The dilligent folks at Blank on Blank (via the Washington Post) have unearthed an unheard ’80s interview with the Beastie Boys for their animated PBS series. In the clip, the late Adam “MCA” Yauch explains the origin of the group’s name: “It’s from the good old days. We were a hardcore band… At time it was the stupidest name that I could possibly think of. And if you could think of a stupider name I’d probably be pretty impressed now. So lay it on me: can you think of a stupider name than the Beastie Boys?” Interviewer Rocci Fisch for ABC News Radio responds in the negative. “So then that answers your question.”
Though comprising only about five minutes of audio, the video above contains a handful of fantastic nuggets, ranging from the trio talking about their then-current tour with Madonna (Mike D: “Usually there’s… a riot breaking out after every show because either the crowd wants to kill us or we have to run from the girls because they mob us”) to their supposed status as rappers for the suburbs (Ad-Rock: “That we are soul, hardcore, b-boy music, and we do not play sucker music.”). Recorded in 1985, the Beasties hadn’t yet released their debut LP Licensed to Ill.
[via spin]
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