“Fight the Power,” Public Enemy
“Fight the Power” by Public Enemy is more than an anthem but it is a battle cry of liberation. Few songs have not only called systemic white supremacy out without a flinch than this one.
Originally a featured track on Spike Lee’s 1989 break out movie, Do The Right Thing, it swiftly took on a life of its own. It is one of among those rare breeds of songs that unites the spirit of all great Black leaders — invoking them through the use of Funk samples (James Brown), the Black church, civil rights and an in your face “what you think” that connected Gen Xers with Baby Boomers.
Just hearing Thomas “TNT” Todd, the civil rights lawyer from Alabama, say “”Yet our best trained, best educated, best equipped, best prepared troops refuse to fight. Matter of fact, it’s safe to say that they would rather switch than fight,” sets the listener for a ride that makes you just want to get your Harriet Tubman on.
Then Chuck roars, “1989!”
“The number another summer (get down) … Sound of the funky drummer …. Music hitting your heart ’cause I know you got soul …. (Brothers and sisters, hey) … Listen if you’re missing y’all … Swinging while I’m singing …. Giving whatcha getting … Knowing what I know … While the Black bands sweating … And the rhythm rhymes rolling … Got to give us what we want … Gotta give us what we need … Our freedom of speech is freedom or death … We got to fight the powers that be.”
The Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts ranked this song, that bellows so profoundly with Chuck D’s voice, as one of the “Songs of the Century,” but we know it actually one of the greatest songs of our lifetime. Especially as those “Planet Rock” samples clashed with the Teddy Riley “Jam,” and he explains how you can keep your white heroes, “Elvis was a hero to most … But he never meant sh*t to me you see …Straight up racist that sucker was .. Simple and plain … Mother f**k him and John Wayne … ‘Cause I’m Black and I’m proud … I’m ready and hyped plus I’m amped … Most of my heroes don’t appear on no stamps.”
