Public Enemy's "Fight the Power"
(1989)
At the time of the Crown Heights riots, Spike Lee's video torches New York's long hot summer and establishes PE as rap figureheads.
Grandmaster Flash:
"That video was like Ralph McDaniels' concept of including people in the whole set. I almost thought Chuck could've ran for President. When we did 'The Message,' it brought a whole new consciousness to urban America. Public Enemy were giving you song after song after song, and it was like an awakening of us as a black people. Chuck D would talk about Malcolm X and Martin Luther King. They took the banner and made a series out of it. That's why Public Enemy got that much deserved credit."
Russell Simmons:
"The reason that Spike was able to make Malcolm X was because we created a climate through hip-hop where people wanted to hear it. There were times where everybody wanted to see who had the biggest gold chain. Chuck D came out and said, "No, we're going to wear African medallions," and the whole community wore them."
