MCA

It's been two weeks since Adam 'MCA' Yauch died and I seriously am still dealing with what I can only describe as sorrow over the loss of one of the most brilliant minds ever known in the music industry.  I was so shocked and devastated when I found out I could barely speak.  Never have I been more moved by the death of a celebrity, and I've struggled to put in to words as to why.

The Beastie Boys have been a big part of my musical heritage since the mid-80's and, although they weren't always in heavy rotation on my stereo/iPod/etc, they've always been near to my heart.  License to Ill never really resounded with me until I was on a soccer trip in early grade 12, a few years after it came out but I remember when Fight for Your Right was constantly on the radio in '86-'87.  When Paul's Boutique came out I bought it because of that soccer trip and the Hey Ladies video, I must have been one of maybe five people in Newfoundland that owned that green cassette tape and I played the ever-loving shit out of it.  Even though I didn't know it at the time, I was the owner of one of the greatest rap albums  of all times.  I still love that CD, it truly is amazing.  The brilliant catalogue that followed is well documented, indeed, and their place in rap and music history has been deeply etched in stone.  In short, the Beasties are amazing.  My favourite rap group and definitely one of the best ever.

Those facts are probably mostly why the Beasties have been the only group I had left to see in concert I cared about and now that MCA is gone that dream is over.  That is hard to take but really what is so upsetting is the loss of one of the most important people in the entertainment biz.  Not only did Adam make great albums, but he helped produce others, he filmed videos and movies, he started his own studio, he was a political activist that created the Tibetan Freedom concerts, and he was a husband and father.  That's a pretty good body of work, and he was only 47.

I've never felt so much loss like this, it's like I lost a hero.  Cobain had no real legacy when he died and he killed himself (we think) so I wasn't phased.  When Michael Jackson died I was quite upset, he was the greatest entertainer that had ever lived and had more talent in one finger than most do in their whole body, but his time had seemed to have come and gone plus his eccentricity was overshadowing his brilliance for me.  When Adam died I really felt a significant part of the reason for my love for music died as well.  The Beasties were my springboard into my love of rap for so many years and their albums stand the test of time for me.  Our son loves the Beasties and regularly asks me to play them in the car.  I'm surprised our copy of Hello Nasty hasn't melted into the CD player.

After all this writing I still can't seem to put into words, I just want to yell "IT'S NOT FAIR" but that still doesn't do it justice.  I know I'm not the only one that feels that way, I just have to watch a video and see all the comments to feel everyone's pain.  Even though I'll never realize my dream of seeing them in concert it's the loss for the whole music industry that is the worst thing and hopefully, with time, it will be easier to deal with.  It's just so hard when someone leaves us too early when he had so much left to give.

RIP MCA.  You will be missed.

YouTube Bullies

Along with many good (and bad) things, the internet has bred a very strange and sad sort of bully.  Bullying, whether in person or on the internet, is a pretty hot topic these days and rightly so; it can be a cruel and horrible thing with tragic consequences.  What I've been seeing more of these days is the outrageous and borderline psychotic stuff people will post with reckless abandon on any internet thread and even on YouTube channels and FB pages.  Admittedly, I've said a few questionable things in the past but there are some folks out there that will spew out the most vile and pathetic things like there is no cosmic return for such actions.

I can't watch a video on YouTube without noticing someone just going off on some tangent in the comments that turns into a full-blown verbal smack down.  People aren't just making fluid points on there, they are full-on ripping and berating other folks like they just killed their pet dog and burned down their house.  It's crazy to me.  Maybe I've confused this sort of bullying with 'trolling', a whole other topic, but man it would be nice to watch a simple video without having to discover that some mild difference of opinion has morphed into full-scale thermonuclear war.

Maybe I shouldn't read the comments ever, sure, but sometimes I like to comment of videos as well so it's hard not to do a bit of reading.  Occasionally there are a few interesting gems buried in the comment that may teach me a few things about what I'm watching.  I definitely think more folks should disable the comments on their videos, like I did today, to avoid any of the childish stuff people end up posting on there.

People who engage in this behaviour are just the lowest form of sub-human on earth to me.  To sit in front of a computer and just mindlessly tear down another person for no good reason is the ultimate form of cowardice I can think of.  It is the saddest, most pathetic and fucked-up thing I can imagine someone doing from the safety of their parent's cold and lonely basement.  Karma is a real thing, regardless if you believe in it or not, and if you spend much of your time being a shitty person, then shitty things are going to happen to you.  Simple as that.

This reminds me of a quote I read quite recently: 'On the internet people can be whatever they want, it's too bad so many people choose to be stupid.'

Well said.