Beastie Boys Block Party at Beastie Boys Square
On Saturday, September 9, 2023, New York City’s Beastie Boys received the distinction of having a street named after them. The corner of Ludlow and Rivington Streets became “Beastie Boys Square,” due to their sophomore album’s cover, Paul’s Boutique, being photographed on that corner.
The street naming was about a decade in the making with the idea from LeRoy McCarthy and City Councilmember Chris Marte bringing legislation within the City Council to pass in favor of the renaming.
To mark the occasion, Ad-Rock and Mike D of the Beastie Boys announced a block party from 12-2PM featuring limited edition merchandise, a DJ, and live screenprinting.
I grew up listening to the Beastie Boys on NYC radio stations and watching their music videos on Video Music Box and I’m so very grateful to Kathleen Hanna for asking me to create photos from this special event.
Kathleen’s company, Tees4Togo, released two designs for the occasion to raise money for Peace Sisters, an organization that focuses on educating women in Togo in West Africa. Tees4Togo will sell the two shirts featured in the above gallery for a limited time only. You can get yours on their website here.