Dead Prez - Propaganda (2000)

When Dead Prez released their debut album Let's Get Free in 2000 they drew a lot of comparisons with Public Enemy for their politically charged lyrics and hard hitting instrumentals.  On the opening track of the album they refer to themselves as "Somewhere in between N.W.A. and P.E." which sums them up pretty well.  Sadly their career path wasn't quite as big of either of those groups, but for a short while at the turn of the millennium they introduced their ideals to a whole new generation of Hip Hop listeners with a string of singles unlike anything else on MTV at the time and in my opinion dropped a certified classic of an album.

One of the strongest cuts on the album is the bonus track Propaganda which was track 44 on the CD, following on from about 30 tracks of silence after the end of the main album.  The instrumental is a lot more peaceful than most on here, but the lyrics are anything but subdued.  The opening lines really set the tone for the rest of the verses:

You can't fool all the people all of the time
But if you fool the right ones then the rest will fall behind

M1 and Sticman ask their listeners to wake up and really think about what information they're being spoon fed by the government and the media rather than just believe everything that they're told as the truth.  They never get too far into weird conspiracy theories but they really do make you think.  It's a song that didn't get much recognition on release but it's well worth revisiting 14 years later as it's still as relevant today.

P.S. Listen to the album if you haven't already!

Public Enemy - Night of the Living Baseheads (1988)

This classic anti-crack anthem off Public Enemy's world renowned second album "It Takes A Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back" is our track for the day.  Using the double meaning of Base/Bass as a base (sorry) for the song is a great touch.

Fittingly the beat absolutely booms out of your speakers with one of the best instrumentals on the album as Chuck D lays down three witty verses that carry a serious message about the problems that crack was causing in the community at that time.

In some of the hardest hitting lines, Chuck relays an anecdote about a former rapper who steals everything from a man living out of a car in order to fund his habit

My man Daddy-O once said to me
He knew a brother who stayed all day in his jeep
And at night he went to sleep
And in the mornin' all he had was the sneakers on his feet
The culprit used to jam and rock the mike, yo
He stripped the jeep to fill his pipe
And wander around to find a place
Where they rocked to a different kind of...BASS

PE really were revolutionaries in socially conscious Hip Hop and given they were one of the biggest acts in the 80s it's great that they used their stage to say something worthwhile.  We can see their influence today as some of the biggest artists like Kendrick Lamar and Macklemore use their platform to tackle substance abuse amongst other issues.