When The Beastie Boys Landed in Tokyo
We are sure many of you have heard of the stellar rock-rap group stemming from New York in 1981 – The Beastie Boys.
One of the highest-selling rap groups in history, they’re reach was worldwide, and in one place, in particular, more than others: Japan. Nigo being a huge fan of the group would even go on to make action figures of the rap trio and feature them in his BAPE magazines. And in 1998, the BAPE-donning phenomenon took this connection to even greater heights with the release of their music video, Intergalactic.
A 1998 track with a 2098 soundscape, Intergalactic was a melting pot of electro and hip-hop sounds fueled with rap lyrics, blending multiple genres to fry our speakers. Aside from the fact the song was one of their most iconic, what really made it go down in history was the music video, filmed right here in Tokyo, with parts reimagined in NYC. A clash of cultures, this music video took inspiration from a bundle of different classic Japanese pop-culture moments and blended them all into one ludicrously charming narrative that we feel even Honda Ishirō, creator of Godzilla, would be proud of.
The start of the music video sees a giant spaceship fly through space, reminiscent of the iconic opening Star Wars scene we all know and love. As the music kicks in, the spaceship is in fact a giant robot that crashes onto the streets of Tokyo. The robot is seen fighting a giant alien-like octopus as the people of the city flee in terror, clearly influenced by the Kaiju-like films such as Godzilla and Ultraman.
The Beastie Boys are featured in this music video as Japanese construction workers in their iconic outfits, moving through hot spots such as the Shibuya and Shinjuku train stations and Tokyo high streets, mixing fisheye lens shots with wide angles. The music video oozes 90’s charms, and really encapsulates the energy and feeling of the end of the decade in Japan.
The music video received the award for Best Hip-Hop Video at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards, and still to this day is adored for its catchy synthetic cook and its playful music video.
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