Song of the Day 5/23: Public Enemy, “Fear of a Black Planet”
RE Vanella and I had a little discussion on one of yesterday’s threads about the greatest rapper of all time. RE touted Biggie Smalls as the GOAT, which is a not-uncommon opinion. I lobbied for Public Enemy, the group that raised rap from what Chuck D called “infantilism” into a political force. But it’s not just their lyrical content that broke barriers. The Bomb Squad production layered short samples on top of each other to create a dense backdrop of sound that ratcheted up the tension level on almost all their tracks.
The album this appeared on was released in 1990, when white America was shitting its collective pants over angry black people taking to the streets. Skip ahead 30 years, and things have only gotten worse — we’re living through a worldwide outbreak of fascism based on fear of refugees and immigrants, we have a gun-nut culture in America convinced that only dozens of weapons can protect them from marauding black men, we lock refugees in cages. Can anyone doubt that fear of a black planet has driven white people, collectively, insane?
I agree with Alby on this one.
https://youtu.be/r-dO0V23lxQ
Many different flowers in the Garden of Eden. All different colors, but the don’t compete, seen?
By the very nature of the claim, GOAT is a competition.
Greatest rapper. Biggie. You keep saying PE was the greatest because of the cultural reaction. Different categories
No, I prefer the musical and lyrical content as well.
And if you’re talking about cultural impact I don’t necessarily disagree with PE. (I owned both a cassette tape and CD of FOABP.)
Gotta always remember Luther and the Crew though. He got himself arrested.
That was something one defended reluctantly, because it was such a worthless thing to man the ramparts over. It was all part of the demonization process. The trope of the over-sexualized black man was the cause of many a lynching. Which is one of the things Chuck was addressing in today’s SOTD.
PE addressed black political concerns almost exclusively. Who else would release “911 Is a Joke” as a single? And Chuck never made it about his personal experiences. This was politics as art, and it was incredibly effective, which is why “Fight the Power” was used throughout Spike’s “Do the Right Thing.”
For these reasons, among other, they are, IMO, the greatest rap group ever. But they were a collective. Comparing them to Biggie is like comparing Dylan to the Beatles.
“FACE DOWN ASS UP”.
I was at the NEA and we were frequently thrown together with 2 Live Crew in panel discussions and editorials about profanity and censorship. It feels like something out of a Norman Rockwell print looking back.
Right? That’s why Luther C always gets a shut out from me.
Who was a greater painter? Cézanne or Rothko?
Trick question
I also enjoy the feeling of being an over 50 white guy talking about rap music.
That’s why I know I’m right.
Cezanne.
A Tribe Called Quest and Run The Jewels both scratch my rap itch. Yes, it’s the powerful political message that pulls me in.
BTW, I’m an almost-70 white guy talking rap.
I do not agree with either choice as being the GOAT. If we are talking about layering and sampling in that genre the Beastie boys can not be overlooked. If we want the OG of social activism in rap ” grand master flash and the furious five ” with the song the message are the OG. Comical video and costumes but content is king.
I saw Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five open for The Clash around 1980. NYC fans booed them off the stage, which said a whole lot more about NYC fans than it did about Grandmaster Flash.
If you stopped and thought about what you wrote, you’d realize that only one group combined the two, making them better than either alone.
And to compare the Beastie Boys to the Shocklees is just something I’m going to have to overlook while shaking my head.
Afrika Bambaataa > Grandmaster Flash.
I will not be reading replies.
Now that you’ve put it in mathematical terms, who can argue?
And I agree with all those who pointed out the absurdist humor of a bunch of aging white guys debating the GOAT rapper. This would make a better skit than most on SNL.
😁