New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Public Enemy, Beastie Boys' Mike D and Ad-Rock along with Run-DMC get animated in the new video for "Public
Enemy Number Won," which also features archival concert posters, footage and more. It's the latest single from their widely acclaimed new album What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down?, which also marked the iconic group's historic return to Def Jam Recordings. Watch the official video for "Public
Enemy Number Won" below.
"The song is an homage to 'Public
Enemy No. 1 and that moment in time," explains Chuck D. "The
Beastie Boys and Run-DMC were playing it all the time and Rick Rubin kept coming at us to sign with Def Jam. So it's my way of bringing it all back together again." Consequence of Sound celebrates how "the group brings back the glory days of Def Jam Records," while NME describes the song as "The record's most overt callback to hip-hop's golden age... (an) oral history of their early years at Def Jam."
What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down? includes guest appearances by Nas, YG, Rapsody, DJ Premier,
Black Thought, Questlove, Cypress Hill, Run-DMC, Ice-T, PMD,
George Clinton, Daddy-O, Jahi, The Impossebulls, Mark Jenkins, S1Ws Pop
Diesel and
James Bomb and Mike D and Ad-Rock of Beastie Boys. The album features singles "Fight the Power: Remix 2020," a powerful reimagining of their classic track featuring Nas, Rapsody,
Black Thought, YG, Jahi and Questlove and riveted audiences at the 2020 BET Awards; "State of the Union (STFU)" which holds nothing back as it calls out Donald Trump and his destructive reign, produced by DJ Premier; and "GRID" featuring
Cypress Hill and
George Clinton.
Public
Enemy have proven that rebellion is more than the sound of a musical genre, the culture of a social class, or the color of a skin; it is an unmovable, unmistakable state of mind and heart. PE is hellbent on creating change where it is needed most. Determined to give voice to those who have long been ignored, unafraid to question institutional injustices, and intent on challenging any and all obstacles to social justice, Public
Enemy have resisted with unprecedented intensity and eloquence.
Their classic albums are the soundtrack to hip-hop's rise as a form of social and political commentary. 1988's It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back was, and still is, one of the most important records ever made, with Rolling Stone recently naming it the #15 Greatest Album of All Time and The New York Times added it to their list of "25 Most Significant Albums of the Last Century." Fear of a
Black Planet--also named on the Rolling Stone list--features PE anthems including the original version of "Fight The Power," "911 Is a Joke" and "Welcome To The Terrordome."
As
America faces a fresh rebellion against racial division and social inequality, it is no surprise that the world looks to hip-hop's original champions of change to continue the fight alongside them. What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down? is available now at www.publicenemy.com, along with exclusive Public
Enemy merchandise.
