History Music / ItTakesANationOfMillionsToHoldUsBack

''It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back'' (1988) is the most famous and critically lauded album by Music/PublicEnemy. It scored hits such as "Bring the Noise", "Can I Get A Witness?" and "Don't Believe the Hype". It's now considered to be a cornerstone in the history of HipHop and one of the most influential recordings of all time.

!! It Takes a Nation of Million Tropes to Hold Us Back

'''''It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back''''' (1988) is the most famous and critically lauded album by Music/PublicEnemy. It scored hits such as "Bring the Noise", "Can I Get A Witness?" and "Don't Believe the Hype". It's now considered to be a cornerstone in the history of HipHop and one of the most influential recordings of all time.

->''''It still holds up. The beats and production are just incredible. Chuck, Flavor, political consciousness--we all know why this album's great. I can't say anything that hasn't been said about it.''''

** "Night of the Living Baseheads": The title in itself references the famous zombie movie ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1968'', but it also provides puns on the word ''bass'' and ''base'' (another word for cocain).

* LiveAlbum: The intro has audio taken from a concert the group did in London.

-> ''It still holds up. The beats and production are just incredible. Chuck, Flavor, political consciousness--we all know why this album's great. I can't say anything that hasn't been said about it.''

* TheGoldenAgeOfHiphop: A cornerstone of the genre.

-->--'''Creator/ChrisRock''', who put this album on nr. 22 in his personal list of Top 25 favorite {{Hiphop}} albums, Magazine/RollingStone, 2006.

-->--'''Creator/ChrisRock''', who put "It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back" on nr. 22 in his personal list of Top 25 favorite {{Hiphop}} albums, Magazine/RollingStone, 2006.

'''It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back''' (1988) is the most famous and critically best received album by Music/PublicEnemy. It scored hits such as "Bring the Noise", "Can I Get A Witness?" and "Don't Believe the Hype".

It's now considered to be a cornerstone in the history of {{Hiphop}} and one of the most influential recordings of all time. Music/KurtCobain ranked it among his Top 50 favorite albums and put it on nr. 43 in that list. Similarly comedian Creator/ChrisRock listed this record on nr. 22 of his 25 personal favorite {{Hiphop}} albums. It was listed at nr. #48 in Magazine/RollingStone's [[Music/RollingStone500GreatestAlbumsOfAllTime 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time]]. Magazine/TimeMagazine too included "It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back" in their list of [[TimeAllTime100Albums 100 essential and timeless albums]].

-> '''Creator/ChrisRock''', who put "It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back" on nr. 22 in his personal list of Top 25 favorite {{Hiphop}} albums, Magazine/RollingStone, 2006.

** "Night of the Living Baseheads": The title in itself references the famous zombie movie ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead'', but it also provides puns on the word ''bass'' and ''base'' (another word for cocain).

** "Night Of The Living Baseheads" references ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead''.

It's now considered to be a cornerstone in the history of {{Hiphop}} and one of the most influential recordings of all time. Music/KurtCobain ranked it among his Top 50 favorite albums and put it on nr. 43 in that list. Similarly comedian Creator/ChrisRock listed this record on nr. 22 of his 25 personal favorite {{Hiphop}} albums. Magazine/TimeMagazine too included "It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back" in their list of [[TimeAllTime100Albums 100 essential and timeless albums]].

'''It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back''' (1988) is the most famous and critically best received album by Music/PublicEnemy. It's now considered to be an essential classic in the history of hiphop and one of the most influential recordings of all time.

** "Party For Your Right To Fight" samples both "Fight For Your Right" by Music/TheBeastieBoys and "Get Up, Stand Up" by Music/BobMarley. The "ho yeah!" line is a sample from Music/SlyAndTheFamilyStone's "Sing A Little Song" from their album ''Music/{{Stand}}'' (1969).

!! "It Takes a Nation of Million Tropes to Hold Us Back

* BoastfulRap: Chuck D.

* ConsciousHipHop

* MistakenForRacist: From "Don't Believe the Hype":

* MusicIsPolitics and PoliticalRap: It's a Public Enemy record, after all.

* ProductPlacement: Clorox and Xerox are mentioned in ''Don't Believe The Hype''.

** "Rebel Without A Pause", references Film/RebelWithoutACause.
** "Night Of The Living Baseheads" references Film/NightOfTheLivingDead.

--> "Bring the Noise": "Now they got in me in a cell, because my records, they sell."
--> "Cold Lampin' With Flavor": "Flavors are electric, try to get me a shocker" and "Peter Perfect picked a perfect Peter".
--> "She Watch Channel Zero": "The woman makes the men all pause", a pun on "menopause" and "I'mma take all your soaps and then I'm gonna hang 'em on a rope", a pun on "soap on a rope".
--> "Night of the Living Baseheads": The title in itself reference the famous zombie movie ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead'', but it also provides puns on the word ''bass'' and ''base'' (another word for cocain).
--> "Party For Your Right To Fight" changes the word order of Music/TheBeastieBoys' "Fight For Your Right" and changes the content so that is not about a party (a feast, a celebration) but a political party, namely the Black Panthers.
* {{Lampshading}}: From "Cold Lampin' With Flavor"
--> We got Magnum Brown, Shooshki Palooshki
--> Supercalafragahestikalagoothki
--> You could put that in your "Don't know what you said" book
--> Took-look-yuk-duk-wuk

--> "Clear all the madness, I'm not a racist."

** "Louder Than A Bomb" references tge Music/FrankSinatra film ''Film/TonyRome''.

--> A lot of people on daytime radio scared of us
--> Because they too ignorant to understand the lyrics of the
--> Truth that we pumping into them clogged up brain cells
--> That just spun their little wooden skulls they call caps

--> Who gives a fuck about a goddamn Grammy?

** "Party For Your Right To Fight" samples both "Fight For Your Right" by Music/TheBeastieBoys and "Get Up, Stand Up" by Music/BobMarley. The "ho yeah!" line is a sample from Music/SlyAndTheFamiltStone's "Sing A Little Song" from their album ''Music/{{Stand}}'' (1969).

** "Party For Your Right To Fight" samples both "Fight For Your Right" by Music/TheBeastieBoys and "Get Up, Stand Up" by Music/BobMarley.

''"It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back"'' (1988) is the most famous and critically best received album by Music/PublicEnemy. It's now considered to be an essential classic in the history of hiphop and one of the most influential recordings of all time.

--> "But it's proven and fact\\
And ''it takes a nation of millions to hold us back''".

* ArcWords: ''"Public Enemy Number One"'' and ''"Bring the Noise"'' are all over their work.

** In ''Bring the Noise'' Chuck D. refers to the group as ''Public Enemy No. 1'', a reference to a hit from their inaugural album ''Yo! Bum Rush The Show''. The title of this album is referenced several other times in other songs on the album too.
** In ''Don't Believe the Hype'' he raps: ''"Again, I said I was a time bomb"'', in reference to his 1987 song ''Timebomb''. He also raps: ''Countdown to Armageddon'', in reference to the opening track of the album.

* HiroshimaAsAUnitOfMeasure: ''Louder Than A Bomb''.

--> ''Bring the Noise'': "Now they got in me in a cell, because my records, they sell."
--> ''Cold Lampin' With Flavor'': "Flavors are electric, try to get me a shocker" and "Peter Perfect picked a perfect Peter".
--> ''She Watch Channel Zero'': "The woman makes the men all pause", a pun on "menopause" and "I'mma take all your soaps and then I'm gonna hang 'em on a rope", a pun on "soap on a rope".
--> ''Night of the Living Baseheads'': The title in itself reference the famous zombie movie ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead'', but it also provides puns on the word ''bass'' and ''base'' (another word for cocain).
--> ''Party For Your Right To Fight'' changes the word order of Music/TheBeastieBoys' "Fight For Your Right" and changes the content so that is not about a party (a feast, a celebration) but a political party, namely the Black Panthers.

* PoliticalRap

* ProtestSong: Almost their '''entire''' output.
** Any references in the ''It Takes A Nation'' album to "Honeydrippers" are aimed at the seminal funk band most famous for their "Impeach The President" single, [[IThoughtItMeant and not]] the Robert Plant side project from TheEighties.

* SampledUp: The entire album. Chuck D.'s opening cry of ''Bass!'' and ''once again, back is the incredible'' in itself has been sampled by other artists too. He also addresses the accusations of sampling in ''Can I Get A Witness?''
* {{Sampling}}:

** "Prophets Of Rage": The title is a reference to a ''Life Magazine'' article about UsefulNotes/MalcolmX with the heading: "What ever happened to the prophets of rage?" He also namedrops black activists from the past like Marcus Garvey, Nat Turner, Denmark Vesey and Gabriel Posser. With the line ''Mandela, cell dweller, Thatcher/ You can tell her clear the way for the prophets of rage/(Power of the people you say)'' he references Nelson Mandela, who was still in jail at the time for his activism against South Africa's apartheid system. British Prime Minister UsefulNotes/MargaretThatcher did nothing against the country's racial system and even declared Mandela "a terrorist".

--> We showin' up in E-F-F-E-C-T, also known as effect.

** ''Louder Than A Bomb'' targets the CIA and FBI.

--> ''Bring the Noise'' attacks the critics: ''Listen for lessons I'm saying inside music that the critics are blasting me for/ They'll never care for the brothers and sisters now, cause the country has us up for the war.''
--> ''Don't Believe the Hype'' is an entire attack on the media and critics.
* WhamLine: From ''She Watch Channel Zero'':

* WickedStepmother: From ''Louder Than A Bomb''

[[caption-width-right:350: Do believe this hype: It's really an excellent album!]]

--> '''Ayo Chuck, they're saying we're too black, man'''
--> '''Yo I don't understand what they're saying'''
--> '''But little do they know they can get a smack for that, man'''

--> '''Some perpetrate, they drink Clorox'''
--> '''Attack the Black, because I know they lack exact'''
--> '''The cold facts, and still they try to Xerox'''

--> '''Bring the Noise''': "Now they got in me in a cell, because my records, they sell."
--> '''Cold Lampin' With Flavor''': "Flavors are electric, try to get me a shocker" and "Peter Perfect picked a perfect Peter".
--> '''She Watch Channel Zero''': "The woman makes the men all pause", a pun on "menopause" and "I'mma take all your soaps and then I'm gonna hang 'em on a rope", a pun on "soap on a rope".
--> '''Night of the Living Baseheads''': The title in itself reference the famous zombie movie ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead'', but it also provides puns on the word ''bass'' and ''base'' (another word for cocain).
--> '''Party For Your Right To Fight''' changes the word order of Music/TheBeastieBoys' "Fight For Your Right" and changes the content so that is not about a party (a feast, a celebration) but a political party, namely the Black Panthers.

* From ''Don't Believe The Hype'':

--> Her brain's been trained by a 24 inch remote
--> Revolution a solution for [[Series/AllMyChildren all of our children]]
--> But her children don't mean as much as the show

[[caption-width-right:350:]]

* SampledUp: The entire album.

** "Countdown To Armageddon" references ''Music/TheRevolutionWillNotBeTelevised''.
** "Bring The Noise" references Louis Farrakhan, Music/YokoOno, Music/RunDMC, Music/EricB, Music/LLCoolJ and Music/{{Anthrax}}. The voice that says "Too black, too strong" is UsefulNotes/MalcolmX.
** "Don't Believe The Hype" references Louis Farrakhan again, the Pan-African flag ("Get The Green, Black and Red"), Captain Kirk (Series/StarTrek) and the slogan for Trix cereals ("No you can't have it back, silly rabbit.")
** The Belgian rock band Channel Zero was named after the track "She Watch Channel Zero?".

!! Tropes found on this album

* The Belgian rock band Channel Zero was named after the track "She Watch Channel Zero?".

* {{Sampling}}: "Party For Your Right To Fight" samples both "Fight For Your Right" by Music/TheBeastieBoys and "Get Up, Stand Up" by Music/BobMarley.

** "Don't Believe The Hype" references Louis Farrakhan again and the slogan for Trix cereals ("No you can't have it back, silly rabbit.")