Chuck D

Birth name Carlton Douglas Ridenhour
Also known as Mista Chuck

Born August 1, 1960 (1960-08-01) (age 46)
Origin Roosevelt, New York, New York
Genre(s) Hip hop
Occupation(s) Publisher, lecturer, record producer, rapper
Instrument(s) Rapping
Years active 1981-present
Associated acts Public Enemy, Fine Arts Militia
Website rapstation.com

Carlton Douglas Ridenhour (born August 1, 1960), better known by his stage name Chuck D, is an American rapper, composer, actor, author, radio personality and producer. Chuck was born in Roosevelt, Long Island, New York, USA. He helped further 1980s political rap music as the controversial and influential lead rapper of Public Enemy.


Public Enemy

After graduating from Roosevelt Junior-Senior High School, Chuck went to Adelphi University in Long Island. Upon hearing the demo track "Public Enemy Number One", fledgling producer/mogul Rick Rubin insisted on signing Ridenhour to his Def Jam label.[1] However, Ridenhour viewed the music business as a step down from the design job he had at the time. Rubin would continue calling to the point where Chuck D would have his then-girlfriend (and future wife) answer the phone as not to have to deal with him. Eventually, Chuck D relented, insisting to Rubin that he also sign his friend William "Flavor Flav" Drayton, explaining to Rubin, "I don't know what he does, but he adds something."

As the lyricist and main vocalist of Public Enemy, he was the focal point of two seminal and controversial rap albums: Fear Of A Black Planet and It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back.

Ridenhour also contributed (as Chuck D) to several episodes of the PBS documentary series The Blues.

In 1990, he appeared in Sonic Youth's "Kool Thing", a song for their album, Goo.

In 1996, he released Autobiography Of Mistachuck on Mercury Records.

In November 1998, he settled out of court with Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G" Wallace's estate over the latter's sampling of Chuck D's voice in the song "Ten Crack Commandments". The specific sampling is Chuck D counting of the numbers 1 to 9 from the track "Shut Em Down".

In September 1999, he launched a multi-format "supersite" on the web, Rapstation.com. A home for the vast global hip hop community, the site boasts a TV and radio station with original programming, many of hip hop's most prominent DJs, celebrity interviews, free MP3 downloads (the first was contributed by multi-platinum rapper Coolio), downloadable ringtones by ToneThis, social commentary, current events, and regular features dedicated to empowering rap artists with the knowledge to turn their craft into a viable living.

Since 2000, he has been one of the most vocal supporters of Internet music file sharing in the music industry.

Chuck has been increasingly involved politically. He co-hosted Unfiltered on Air America Radio, he has testified before Congress in support of peer-to-peer MP3 sharing, and was involved in a 2004 rap political convention.

He continues to be an activist, publisher, lecturer, and producer. He is the co-writer of the essay book Fight the Power: Rap, Race, and Reality, along with Yusuf Jah (ISBN 0-385-31868-5). Chuck D also founded the record company Slam Jamz.

He also acted as narrator in the short film "Bling: Consequences and Repercussions", shot by Kareem Adouard, which explains how diamonds in bling fashion can be conflict diamonds, fueling wars and killings in Africa.

Confrontation Camp

Stemming from his strong political roots, Chuck D. comes together with Confrontation Camp. It's about hip-hop and the raw aggression behind riveting rap rhyming, and frontman Kyle Ice Jason is immersed in classic East Coast rap. Chuck D (who goes by Mistachuck) joins P.E. alum Professor Griff to deliver hard-hitting societal issues through poetic beat boxing and vocalic disarray. Confrontation Camp is signed to Artemis and released Objects in the Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear in July 2000

Trivia

* He loaned his voice to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas as DJ Forth Right MC for the radio station Playback FM.

* Narrated and appeared on-camera for the 2005 PBS documentary Harlem Globetrotters: The Team That Changed the World.

* Appeared on-camera for the PBS program Independent Lens: Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes.

* Chuck D's 18 Reasons Why Tupac Is Alive, This theory was made by Chuck D after a while of showing his sympathy for Tupac's passing then finding weird occurrences.[2][3][4][5]

* Chuck D did a track with Vanilla Ice off Ice's 2001 album "Bi-Polar". The track is called "Elvis Killed Kennedy" or E.K.K. for short.

* Chuck D named Jay-Z as "the greatest emcee of all time" and "the embodiment of all of the emcees up to his point". [6]

TV appearances

* Chuck D appeared in an episode of NewsRadio as himself.
* He appeared on The Henry Rollins Show. (side note: He did also appear on this album: Rise Above: 24 Black Flag Songs to Benefit the West Memphis Three with Henry Rollins on the song "Rise Above".)
* He was a featured panelist (with Lars Ulrich) on the May 12, 2000 episode of the Charlie Rose show. Rose was discussing the Internet, copyright infringement, Napster Inc., and the future of the music industry. Chuck D offered a pro-file-sharing argument, as a counter to Ulrich's critique of filesharing.
* He appeared on an episode of Space Ghost: Coast to Coast with Pat Boone. While there, Space Ghost tried (and failed) to show he was "hip" to rap, saying his favorite rapper was M.C. Escher.

Discography

With Spectrum City

* Lies (1984)
* Check Out The Radio (1984)

With Public Enemy

* Yo! Bum Rush The Show (1987)
* It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988)
* Fight the Power...Live! (video and album, 1989)
* Fear of a Black Planet (1990)
* Apocalypse'91...The Enemy Strikes Black (1991)
* Greatest Misses 1986-1992 (1992)
* Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age (1994)
* He Got Game (1998)
* BTN 2000 (online released mega-mix which initialized PE's leaving Def Jam Records) (1999)
* There's A Poison Goin On (1999)
* Revolverlution (2002)
* There's A Poison Goin On (worldwide re-release via Slamjamz.com) (2004)
* Son of a Bush (EP) (released before the 2004 Presidential Election); contained the songs "Son of a Bush", "Get Your Shit Together" and the song featuring Fine Arts Militia (featuring Chuck D) entitled "Twisted Sense of God"
* New Whirl Odor (2005)
* Rebirth of a Nation (featuring Paris, Guerrilla Funk Recordings) (2006)

As Chuck D

* Autobiography Of Mistachuck (1996) on Mercury Records
* "Bin Laden" and its remix along with Immortal Technique and DJ Green Lantern (2005)

With Fine Arts Militia

* Fine Arts Militia (2003)

References

1. ^ "Hip-hop, you don't stop". The Observer Music Monthly, 18 June 2006.
2. ^ Chuck D's 18 Reasons Why Tupac Is Alive.
3. ^ article Chuck D.
4. ^ Rebel With a Hip-Hop Cause.
5. ^ http://www.daveyd.com/chuckpac18.html.
6. ^ http://halftimeonline.com/hip-hop-icon-series/chuck-d-public-enemy/2/

External links
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
Chuck D

* rapstation.com, Chuck D's official website
* Chuck D at the Internet Movie Database
* Entry on Chuck D at Rolling Stone's website
* Chuck D interview with the Village Voice. October 22, 1991.
* Public Enemy's official website
* Interview with Chuck D on public radio program / podcast The Sound of Young America
* "Bling: Consequences and Repercussions", short film narrated by Public Enemy Chuck D on Conflict Diamonds and Bling fashion
* Chuck D Interview on The Hour
* Chuck D Exclusive Video




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