Ricky Powell Interview the Cat Club on the Madonna tour , and I went to go see them . I went to go see little Ad-Rock from The Village who used to play ball . He ’ s five years younger than me . His older sister was in my grade . I went backstage after the gig and I was like , “ Oh shit you guys are pretty dope there , Adam .” I began hanging out with the Beasties and going to night clubs and taking pictures .
When did you know the Beastie Boys were going to be superstars ?
That first gig at the Cat Club . They were on some new shit . They weren ’ t trying to be cute or boy band type shit . They looked like me , with jeans , sneakers , t-shirt , tilted hat , sloppy , witty ... I ’ ll never forget waiting and waiting and then it went dark . The lights went out . Whooooo ! And then the classic 808 bass drum sound dropped . BOOOOOOM !!! Then they came out skipping , hopping , laughing , slinging beer , cursing and I was like , “ Whaaaaaat ?! Yo , that ’ s the shit !”
They started bringing me along . I was “ The Rickster ,” club photographer from The Village . Anyone who knew me before then never saw me doing anything artistic ever . Then in the summer of ’ 86 , I finished Hunter College . I was going to study phys ed and be a gym teacher . I actually won the first Hunter College Triathlon in ’ 83 .
My first job out of college was selling frozen lemonade off the street . I was taking pictures while I was working , just out of boredom . That ’ s my thing . I used to just take pictures while working bullshit jobs like substitute teacher , bike messenger , bus boy . I always had my camera to battle the mundane . So I was sweltering in the heat around July 7th or 10th and I opened up USA Today and there was a two-page spread for the Raising Hell tour . The Run DMC , LL Cool J , Whodini and Beastie Boys U . S . tour . I knew I had to be there , so I walked my cart in and went to the airport .
I flew down to Saint Petersburg , Florida and it ’ s around 5pm , and I ’ m walking around and it ’ s some little bum-fuck place and I ’ m like , “ What the fuck ?” I call my friend and find out it ’ s in Tampa , and I ’ m like , “ Where the fuck is Tampa ?” I got like forty bucks on me . It was a Friday night , and I ’ m thinking that I gotta get over to Tampa . How the fuck ? So I walk into a bar with all hillbilly dudes or rednecks , and I don ’ t want to insult anyone who ’ s reading this or anything like that . I ’ m just using broad general terms . I walk in and I throw all my money on the bar . Ones , fives , quarters , dimes , nickels , and I ’ m like , “ Can anyone drive me to Tampa ?” These two dudes are like , “ Yeah we ’ ll take ya .”
They are country-looking motherfuckers and we get in the pickup truck . I sit right in the middle of them and we drive down the highway and it ’ s nighttime , around 8 o ’ clock . Then we drive off the highway and on to this dirt road and I ’ m like , awwww maaaan . Don ’ t tell me some Deliverance type shit is about to happen . Damn . Then when I ’ m really bugging , over yonder I see the top of the Tampa Dome . Oh shit , they actually brought me ! They drop me off and I said “ Thanks fellas ” and walk over to the dome . I knock on the back of the dome and a security dude comes out and I ’ m like , “ Yo , go tell Ad-Rock The Rickster is here .”
Ad-Rock pulls me in and we walk into the arena where Run DMC is on stage , and I had never heard music that loud . Packed arena , twenty thousand . Jam Master Jay is suspended in the air and scratching the shit out of Peter Piper and just shellacking it . I ’ ll never forget . I was like , “ This is the big time .” They gave me a bed on the tour bus , and I went on a couple dates . Tallahassee I think , then Miami and New Orleans . After a week I came back and was a hero at the Frozade garage . I ended up taking some pics that were relevant . The one with the kid with
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