Fight the Power

Infobox Single
Name= Fight the Power
Writer = Chuck D, Eric "Vietnam" Sadler, Hank Shocklee, Keith Shocklee


Artist= Public Enemy
from Album = "Do the Right Thing" and "Fear of a Black Planet"
Format= Vinyl record (12")
Genre= Hip hop
Length= 4:42
Label= Tamla
T 54201
Producer= The Bomb Squad
Chart position=1 (Hot Rap Singles), 20 (Hot R&B Singles)
Reviews=
Artist= Public Enemy
Prev Single=
This single=
Next single=

:"For The Isley Brothers song, see Fight the Power Pts. 1 & 2"

"Fight the Power" is a 1989 song by the hip-hop group Public Enemy. First released on the "Do the Right Thing" soundtrack, an extended yet edited version was released in 1990 on Public Enemy's album "Fear of a Black Planet". The song has largely served as the political statement of purpose for the group, and is the group's biggest single, voted #1 in VH1's Greatest 100 Hip Hop Songs. [ [http://rap.about.com/od/top10songs/ss/Top100RapSongs_10.htm Top 100 Rap Songs] ]

The opening quotation, "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!" is a quote from Chicago attorney and civil rights activist, Thomas "TNT" Todd. [ [http://www.colorlines.com/article.php?ID=211 Race Records by Juba Kalamka] Another version is featured in the "Chuck D Presents: Louder than a Bomb" compilation, featuring a saxophone solo by Branford Marsalis.

Music videos

Spike Lee produced and directed two music videos for this song. The first featured clips of various scenes from "Do the Right Thing". In the second video, Lee used hundreds of extras to simulate a massive political rally in Brooklyn. Tawana Brawley made a cameo appearance. Brawley gained national notoriety in 1987 when, at the age of 15, she accused several police officers and public officials from Wappingers Falls, New York of raping her. The charge was rejected in court, and she instead was sued for supposedly fabricating her story.

Honors

It is one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll [ [http://www.rockhall.com/exhibithighlights/500-songs-by-name-df/ 500 Songs ] ] , #322 on The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, #40 on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs [ [http://www.afi.com/tvevents/100years/songs.aspx AFI's 100 YEARS...100 SONGS ] ] , and #288 on Songs of the Century [ [http://archives.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/Music/03/07/365.songs/ CNN.com - Entertainment - New song list puts 'Rainbow' way up high - March 7, 2001 ] ] . The song was also voted #68 on the VH1 special, 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s.

"Fight the Power" was voted "Best Single" by the "Pazz & Jop" critics poll of 1989.

In 2008, 'Fight The Power" was voted the number 1 hip-hop song of all-time by VH1.

Covers

"Fight the Power" was covered, tongue-in-cheek, by Barenaked Ladies for the soundtrack for the 1993 movie "Coneheads". It was also covered by Korn with Xzibit on the "" soundtrack.In 2008 VH1 did a special about the 100 greatest rap songs ever. Fight the Power was ranked 1# as the greatest rap song ever.

In film and television

"Fight the Power" can also be heard in the background as Marines celebrate the end of the Gulf War in the movie "Jarhead", not long after the lead character complains about music from a passing helicopter being Vietnam era Doors music... "can't we get our own music?".

"Fight the Power" was featured in Sacha Baron Cohen character Ali G's feature length film "Ali G Indahouse".

Rosie Perez dances to the song during the opening credits to the Spike Lee film "Do the Right Thing", and it is heard at numerous points throughout the movie as the character Radio Raheem plays it nonstop through Brooklyn, New York on his boombox.

On the show Balls of Steel (UK TV series) this song is used as the theme for the segment Millitant Black Guy With Toritseju Okorodudu who uses it when he accuses the public of being racist.

In the episode The Block Is Hot, of the television series The Boondocks, Huey carries a boombox playing "Fight the Power".

The song "Fight the power" can also be heard in the television series "The King of Queens", episode 57 ( Strike Out ), when Doug Heffernan walks along the street with his "gang" ( Arthur Spooner, Deacon Palmer with his baby Major).

The Canadian teen drama named an episode after this song.

References

External links

* [http://www.salon.com/ent/masterpiece/2002/06/03/fight_the_power/ Salon article]