In the life and work of artist Shepard Fairey, social justice and the musical counterculture have always collided, igniting many of his most striking images. Most famously, they have come in the form of 18-by-24-inch posters, with messages against police violence, war, and government surveillance, and calling for peace, civil rights, and multiculturalism. There are […]
Lists like this are set up to fail, and, in line with the inevitable, this one fails too. But we never kidded ourselves, nor intended to kid you, that we could succeed in definitively choosing the 40 greatest, most important, creative, and successful music makers in the last 40 years. Many great artists didn’t make […]
Each week, SPIN digs into the catalogs of great artists and highlights songs you might not know for our Deep Cut Friday series. Vinyl singles have historically featured the most accessible and radio-friendly song on the A side, but every now and again, DJs and music fans have flipped the record over and decided they […]
A Long Island hip-hop crew called Spectrum City evolved into Public Enemy in the mid-’80s, signed to Def Jam, and became one the most politically outspoken and musically innovative groups the genre had, and has, ever seen. Chuck D and Flavor Flav have been the group’s only two consistent members over the years: the high-minded […]
This article originally appeared in the September 1999 issue of SPIN. “You must be high.” We heard that a lot during the time we spent preparing this issue. Which is understandable. Pronouncing the 90 greatest albums of the ’90s is a somewhat presumptuous thing to do. When you’re measuring the music this decade is offering to […]
Name Masta Ace Best known for Sittin’ On Chrome! Current city Northern New Jersey. Really want to be in Any place less racist than here! Excited about This hip-hop musical I’m writing and my next album with Marco Polo! My current music collection has a lot of ‘70s and ‘80s disco and soul. And a […]
This article originally appeared in the January 1988 issue of SPIN. Critics don’t like them. Black radio stations won’t play them. But in less than a year Public Enemy has managed to sell 275,000 copies of their debut LP, Yo! Bum Rush the Show, and has toured the U.S. and Europe with L.L. Cool J. […]
In keeping with the dark lyrics of Public Enemy’s single “Grid,” the group dropped an appropriately apocalyptic video featuring pals Cypress Hill and George Clinton. The clip includes footage from PE’s performance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Directed by David C. Snyder, the video for “GRID” is the latest from PE’s recent album, What […]
Let’s face it: With most “Best Albums” lists, you know the broad strokes of the ranking before you even click. Part of that predictability is understandable: Most iconic records earn their reputation. But these rankings shouldn’t be fossilized, and a shit-ton of amazing LPs have been shoved aside in the pursuit of maintaining the status […]
As part of our 35th anniversary, we’re naming the most influential artists of the past 35 years. Today, we’re at #9. From Long Island, New York, here are Public Enemy. CREDIT: Lynn Goldsmith/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images Formed around the nucleus of rappers Chuck D and Flava Flav, production collective the Bomb Squad and others, Public […]