Corpus Christi Caller, February 18, 1987
By Felix Sanchez:
Outside Memorial Coliseum late last night, it almost seemed like the end of a school day, what with all the parents in their cars patiently waiting to pick up their teenagers. But inside the carneveous Coliseum, where the predominately junior-high crowd of several thousand were gathered in Corona beer T-shirts, oversized trenchcoats and pastel flats, things were definitely not what you'd find in the school library. The Beastie Boys were in town, and like they say: You gotta fight for the right to party. Even if you may not be old enough yet for a picture ID.

The event was a rap concert by the massively hot Beastie Boys, an all-male group that has gained immense popularity recently in the usually black artist-dominated rap music field. Several thousand teenagers attended last night's concert, which is part of the Beastie Boys' "Licensed to Ill" tour of the United States.

The Beastie Boys, King Ad-Rock (Adam Horovitz), MCA (Adam Yauch) and Mike D (Michael Diamond), were formerly the opening band for Madonna's "Virgin" tour. But recently, thanks to some heavy MTV exposure and appearances on the Joan Rivers show and Dick Clark's "American Bandstand", the Beastie Boys, with their sometimes raunchy rap lyrics have become a hot ticket on the music circuit. Their first album, Licensed to Ill, soared into the top 10 only two months after its release, and is CBS Records' second-biggest best seller, behind Bruce Springsteen's live album.