Chuck D
 Born Carlton Ridenhour
and hailing from
Roosevelt, Long Island, Chuck D is the founder and
frontman for Public Enemy. The group rose to fame with their explosive debut
album in 1987, redefining rap music and Hip-Hop culture
and delivering powerful messages about race, rage,
reality and inequality that reached all segments of the
population. Nearly two decades later, after producing
nine more albums and three multi-platinum records,
Public Enemy remains one of the most critically
acclaimed and highly influential groups in the music
industry. Chuck D has collaborated with many artists
outside his genre, including Isaac Hayes, John Mellencamp and U2, and has recorded soundtracks for a
number of Spike Lee films.
The critical and commercial
success of Public Enemy opened the doors for Chuck D to
deliver his message through a number of different
mediums. He has hosted his own segment on the Fox
News and published a best-selling
autobiography, Fight the Power. He has served as
a national spokesperson for Rock the Vote, the National
Urban League and the National Alliance of African
American Athletes. He has appeared in public service
announcements for HBO's campaign for national peace and
the Partnership for a Drug-Free America. A regular guest
on numerous television shows, including Nightline
and Politically Incorrect, he recently became a
spokesperson in favor of sharing music on the Internet.
An international innovator, Chuck
D has created a music legacy that many hold in the same
regard as those of such musical originators as Bono, Bob
Dylan and Bob Marley. In September 1999, he launched the
multi-format Web site Rapstation.com. Home to Hip
Hop's most prominent DJs, celebrities, music downloads,
social commentary and current events, the site is
dedicated to empowering rap artists with the knowledge
and exposure they need to turn their craft into a viable
living. It presents rap on a global level, and advocates
keeping the music business healthy and growing.
In 2001, Chuck D created an online, offline and midline
artist distribution channel through record label
SLAMjamz. He went on to launch a radio station on
the Internet, Bringthenoise.com. This
landmark move made Public Enemy the first
multi-platinum-selling act to release their album via
the Web before it was available in retail stores.
Setting new standards and challenging traditional
methods of retail distribution, Chuck D's involvement in
the Internet has landed him on the covers of the tech
industry's leading business magazines. He has also been
a guest contributor to Time magazine, and guest
editor of Red Herring. His outspoken advocacy of
the Web was profiled in Forbes, Time and USA Today.
Busy working on upcoming books
and speeches that combine his key topics of rap, race,
reality and technology, Chuck D is frequently requested
for all types of events, and is featured in
documentaries, interviews and books. Few artists have
transcended music to make an impact as loud as Chuck
D.
Sources for more information about Chuck D's
music:
http://publicenemy.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Enemy_discography#Sources
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