Today’s song of the day is “(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)” by hip hop group the Beastie Boys. Adam Yauch and his band friend Tom Cushman, who also appeared in the song’s video, wrote the song.

Fun Facts

• The song’s video was directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin, who were roommates.
• This is the song that brought the Beastie Boys to MTV’s attention and introduced them to a massive audience.
• It peaked at #7 in the United States on March 7, 1987, the same day Licensed To Ill debuted at #1, becoming the first rap album to do so.
• The Beastie Boys would go on to be one of the most successful and controversial hip-hop artists of all time, but purists who only knew them from this song were terrified.
• The group embarked on a co-headlining tour with the far more experienced and respectable Run-D.M.C. in the summer of 1987.
• In 1985, Run-D.M.C. played Live Aid around the same time the Beastie Boys were opening for Madonna. While Run-D.M.C. preached education and sobriety, the Beastie Boys clung to their reckless party image, using cage dancers and dousing crowds with beer.
• Although these events were surrounded by unparalleled security, the tour went off without a hitch.
• Following the success of this song, the Beastie Boys became increasingly provocative in their stage antics and interviews.
• “Fight for Your Right (To Party)” could easily have characterized the group, but they had the foresight to disavow it as a novelty and pursue a more mature (though still mischievous) path. They discontinued performing the song following the conclusion of their 1987 tour.

Lyrics:

( LyricFind)

… Kick it!

… You wake up late for school, man you don’t want to go

You ask your mom, please? but she still says, no

You missed two classes and no homework

But your teacher preaches class like you’re some kind of jerk

… You gotta fight for your right to party

… Your pops caught you smoking, and he says, “No way!”

That hypocrite smokes two packs a day

Man, living at home is such a drag

Now your mom threw away your best porno mag (bust it!)

… You gotta fight for your right to party

… You gotta fight

… Don’t step out of this house if that’s the clothes you’re gonna wear

I’ll kick you out of my home if you don’t cut that hair

Your mom busted in and said, what’s that noise?

Aw, mom, you’re just jealous it’s the Beastie Boys

… You gotta fight for your right to party

You gotta fight for your right to party

… Party

Party