NEW YORK – The Beastie Boys’ Adam Yauch rapped that he wouldn’t “sell my songs for no TV ad.” His will shows he wanted to make sure that held true after his death, too.
“In no event may my image or name or any music or any artistic property created by me be used for advertising purposes,” says the will, filed this week in a Manhattan court. Yauch, known for his good nature as well as his raspy voice in one of hip-hop’s groundbreaking acts, died of cancer in May. He was 47.
Additional Photos
Also known as MCA, Yauch was a founding member of the Beastie Boys, a group that helped hip-hop gain mainstream attention in the 1980s. As white guys from Brooklyn in a genre with few credible white performers at the time, they emerged as prankster pioneers and scored such hits as “Brass Monkey,” “No Sleep Till Brooklyn” and “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)” They had four No. 1 albums and sold more than 40 million records.
It’s not clear whether the provision in Yauch’s will, first reported by Rolling Stone’s website, covers all the Beastie Boys’ output. His lawyer and the group’s spokesman declined to comment Friday.
But the Beastie Boys have signaled that they are keeping a tight rein on commercial use of their work.
The surviving members, Michael “Mike D” Diamond and Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz, and Yauch’s widow, Dechen Wangdu Yauch, sued the makers of Monster energy drink Wednesday over what the Beastie Boys say was an unauthorized 23-minute medley of their music in a promotional video.
A representative for Corona, Calif.-based Monster Energy Co. didn’t immediately return a call Friday.
As record sales have declined in the digital age, advertising has become an attractive outlet for many artists – and a source of debate among fans about the line between good business and selling out.
Yauch stopped performing in public in 2009.
His will leaves his roughly $6 million estate to his widow and their 13-year-old daughter, Tenzin Losel Yauch.
New sitcom rides Olympics’ coattails
LOS ANGELES – If Matthew Perry’s new sitcom “Go On” goes on to become a hit, it may have the London Olympics to thank.
NBC, trying to use the highly rated games as a launch platform for new shows, gave “Go On” a special preview Wednesday night, averaging a healthy 16.1 million viewers in its special 11:06 p.m. slot, according to Nielsen.
That’s the biggest crowd NBC has seen for a new comedy in quite a while. “Go On” finds Perry, a former “Friends” star, playing a sportscaster who joins a support group after his wife’s death. The ratings count officially, though.
Russian leader to Madonna: Don’t preach
MOSCOW – A Russian deputy premier has made a rude statement apparently aimed at Madonna regarding her support for the jailed members of a Russian punk band awaiting a verdict.
Dmitry Rogozin didn’t name Madonna when he tweeted this week that “every former w. wants to give lectures on morality when she grows old. Especially during foreign tours.” By “w.” he apparently meant “whore.”
“Either take off your cross or put on your knickers,” he said.
His remarks have drawn sarcastic tweets from those who recalled that Rogozin was a nationalist opposition leader before joining officialdom. “Why are you calling yourself a former whore, you are still on it,” one said.
Liz Rosenberg, Madonna’s spokeswoman, said of Rogozin on Friday: “Maybe he and Elton can form a Madonna fan club.”
Elton John and Madonna have a longstanding feud.
– From news service reports
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.