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Mike D Releases Solo Single “Switch Up,” First Beastie Boys Member Release Since 2011
Mike D has released "Switch Up," his first solo single and the first new music from any Beastie Boys member since 2011.
Mike D has released his first solo single, “Switch Up”. It is the first new music from any member of the Beastie Boys since the group’s final album, Hot Sauce Committee Part Two, in 2011.
A few weeks ago Mike D went viral after jumping onstage with Very Nice Person, the band fronted by his sons Skyler and Davis Diamond, to rap Beastie Boys classics. He announced a short tour of unconventional venues ahead of the new single. He was onstage at Los Angeles’ Plaza Night Club & Dance Hall when “Switch Up” arrived.
The track began as a jam with his sons and evolved into a formal release. Production credit is shared between Very Nice Person and Carter Lang, the producer who has worked with SZA and Justin Bieber.
Musically, “Switch Up” leans on a funky, breakbeat-driven instrumental that flirts with late-1990s drum-and-bass textures. The arrangement shifts frequently. Mike functions as a hypeman of sorts, his familiar delivery riding the changes as rock guitars and squiggly keyboards enter and exit the mix. He sounds energized.
“Switch Up” is out now on UMG.
Jack Coleman
