Public Enemy To Release 35th Anniversary Edition Of ‘It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back’

The new edition will arrive on November 10 via UMe.

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Public Enemy, ‘It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back’ - Photo: Courtesy of UMe
Public Enemy, ‘It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back’ - Photo: Courtesy of UMe

Public Enemy will celebrate the 35th anniversary of their seminal sophomore offering, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, with a very special new vinyl edition out November 10 via Universal Music Enterprises’ (UMe). Fittingly, the release also coincides with UMe’s continued celebration of rap’s 50th birthday, Hip-Hop 50, as well.

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back will be available in either 4-LP 180gram vinyl and 2LP 180 gram vinyl—pressed on limited-run red or standard. The 4LP package features bonus tracks from the Deluxe 2CD, extensive new liner notes penned by Chuck D, Flavor Flav, Q-Tip, and Questlove, and a 12×12 sticker insert of the instantly recognizable Public Enemy logo.

Public Enemy - Don't Believe The Hype (Official Music Video)

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Public Enemy first dropped It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back on an unsuspecting world on June 28, 1988. Nothing would ever be the same in its wake.

It not only climbed to No.1 on the Billboard 200 and went platinum, but it also carved out a place in history thanks to singles such as “Rebel Without a Pause,” “Bring the Noise,” “Don’t Believe the Hype,” and many more. It yielded an unprecedented collision of jazz fluidity, punchy funk, and fascinating sample alchemy with provocative, powerful, and poetic wordplay about everything from race to revolution.

By doing so, this magnum opus set a template followed by successive generations of rappers. Speaking to the record’s impact, Rolling Stone touted it in the Top 15 of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time,” while Pitchfork rated It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back a highly rare “10.0” score and summed it up best, “It changed the face of rap music.”

In other Public Enemy news, the group and Ice-T will headline The National Celebration of Hip-Hop, a concert event taking place today,  October 6 and Saturday, October 7 at West Potomac Park on the National Mall in Washington D.C. General admission to the event will be free with registration.

Pre-order It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (35th Anniversary).

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