and also deliver a political and social message.”
Public Enemy were extremely radical in their message and, akin to NWA took their city and region by storm when they brought their unapologetic, unfiltered opinion about America to the masses.
In his conversation with Rolling Stone, Yauch remembered when Public Enemy co-headlined a tour with him and cited it as the first time he heard ‘Rebel Without a Pause’.
Vividly detailing the moment, Yauch stated, “We were on tour with Run-DMC, and one day Chuck D put on a tape they had just finished. It was the first time they used those screeching horns along with this incredibly heavy beat — it was just unlike anything I had ever heard before. It blew my wig back.”
That said, due to his love of Public Enemy, it’s unsurprising that Yauch considers the group’s frontman Chuck D to be the “most important MC in hip-hop”. Elaborating on his reasons for this, Yauch concluded, “To me, Chuck D is the most important MC in hip-hop. On a strictly MC’ing-skill basis, I rank him up there with the best: His power and cadences on lines is unmatched. Then, if you take into account what he’s actually saying, it puts him on a different plane from any other MC!”