Beastie Boys

The Beastie Boys were an American rap group. According to an interview with Charlie Rose, the word "Beastie" is the backronym of Boys Entering Anarchic States Towards Internal Excellence. They formed in 1981 as a punk rock band. Their most famous albums are probably Licensed To Ill (1986) and Paul's Boutique (1989). Licensed To Ill is their first album, and it is an album that is given credit for starting the type of music "rap rock", which is rapping done over rock guitar or beats. Paul's Boutique is an album famous for its use of samples, or snippets of music, and the fact that the samples were put together in creative, interesting ways.

Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys in 2009; from left to right: Ad-Rock, MCA and Mike D
Background information
Also known as	The Young Aborigines (1978–1981)
Origin	New York City, U.S.
Genres	Hip hop rap rock jazz-funk hardcore punk alternative rock
Years active	1981 (1981)–2012 (2012)
Labels	Rat Cage Def Jam Columbia Capitol Grand Royal
Past member(s)	John Berry Mike D Kate Schellenbach MCA Ad-Rock
Website	beastieboys.com

Adam Yauch (1964-2012) was one of the founding members of the band until his death on May 4, 2012 after almost 3-years with cancer of the parotid salivary gland. Former original guitarist, John Berry (1963-2016), died on May 19, 2016 from dementia at 52.