Public Enemy first emerged on the scene 20 years ago in 1987 and since its formation has gone onto become one of the most successful names within the Hip-Hop community. The group consists of four main members; Chuck D, Griff, Flava Flav and Terminator X. Chuck D, the most influential figure of the group, spoke out on political and social problems to the point that he was noticed by the C.I.A. who put the group under constant surveillance. Public Enemy changed the face of hip hop and where the most politically controversial rap group of the 1980’s. Chuck D was the lead emcee for the group with pro-revolutionary and socially active lyrics; he stood out as a pioneer in an industry that would soon be home to the infamous “Gangsta” rap scene. He spoke of all kinds of political and social problems, particularly those affecting the black community of working class America and became one of the most respected rappers in history. With a militant stance against social injustice and powerfully raw lyrics, they became successful not only for their musical talents but also for their political views, which where considered to be highly controversial. The production team for Public Enemy where known as “The Bomb Squad” and created a new style of sound that synchronised with Chuck D’s lyrics incredibly well. Flava Flav, famous for wearing an oversized clock around his neck, became the visual focus point for the group whilst The Bomb Squad created chaotic beats in combination with funky baselines; together the group produced a new style and image that would go down forever in the history of Hip-Hop culture. They achieved phenomenal success with the release of their second album, released in 1988, entitled “It takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back”. The release of this album subsequently turned them into celebrities and was much more successful than t their first release, “Yo! Bum Rush the Show” released on Def Jam Records in 1987. Chuck D was born on August 1st 1960 as Carlton Ridenhour; in 1982 he formed Public Enemy whilst studying graphic design on Long Island. He was also a DJ on a student radio station at Adelphi University where he met Hank Shocklee and Bill Stephney; all three shared a great love for hip hop and a deep interest in politics. Public Enemy received their name when they met Rick Rubin of Def Jam who came to them with an offer of an album deal. The group where originally known as “Spectrum City” or simply “Spectrum”, Rick suggested that they call themselves Public Enemy as the name had already been used by the group in the track “Public Enemy # 1”. The logo for the group was drawn by Chuck D himself; he used a silhouette of E Love who was LL Cool J’s sidekick at the time. Chuck D assembled a crew consisting of DJ Terminator X, Shocklee as head producer, Stephney as a publicist and Professor Griff as choreographer for the backup dancers, Security of the First World. Chuck D met Flava Flav, also known as William Drayton, when he was introduced as a guest at the studio where Chuck was working. Chuck’s first words to Flava when he met him at the studio where: “You can’t smoke up here, you have to go outside”. Chuck asked Flava to join the group as a fellow rapper. Their first album was largely ignored by the mainstream music industry in 1987, however their second album was considered to be a revolutionary breakthrough by both rock and rap critics of the time; Hip-Hop music had moved from being a relatively obscure musical style into a revolutionary force for political and social change. As the group’s success grew, so did the amount of controversy surrounding them; Chuck D became infamous when he referred to rap music as “The Black CNN” relating what was happening in America’s ghettos in a way the mainstream media would not project. Their tune “Fight the Power” was used as the theme for Spike Lee’s highly successful film “Do the Right Thing”, released in 1989. The track received public uproar for lyrics such as: “Elvis was a hero to most, But he never meant s**t to me you see Straight up racist that sucker was Simple and plain, Mother f**k him and John Wayne.” On the album Chuck D recorded “Revolutionary Generation” as an attempt to rectify some of his previous lyrics with a negative attitude towards women. Later on Chuck D was forced to remove Professor Griff from Public Enemy due to an anti-Semitic statement he made in which he stated that Jews were responsible for the majority of the wickedness that goes on across the globe. This statement caused public outcry, especially from white critics who had previously praised the group. Chuck D later brought Griff back into the group however Griff then attacked Public Enemy and Chuck D in another interview, which led to his departure from the group indefinitely. In 1990 Public Enemy released the single “Welcome to the Terrordome”; this single again caused controversy being labelled as anti-Semitic by some due to lyrical content such as “Still they got me like Jesus”. Nonetheless, their third album “Fear of a Black Planet” received good reviews and got into the top 10 when singles such as “911 Is a Joke” and “Can’t Do Nuttin’ for Ya Man” went into the top 40. The next album to be released was “Apocalypse 91: The Enemy Strikes Back”; Public Enemy re-recorded “Bring the Noise” with metal band Anthrax as an attempt to appeal once again to their white fan base. The album’s reviews where vastly positive and the album made it to number four in the pop charts. They toured along with U2 in their Zoo tour and released another album entitled “Greatest Misses” however the album received negative reviews and was nowhere near as successful as previous releases. Their next album “Muse Sick-N-Our Mess Age” was released in 1994 and unfortunately, also received negative reviews and as such did not do particularly well in the charts. In 1995 Public Enemy stopped touring and stopped producing tracks under Def Jam Records; Chuck D created his own record label and publishing company. In 1996 he released his first solo album entitled “Autobiography of Mistachuck” which had a 70’s vibe to it. Singer Isaac Hayes, famous for his role as “Chef” on TV’s South Park, appeared on one of the tracks. In 1997 Chuck D reassembled the producers from the early albums, The Bomb Squad, and made plans to create three new albums; in the same year Chuck D also released an autobiography. Once again Public Enemy where to feature in a Spike Lee movie, the 1998 release “He’s Got Game”. They created the soundtrack for the film which seemed like more of an actual album release than a soundtrack, which received very good reviews. Their next album entitled “There’s a Poison Goin’ On” was released in July 1999 though public enemy deliberately uploaded the album to the internet as MP3 files for people to download a while before its actual release date. The next album to be released was “Revolverlution” and in 2005 “New Whirl Odor” was released. They also released a “Special Projects” album with Paris entitled “Rebirth of a Nation” and their most recent album “Sell Soul to a Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul” was released in the summer of 2007. Public enemy have a huge following in many different countries all over the world, they where the among the first to break through into the music industry with pro-revolutionary lyrical content and have since inspired many musicians to follow in their footsteps. They have toured with a number of successful groups such as the Beastie Boys, U2, Anthrax and Sisters of Mercy; and they have become so successful that a huge line of merchandise has been created featuring public enemy; in 1990 Chuck D even started his own clothing line, RappStyle. Public Enemy are well respected musicians not only within the world of hip hop culture but are also very popular amongst fans of different musical styles, in fact Flava Flav is actually a classic pianist, and half of the songs recorded on the last album by “The Roots” where played by him. Flava Flav actually plays 17 instruments in total including bass, drums and guitar.
Public Enemy are still as strong today as they ever where and I doubt that the world has seen the last of them. Their last album was recorded this year and we will probably see many more to come in the near future.
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