Last night, there was an air of frustration at the crowded Community Board 3’s meeting in their offices on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The exasperating struggle between members centered around whether or not the contributions of the Beastie Boys—one of hip-hop’s most beloved and longest running acts—was significant enough to pass a street corner co-name. LeRoy McCarthy, who proposed that the corner of Rivington and Ludlow Streets in the Lower East Side be co-named “Beastie Boy Square,” presented the proposition that lead to nearly an hour and a half debate.
LeRoy, a film location scout and previous employee at Bad Boy Records, hopes to bring recognition to the hip-hop community in New York City, the epicenter of the worldwide cultural movement, by co-naming a street after an artist in each of the city’s five boroughs.
“Since the time that hip-hop was founded in 1973, where is the recognition from New York City? It would be nice if the birthplace of hip-hop were to recognize this art form, which has given so much to the city, “ said LeRoy.
Co-naming simply means that a sign with an alternative name is placed underneath the already existing street name. More than 100 streets in the city are co-named each year, so it makes sense that at least one should honor such an movement as hip-hop—especially when a rock group like U2 has a co-named street and they aren’t even from the US, let alone New York City. Unlike U2, Michael "Mike D" Diamond, Adam "MCA" Yauch, and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz are New York natives. They came up on the Lower East Side, seeing shows at CBGB’s, recording at 171A, and writing songs in their apartment on Chrystie Street. Not to mention, it is almost impossible to listen to a Beastie Boys song without hearing at least one reference to the city. Their affinity for the culture and life in New York is clear. And beyond their music, they are philanthropists and activists who support human and animal rights.
“They heightened my awareness to political and social issues, they started out misogynists, but like anyone else, they grew up and started speaking out for women’s rights and Tibetan rights,” said Nessim Halioua, a Rivington Street resident who spoke in support of the co-name. “I [told myself], One day I am going to come to New York to see what Paul’s Boutique looks like. The Beastie Boys are why I [came to this city].”
But even with the history of the band so rooted in the community, board members still questioned if the group had enough involvement in the area to warrant the request.
During his presentation to the Community Board, LeRoy brought materials to support his claim that the Beastie Boys have had an impact on the area, the most obvious evidence being their 1989 album cover for Paul’s Boutique. The iconic photograph captured by Jeremy Shatan and seen by millions, offers a panoramic view of a pre-gentrified Ludlow Street, including the corner in question. The once gritty area of the city, now 24 years later and much more developed, is virtually unrecognizable. Hip-hop’s exact birthplace is attributed to 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the South Bronx in 1973, but the culturally diverse Lower East Side was an area that fostered the art of musicians, dancers, and graffiti artists of the time.
“Their connection to the Lower East Side is clear and obvious from the iconic Paul's Boutique and through the frequent lyrical references in their songs. Everyone knows the cover. I have friends who come from [around the world] and say, ‘Show me where the cover of Paul’s Boutique was taken,’” said Shannon Saks, a Rivington Street resident and strong supporter of the co-name.
One of the most confusing aspects of the board meeting was the member’s inability to come to an agreement on their own guidelines, like the one that states, “Individual prospective honorees must be deceased.” Some of the members felt Adam Yauch, who lost his battle to cancer in 2012, didn’t suffice. The member’s continued to dwell on what seemed like moot points throughout the evening, even suggesting that the remaining members of the group should attend the next meeting in support of their own co-name.
While many on the board were reserved about their opinions, Chad Marlow was outwardly supportive in moving forward with Beastie Boys Square, recognizing them as an influential aspect of hip-hop and New York history, while member David Crane felt they clearly did not meet the requirements.
In the end, David's biggest point of contention was the amount of signatures LeRoy gathered from the block’s residents. Although LeRoy fulfilled the requirement of 75 percent of residential and business support, the board was not thoroughly convinced that the community backed the co-name. The final verdict was for the decision was to be postponed until LeRoy gathered a yet to be determined number of signatures to win over the unsure members, which unfortunately appeared to be the majority of the board.
After an hour of sitting in the small and sweltering boardroom, listening to members deliberate their uncertainty, supporters of the co-name were severely disappointed with the meeting’s outcome.
“Throughout the lively discussion, it appeared that many of the board members present were completely unaware of the contribution and impact that the Beastie Boys have made, not only to the community within CB3, but to New York as a whole. Many of the board members' comments were off-point, irrelevant, and appeared to misconstrue and misinterpret the facts presented to them in support of the application,” said Shannon Saks.
This was not the first time that LeRoy faced opposition in his pursuit to co-name a street. In November of last year, his proposal to have the corner of St. James Place and Fulton Street named “Christopher Wallace Way” after the legendary rapper Biggie Smalls was shot down. Community Board members negated the late rappers honoring for reasons including his misogynistic lyrics, criminal activity, and obesity.
Although the community boards have questioned the impact of hip-hop artists LeRoy hopes to recognize, he plans on moving forward with his project.
“So far I have received overwhelming support from residents in the Ludlow and Rivington area. To go back there and generate more signatures can be done, so I am not going to be dissuaded,” said LeRoy.
Among the disappointments, there has been a success in the co-naming of the corner of 205th Street and Hollis Avenue in Queens to Run DMC/ Jay Master Jay Way in 2009. Leaving only four co-names to be approved, Wu-Tang Clan in Staten Island, Big Pun in the Bronx, Christopher Wallace in Brooklyn, and the Beastie Boys in the Lower East Side.
LeRoy is also hoping to expand his project outside of New York City, in order to pay homage to influential artists nationwide. He has requested a co-naming for Sylvia Robinson, the CEO of Sugar Hill Records and artist credited to “Rappers Delight” in Englewood, NJ as well as old school rapper Heavy D in Mount Vernon, NY.
“As Dead Prez said, “this is bigger than hip-hop.” This is about respect for the culture that hip-hop has created. Since [it first began] with the Sugar Hill Gang, it has gone around the world and back. And this was without any support from New York City,” said LeRoy.