Rage, Rap and Reality: An Evening with Chuck D

Chuck D, founder of Public Enemy
Tuesday, March 18, 7 p.m.
Jepson Alumni Center

Art and activism combine in the work of Carlton Douglas Ridenhour, known by his stage name Chuck D. The American rapper, composer, author, radio personality and producer furthered 1980s political rap as the lead vocalist in the influential Public Enemy, creator of two seminal recordings, Fear of a Black Planet and It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. Black men’s disenfranchisement and distance from the mainstream America of wealth and privilege simmers in a stew of anger, need, poverty and oppression that boils into raw expression and cries for change. It blasts from radios, in music videos and in clubs and concerts. On the Forum stage, Chuck D discusses the Hip-Hop movement and rap’s crude, cruel street language. The legendary Hip-Hop activist/artist illuminates the most perplexing parts of leadership – the complexity of humanity and how we communicate with each other.

Chuck D’s campus visit is also sponsored by the Office of Common Ground.