MCA has cancer, Beastie Boys cancel tour dates

In a video on YouTube, Adam Yauch informed fans that he was recently diagnosed with throat cancer.

Yauch, or MCA, apologized to fans in the short clip for canceled shows and the delayed release of Hot Sauce Committee, Pt. 1 (originally set to drop on September 15th.) Yauch also explained that the cancer was caught early and talked about discovering the illness and his prognosis. From Rolling Stone:

Yauch tells the camera that he began to notice he had swollen glands in his throat about two months ago, but it wasn’t until two weeks ago that he spoke to his doctor, who recommended Yauch take some tests. The results revealed that a tumor had formed in the Parotid gland, the largest of the salivary glands. “I just need to take a little time to get this in check, and then we’ll release the record and play some shows,” Yauch said in a statement following the YouTube announcement; the album was originally scheduled for a September 15th release. “It’s a pain in the neck (sorry had to say it) because I was really looking forward to playing these shows, but the doctors have made it clear that this is not the kind of thing that can be put aside to deal with later.” According to the statement, the surgery will be followed by weeks of additional treatment.

Hopefully everything will go smoothly and this Brooklyn boy (holla!) will be back in fine rapping form sooner rather than later. You can watch the announcement below, and below that, you can listen to Paul Revere. ?