“Man Plans God Laughs,” Public Enemy
It is no surprise that Public Enemy appears on this list several times. The group at its core is the personification of 400 years of race-based oppression translated through the gifted genius of rap music. In another epic example of how Chuck D, Flavor Flav and the other members of the revolutionary quad reinvents themselves, they put out the 2015 song, “Man Plans God Laughs.”
The phrase “Man Plans, God Laughs” comes from an ancient Yiddish proverb – that also translates as “Man proposes, God disposes.” The meaning of the saying is that no matter how thorough or thought out one’s plans might be, there are forces greater that can render the most well-thought out plans inapplicable.
This was best articulated, “Let it be … Speaking words … But no wisdom … Make em dumb … Damn the plan … That man made … Threw the monkey wrench.”
Chuck also speaks on the “plan” to set narratives of despair and hopelessness around the AA community. We can be the folly of those plans by becoming the change within ourselves. He also notes that there is a reason why we should do it: “do it for the culture, do it for the youth.”