News just in: Beastie Boy Mike D bloody loves North Shields
The legendary rapper and producer played a sold-out King Street Social show this week and left with plenty of praise for the venue, the audience and the post gig snacks
King Street Social Club isn’t new to attracting big names.
Through his Are You Affiliated project, Geoff Kirkwood – better known as DJ and producer Man Power – has spent the past few years bringing increasingly acclaimed artists and DJs from around the world to North Shields, helping transform the venue into one of the UK’s most distinctive grassroots music destinations.
Even by those standards, a sold-out appearance by Beastie Boys co-founder Mike D this week created quite the stir.
The influential musician and DJ took to the stage at the venue, delighting fans and generating a flood of banging social media posts and live clips from those lucky enough to secure a ticket.
And judging by his own reaction afterwards, the feeling was mutual.
“Thank you North Shields for hosting us!” he wrote.
“In a world where we carry so many of our own expectations I can’t tell you how happy we were visiting the hidden treasure that is North Shields. Hiding in broad daylight is more like it.”
Mike D also praised King Street Social Club for preserving its character while embracing new audiences and new music.
“Thank you for changing and not changing,” he wrote. “You’ve opened your doors to new music and new people but kept your period decor intact.”
After soundcheck, he and the band headed to Riley’s Fish Shack.
“Holy Sh*t,” he wrote. “Everything was delicious and looking out over that bay. Wow!”
But it was the audience which seemed to leave the biggest impression.
“Not everywhere we get to play is a blast for a whole variety of reasons,” he said. “But last night’s audience made everything fun and all worth it. Thank you for surprises.”
For Geoff, whose efforts have helped put North Shields firmly on the map for adventurous music fans, the booking represented another milestone in a remarkable journey.
“It’s fair to say it’s insane that we had Mike D ask to come and play at King St Social Club, but it’s also not,” he said.
“Our Are You Affiliated venue project upstairs in the venue there has already become one of the most celebrated spaces in the UK for authentic underground dance music legends.
“This year we set out to replicate that success in live music too, simply by continuing to focus on community and authenticity above everything else. Obviously that escalated quicker than anyone expected this week, but we've always held the belief this is where we'd end up too.
“These things are starting to feel like a surreal version of normality now and we have Simon Reeve coming down to cover us for his next BBC2 Doc next weekend when we present Marie Davidson live at the venue.
“Despite all the attention though this still all feels like something that could only be happening right now in North Shields.”