Beastie Boys’ “Licensed To Ill” Reaches Hip Hop Royalty Status

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The Beastie Boys have just certified their spot in hip hop immortality by being one of only a select few of hip hop artists to go diamond, which means to sell a total of 10 million records world wide. They join the likes of 2 Pac, Eminem, Outkast, and MC Hammer as the only hip hop acts to accomplish such a feet.

Licensed To Ill was released under Def Jam in 1986, and was the first hip hop album to reach Billboard status. Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons played a major role in the album completion, as well as Run DMC being credited for contributing as well. The trio were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2012.