To many hip-hop fans, historians and to his peers, Chuck D is considered one of the most influential lyricists in contemporary music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In describing the Queens-born artist in the biography pages of his new book, \u201cChuck D Presents This Day in Rap and Hip-Hop History,\u201d the publisher notes that Chuck D helped paved the way for political, social, and culturally conscious hip-hop, both as a solo artist and as the leader of the ground-breaking group, Public Enemy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a wide-ranging exclusive interview with NNPA Newswire<\/em>, the legend, whose given name is Douglas Ridenhour, addressed issues concerning Black America, including President Donald Trump, the importance of voting, and the need for the Black Press to reach even further around the globe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe state of Black America is always going to be a truncated state, if we don\u2019t expand to where we are in the world,\u201d said Chuck D, who just kicked off the wildly successful \u201cProphets of Rage\u201d tour with Cypress Hill and Rage Against the Machine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To date, the concert tour reportedly has drawn more than 3.1 million fans in more than 27 countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf (Black people) are going to rely on the United States of America to come around and give us answers, then we don\u2019t understand that we\u2019re all over the world, the majority \u2026 then we are doomed to be slaves in this country forever,\u201d said Chuck D. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to fight to get out of the box. To achieve in the United States of America was never going to be an easy ride for Black people, so we shouldn\u2019t cut ourselves off from those who look like us in this 21st century.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In an era where new and upcoming hip-hop stars like Migos and Cardi B. are leaders, Chuck D remains universally revered. His Public Enemy albums remain among the most critically-acclaimed works in rap music, including \u201cIt Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back\u201d and \u201cFear of a Black Planet.\u201d Earlier this year, a writer for GQ Magazine noted that not only is he one of the greatest and most influential MCs in rap\u2019s history, Chuck D is also blessed with the sort of encyclopedic knowledge and staggering recall that places him among the genre\u2019s foremost historians and custodians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cChuck was there, and he got receipts,\u201d the writer said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chuck D said Black America should have done more to embrace President Barack Obama and realize his limitations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPresident Obama was a statement to the world, a gateway to the world and an introduction to understanding what\u2019s in the world for us,\u201d said Chuck D. \u201cHe was not there so that we could simply stay in America and get answers, when the next guy who comes along is a dysfunctional idiot and everything gets reversed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chuck D said that he thinks Black people dropped the ball by not seizing on the opportunity while he was still in the White House.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWaiting for Obama to do anything for Black people was the biggest fault in my opinion, because he was the president knowing damn well that he couldn\u2019t make \u2018the Black move,\u2019\u201d Chuck D said. \u201cI think he gave it his all for eight years and we didn\u2019t do all that we could and, even then, it might have taken 30 years to take advantage of a person like Obama in office; but we only got eight.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Still, voting is key, Chuck D said, as he applauded the NNPA-led effort to register 5 million, new African American voters this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cVoting is as important as washing your tail in the morning,\u201d he said. \u201cPay attention to the local level and think about the bigger ramifications of not voting. You have to tell young people to pay attention at the local level, because when they run past that red light and they get pulled into that kangaroo court, where they want to revoke your license, that\u2019s who you should look at when voting. The literacy of what voting is to our young people is short-sighted and we can do better.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The recent shooting deaths of rappers XXXTentacion in Miami and Jimmy Wapo in Pittsburgh are as troublesome as the shooting deaths of his contemporaries, Notorious B.I.G., Jam Master Jay and Tupac, Chuck D said, sayinghe mainstream media must share some of the blame, particularly in the case of XXXTentacion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is a serious issue. It\u2019s not trivial,\u201d Chuck D said. \u201cI got on the (mainstream) media for pumping this kid up like he was going to die and when he dies, it\u2019s just another headline. What did you do to prevent this? When a guy is in that much danger, don\u2019t give him coverage. The more you do that, the more of a target and a death sentence you give him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n To remain strong and relevant, the hip-hop legend said that the Black Press must get ahead of the curve and continue its global outreach efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI think being able to be multimedia and create your text into spoken word, where the Black Press does its own podcasts and also visual stories where sight and sound are used is important for the Black Press,\u201d he said. \u201cBut also, reaching beyond the border lines. The whole world has something to say and you\u2019ve got to be eloquent in different languages, especially French and Spanish. The Black Press must be invested in the continents that want to be invested over here. This is what the Black Press could do; bring the world to your region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n