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Public Enemy

PUBLIC ENEMY

YEAR

2013

INDUCTED BY

Spike Lee & Harry Belafonte

CATEGORY

Performers

Music with a message.

Whether we’re talking hip hop or politics, Public Enemy was revolutionary. Their blend of politics, philosophy and rap changed the game for the better.

Chuck D

Chuck D

Flavor Flav

Flavor Flav

Professor Griff

Professor Griff

Terminator X

Terminator X

HALL OF FAME
ESSAY

By Alan Light

RUN-DMC had a more revolutionary impact on the way records are made. N.W. A spawned more imitators. The Death Row and Bad Boy juggernauts sold more albums. Jay-Z has topped the charts for many more years. But no act in the history of hip-hop ever felt more important than Public Enemy.

At the top of its game, PE redefined not just what a rap group could accomplish, but also the very role pop musicians could play in contemporary culture. Lyrically, sonically, politically, onstage, on the news – never before had musicians been considered “radical” across so many different platforms.

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Class of 2013
Radical, revolutionary, change agents.
Harry Belafonte
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