"Don't Believe the Hype" is a song by hip hop group

Public Enemy "Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe ...

and the second single to be released from their second album, ''

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back ''It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back'' is the second studio album by American hip hop group Public Enemy, released on June 28, 1988, by Def Jam Recordings and Columbia Records. It was recorded from 1987 to 1988 in sessions at Chung Kin ...

''. The song's lyrics are mostly about the political issues that were current in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

at the time of its release. "Don't Believe the Hype" charted at number 18 on the U.S.

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

and also reached a high of 18 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in July 1988. Chuck D has stated the song was inspired by the works of

Noam Chomsky Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is an American public intellectual: a linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic, and political activist. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky i ...

. The B-side includes "Prophets of Rage" and "The Rhythm The Rebel", an a cappella of the opening verse from "

Rebel Without a Pause "Rebel Without a Pause" is a song by hip hop group Public Enemy and the first single from their 1988 album, '' It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back''. The title is a reference to the 1955 film ''Rebel Without a Cause''. History "Rebel Wi ...

" which was a popular scratching phrase.

Charts

References

Public Enemy (band) songs 1988 songs Song recordings produced by Rick Rubin Political rap songs Songs written by Chuck D Songs written by Hank Shocklee Songs written by Eric "Vietnam" Sadler Songs written by Flavor Flav {{hiphop-song-stub