“Tibetan Monks” Breakdance For Beastie Boys’ MCA (Adam Yauch)

“Tibetan Monks” Breakdance For Beastie Boys’ MCA (Adam Yauch)

On Saturday, artists gathered to honor Beastie Boys rapper Adam Yauch for the third annual MCA Day, and a bunch of monks decided to through down.

In what may seem as a more unconventional nod by some, four Buddhist monks took to Union Square, the site of the first MCA Day, to put on a tribute to the Beastie Boys by breakdancing to some of their biggest hits.

MCA Day is meant to celebrate Yauch, who died after a long battle with cancer on May 4th, 2012, in New York City. Two years after his untimely demise, it’s still difficult to believe that resilient Beastie Boys’ cofounder Adam Yauch, a.k.a. MCA, is no longer with us. Yauch, an inspiration to many for his music, filmmaking, and political activism. He is survived by his wife and daughter, who turns 16 this year. In addition to his artistic endeavors, Yauch was also a practicing Buddhist, and this weekend a group of men dressed as monks performed an elaborate breakdance in his honor in Union Square park.

Beastie Boys were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a month before Yauch’s death. He was too ill to attend the ceremony, but his bandmate Adam Horovitz read this moving statement from Yauch:

“I’d like to dedicate this award to my brothers, Adam and Mike, who’ve walked the globe with me. To anyone who’s been touched by our band, who our music has meant something to, this induction is as much ours as it is yours. To Kate Schellenbach. To John Berry. To John Berry’s loft on 100th St. and Broadway, where John’s dad would come busting in during our first practices screaming, “Would you turn that f***ing s*** off already!” To my loving and supportive parents, Noel and Frances Yauch, and to our home in Brooklyn where we used to practice on hot Brooklyn summer days after school, windows wide open to disturb the neighborhood.

But most of all I’d like to thank and dedicate this honor to my smart, beautiful, loving wife Dechen and our sweet, talented, loving daughter [Tenzin] Losel. Never has a man felt more blessed than I to be able to spend my time with my two soul mates. I love you guys more than you know. I wish I could name everyone who deserves naming, but of course there’s too many names to name. You know who you are, and I sent my love out to all of you. Your friend, Adam Yauch.”

Last year a small park in Brooklyn Heights was dedicated to Yauch.

[via dailydot via gothamist]

Tagged with: