Public Enemy Overview

Public Enemy has been labeled the "most important and politically controversial group of its time." DJ virtuoso Terminator X brings the beat for the commanding lyrics of Chuck D and Flavor Flav. Public Enemy formed at Adelphi University on Long Island... [more]

Public Enemy has been labeled the "most important and politically controversial group of its time." DJ virtuoso Terminator X brings the beat for the commanding lyrics of Chuck D and Flavor Flav. Public Enemy formed at Adelphi University on Long Island in 1982 -- Carleton Ridenhour worked at the student radio station WBAU, where he met Hank Shocklee and Bill Stepheny. The three spent hours discussing politics and the future of Hip-hop, and Ridehour, performing under the name Chuck D, became a regular on Stepheny's radio show. After Def Jam co-founder Rick Rubin heard the show, he phoned Ridenhour. Soon the foundation for Public Enemy formed with Shocklee as producer, Stephney as marketer, DJ Terminator X (Norman Rogers) on turntables, Professor Griff (Richard Griff) coordinating the Security of the First World dancers, and Flavor Flav (William Drayton) as rapping comic relief to Chuck D's full-on message. Their first album, "Yo! Bum Rush the Show," was released in 1987 and went unnoticed by everyone but serious Hip-hop fans and some New York critics. "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back" followed, receiving immediate fame and noteriety for its lyrics that labeled Louis Farrakhan a prophet and rejected white power and privilege. White, mainstream media recoiled at P.E.'s further exploits such as its 1989 "Fight the Power," the theme for Spike Lee's equally controversial movie, "Do the Right Thing." Charges of anti-Semitism plagued the group after Professor Griff, in an interview with the Washington Times, said that Jews were responsible for "the majority of wickedness that goes on across the globe." The group dismissed Griff, but the charges continued. Unphased by reactionary criticism, the group released "Fear of a Black Planet," a commercially successful album that called for black unification. In 1992 they collaborated with thrash-metal band Anthrax and opened for U2's "Zoo TV" tour. Most recently, the group provided the theme song for Spike Lee's allegorical film, "He Got Game." [show less]