Ricky Powell, 59, Dies; Chronicled Early Hip-Hop and Downtown New York
Prolific with his point-and-shoot camera, he captured essential images of the Beastie Boys, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Run-DMC, Andy Warhol and more.
The photographer Ricky Powell in 2012. An inveterate walker, he pounded the New York pavement with his camera and snapped photos of whatever caught his fancy.Credit.Janette Beckman
Published Feb. 2, 2021Updated Feb. 7, 2021
Ricky Powell, the downtown New York Zelig who with his point-and-shoot camera documented the early years of hip-hop’s ascendance as well as a host of other subcultural scenes and the celebrities and fringe characters who populated the city, was found dead on Feb. 1 in his West Village apartment. He was 59.
New York, NY – Famed New York City photographer Ricky Powell, who was often referred to as the “fourth Beastie Boy,” has reportedly passed away. According to a source close to Powell, he died of heart failure on Monday (February 1) at the age of 59.
News of Powell’s passing started making the rounds on Twitter with The Roots’ Questlove being among the first Hip Hop artists to pay tribute to him by quoting a lyric from the Beastie Boys’ single “Car Thief” in which he’s mentioned.
“Homeboy Throw In The Towel …” he wrote. “#RIPRickster.”
Homeboy Throw In The Towel… #RIpRickster.