For a brief 10 year period, Mtv was the coolest television station that would ever exist. Before their current regular programming of expectant teenage mother reality shows, and Real World spin-offs, Music Television was not only a mecca for popular culture, it was THE mecca of pop culture, a definer of the times, and a curator of youthful artistic talent. When I say “artistic talent”, I’m not just talking about its cashcow videos of bands and solo artists featured on its airwaves. I’m also talking about all the behind-the-scenes talent. They curated illustrators to create their famous, yet ever changing logo; animators and directors employed to make their interstitials come to life, the most famous being the “I WANT MY MTV” campaign; but also, writers who gave voice to the onscreen talent, and news segments. Watching Mtv was almost like watching a college level art school demo reel, but with commercials.
Then in 1986, along came New York City music scene alumni, Beastie Boys. A perfect encapsulation of what Mtv was at the time. Raw, driven, eccentric, yet accessible to all. Like Mtv, they not only represent a culture, they represent an era, and a certain generation.
Their musical history is a journey of several different genres. First formed as a hardcore band, which evolved into punk, and then evolved into hip-hop. Mtv put Beastie Boys on the map, that in turn, exposed hip-hop to an audience that otherwise may not have had access to rhymes and beats from the streets. All the while, paving the way for other hip-hop artists to rise to stardom.
Some would say they also eventually evolved into pop. So what if they had become pop? Beastie Boys have always been eclectic and have reached out to pop audiences their entire career.
A perfect example, in 1985 the trio opened for Madonna’s first tour. That was a full year before Licensed to Ill came out and gave Gen-X a mantra. Come on, you know the one: “You gotta fight for your right to party!”.
Can you imagine arenas full of 14 year old girls there to see a “pop tart”, witnessing Beastie Boys for the first time, long before the group was exposed to the world in heavy Mtv video rotation? It’s laughable, but it worked!
Personally, I think Beastie Boys transcended all genres of music and created one of their own. They are so very distinctive that, should anyone else come along imitating their “Beastie-Boysian” style, would be deemed as counterfeit, and rightly so.
CONTROL Gallery in Los Angeles currently has an exhibit Beyond the Streets: Beastie Boys. Four thousand square feet of gallery space dedicated to “artifacts” the band has collected over the years. The exhibit was everything I expected it to be, though I do wish there was more. However, what they did have on display was absolutely fascinating. Early flyers, clothing items worn, and studio equipment. Everything from microphones to the huge floppy disks they used in the 80s. They even had the wigs and walkie-talkies from the “Sabotage” video.
Though, for me, the stand-out star of the exhibit was the early 80’s Fisher boombox. It is unbelievable it made it nearly 40 years, but that it was literally 12 inches in front of my face was slightly baffling. Was I maybe “starstruck”? Lol I wonder if it still works, or just something they kept as a relic of their career.
It was also fascinating to see the notebooks and pages of handwritten lyrics that were displayed. I like to write in journals, clearly, so I felt a connection to the band’s need of keeping a notebook as an outlet. It was impressive how meticulous most of the handwriting was. Very little if any cursive. Yes, there were things scratched through, and notes written in the margins, but overall, the writing seemed methodical, purposeful.They had put down on paper raw yet nearly finalized lyrics and paragraphs, with sparse doctoring here and there, in ink.
Yes, they were rappers, but also poets, lyricists, and wordsmiths. They used language and sound to communicate thoughts, ideas, beliefs, experience, and emotions. They expressed an honesty of who they are, where they are from, and where they want to go using the pen and a beat on the programmer.
Check out the photo gallery below to see some of what was on display from the Beasties.
CONTROL Gallery; Los Angeles 2022
Clothing
Studio/Tour Equipment; Log Books
Hotel Shenanigans
That’s just only a sampling of what is on display. If you are in the LA area, the exhibit is open until January 23rd, 2023 FREE. However, you have to reserve a ticket at WWW.BEYONDTHESTREETS.COM
BEYOND THE STREETS FLAGSHIP (CONTROL Gallery)
434 N La Brea Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036
Wednesday – Saturday: 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. | Sunday – Tuesday: Closed
