Following a moment of silence for Gibb, Natasha Bedingfield performed Summer’s seminal “Last Dance” before being abruptly interrupted by a commercial break. Cee Lo Green and Goodie Mob performed a tribute to MCA with a little  ”(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party!)”  while Whitney was honored with the posthumous Millennium Award.

Accepting the award on her behalf was daughter Bobbi Kristina, who was brought to tears and to her feet by John Legend ’s rendition of “The Greatest Love of All” and Houston’s Sparkle co-star Jordin Sparks’ beautiful take on “I Will Always Love You. ”

Check out Whit’s tribute below and click here for the full list of winners.

Originally a punk rock band formed by Yauch and Michael Diamond, later known as Mike D, in 1979, Adam Horowitz (Ad-Rock) joined the group in 1983 to form the famed trio. While they experimented with hip hop, they fully embraced the still nascent rap genre after hooking up with producer Rick Rubin who had recently co-founded Def Jam Recordings with Russell Simmons.

They released their first masterwork Licensed to Ill in 1986, containing the hits “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party!)” and “No Sleep Till Brooklyn.” Licensed to Ill became the best-selling rap album of the 1980s and was the first rap album to top the Billboard charts.

The Beastie Boys continued their string of successes with 1989’s Paul’s Boutique – generally considered the group’s greatest achievement – followed by 1992’s Check Yo Head and 1994’s Ill Communication, featuring the classic song and video, “Sabotage.”

The group continued making music throughout the 90s and 00s but had to postpone their last album, Hot Sauce Committee as well as the subsequent tour following the announcement of Yauch’s cancer. That album finally saw the light of day in April 2011.

Just last month, The Beastie Boys were among the inductees into the 2012 class of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

As we mourn the loss of yet another brilliant performer, it’s important to remember what made him so brilliant to begin with. Below, one of the Beastie Boys’ best, the video for “Sabotage,” directed by Spike Jonze:

Yauch is survived by his wife and daughter.  R.I.P. MCA. [TMZ]

Make that testosterone tempered by the calming effects of age and rehab. To wit, Chilli Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis called his dad crying when he heard the news. Kiedis also expressed his happiness over what this means for late guitarist Hillel Slovak who “picked up a guitar in the 1970s and didn’t make it out of the 1980s,” saying this was really “his induction.”

Meanwhile, the original lineup of Guns ‘N Roses might get all touchy-feely as well. Drummer Steven Adler, who left the band in 1990, hopes they can just hug it out, if only for one night:

“I just had lunch with Slash two days ago. He loves Axl [Rose]. He holds no grudges towards him. Twenty years of great music wasn’t created because of some stupid grudge…Can’t we just be fucking people who played music and accomplished a huge goal in their life and just play a couple songs? It’s only rock and roll, my god! It’s not rocket science.”

Rose, for his part, has not completely ruled out the possibility but said that it’s “up in the air.”

Other Hall of Fame inductees include Laura Nyro (whose Gonna Take a Miracle LP with LaBelle is essential listening for any and every one), The Small Faces/The Faces — perhaps best known for launching the career of one Mr. Rod Stewart — and 60s pop icon Donovan.

Fifteen acts were nominated for the Hall this year who, in order to be eligible for consideration, had to release their first albums by 1986. Ballots were sent out to 500 voters who wittled the list down, meaning that fellow nominees — The Cure, Donna Summer, Eric B. & Rakim, Heart, War, The Spinners, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and my personal favorite, Rufus with Chaka Khan — will have to wait another year. The 27th annual ceremony will be held at Cleveland Public Hall and broadcast on HBO in early May. [Rolling Stone]

I met Ricky Powell last year shortly after moving to New York and had no clue who he was.

I guess I was never in the right scene to be super familiar with his work, but I can know respect him as a pioneer in his field.

Before hip-hop became mainstream and more or less a caricature of itself, street photographer Ricky Powell, was the independent. He was a major player in documenting the rise of hip-hop culture (think the mid-80s New York of Run DMC and the Beastie Boys). Powell still keeps busy shooting artists, events and ad campaigns, hosting a public access show, publishing photography books, and writing a column for Mass Appeal. He has done some collaborations with clothing companies like Converse, and has even been immortalized in the Beastie Boys song “Car Thief.”

Tomorrow night, the Rickster invites you to view his private work that chronicles decades of works. His Apt. A collection, which will run for the next two months, features Powell’s shots of legendary artists at a pivotal time in New York street culture.

Signed pieces will be available through SHQ.

Apt. A also marks the beginning of the Rick Powell World Tour 2009.