Beastie Boys MC Adam Yauch, aka MCA, has passed away due to cancer, TMZ reports. He was 47 years old. TMZ reported that Yauch had been receiving treatment for a cancerous parotid gland and a lymph node, subsequently undergoing radiation therapy and surgery. Yauch played a pivotal role in the meteoric rise of hip-hop music in the 1980s and to this day the Beastie Boys remain as influential as ever. Known as MCA within the band, Yauch also directed Beastie Boys videos under the alias Nathaniel Hornblower. Beastie Boys experienced massive success with classic albums Licensed to Ill, Paul’s Boutique and Ill Communication, with those albums playing a hand in hip-hop being the powerhouse genre it is today. Yauch was a credit to the music industry and an upstanding human being outside of it, contributing to the Tibetan independence movement via the Milarepa Fund, co-founded by himself. Beastie Boys were inducted to the Rock and Roll Fame last month, the last of many accolades Adam Yauch received during his admirable career.

Rest in Power.