It’s no exaggeration to say that Public Enemy helped change how I view the world. Much like George Orwell’s 1984, it helped me clarify thoughts I’d had and refine my overall worldview, putting to words an sounds the way I saw politicians, authority figures, media, justice, and more. I’ve extensively written about Public Enemy’s impact on me, so here I’m going to skip the formalities and get right to the song.
I still remember the day I first saw the video for “Night of the Living Baseheads.” The blaring horns, pounding rhythm, thought-provoking lyrics, and insane multimedia assault of a music video was like nothing I’d ever seen before. Growing up as a sheltered white kid in a tiny New Jersey town (which I helped chronicle in pictures in this book),it was like being shook awake.
Hell, it’s STILL like being shook away every time I listen to it, and it’s been more than three decades since that fateful day at MD’s house when I first saw the video.
Yeah, it still holds up to this day as a powerful piece of art. Check it out:
