Raising Hell vs. It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
Options
Nah Son
Guests, Members, Writer, Content Producer Posts: 9,367 ✭✭✭✭✭
Lets show the old school love, these are two of the defining albums of the genre. No rap album collection is complete without these
Run DMC is credited with bringing in the new school in the eighties, with hard raps and beats and a b-boy look, all of which made them look new and fresh compared to the generation before them. All the rappers before them looked like they were on their way to the disco, Run DMC with their black clothes and chains and sneakers looked like they came from the streets. Raising Hell went triple platinum and is their most successfull album. They collaborated with Aerosmith and remade their song "Walk This Way" which became a big success and was probably the moment when hip hop really broke through and became part of the mainstream. But my favorite joint on this album is "Its Tricky", perfect example of that classic Run DMC sound
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-O5IHVhWj0
"It Takes a Nation" is connected directly to "Raising Hell":
Chuck D had stopped rapping for a couple years when he went to a Run DMC concert in 1986. When they played "My Adidas" from "Raising Hell", they told the audience to hold their sneakers in the air. This was in Madison Square Garden, there were 40 000 people and most of them obliged. This moment led to Adidas signing Run DMC to a deal. It also made Chuck D, who had been offered a deal by Def Jams Rick Rubin for about two years but kept turning him down cause he thought he was too old to rap at that point, believe that he could spread his message through rap. Thats how he started Public Enemy, and their second album It Takes a Nation is definitely their magnum opus. The mix of Chucks political raps, Flava Flavs entertaining style and Bomb Squads explosive production makes this ? sound incredible til this day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djuc0kg97yo
I cant even vote lol both are damn near perfect to me, so this is more of a appreciation thread for both of them.
Run DMC is credited with bringing in the new school in the eighties, with hard raps and beats and a b-boy look, all of which made them look new and fresh compared to the generation before them. All the rappers before them looked like they were on their way to the disco, Run DMC with their black clothes and chains and sneakers looked like they came from the streets. Raising Hell went triple platinum and is their most successfull album. They collaborated with Aerosmith and remade their song "Walk This Way" which became a big success and was probably the moment when hip hop really broke through and became part of the mainstream. But my favorite joint on this album is "Its Tricky", perfect example of that classic Run DMC sound
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-O5IHVhWj0
"It Takes a Nation" is connected directly to "Raising Hell":
Chuck D had stopped rapping for a couple years when he went to a Run DMC concert in 1986. When they played "My Adidas" from "Raising Hell", they told the audience to hold their sneakers in the air. This was in Madison Square Garden, there were 40 000 people and most of them obliged. This moment led to Adidas signing Run DMC to a deal. It also made Chuck D, who had been offered a deal by Def Jams Rick Rubin for about two years but kept turning him down cause he thought he was too old to rap at that point, believe that he could spread his message through rap. Thats how he started Public Enemy, and their second album It Takes a Nation is definitely their magnum opus. The mix of Chucks political raps, Flava Flavs entertaining style and Bomb Squads explosive production makes this ? sound incredible til this day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djuc0kg97yo
I cant even vote lol both are damn near perfect to me, so this is more of a appreciation thread for both of them.
Raising Hell vs. It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back 24 votes
Comments
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackLove this album, bought it from a Library in Upstate NY
My favorite song on the album and one of my favorite hip hop songs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM5_6js19eM
"I got a letter from the government the other day, I open and read it, it said they was SUCKAS" -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackNot even close for me. I ? with both tho. But imo It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back is one of the greatest albums in any genre.
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackWe thought Raising Hell was a 5 mic album at the time it was released. But compared to It takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, Raising Hell is 3.5 mics.
It Takes a Nation redefined what a perfect album sounds like. They upped the ante.
This is really no comparison. Public Enemy should win this by a landslide.
Run DMC was my favorite group when I was 12. Their lyrics made sense but their subject matter was always simple. When I got a little older I couldn't listen to them. they sounded like nursery rhymes. -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackIt Takes a Nation production was off the ? charts, the Bomb Squad put it down
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Backking hassan wrote: »It Takes a Nation production was off the ? charts, the Bomb Squad put it down
Bomb Squad had Dre biting their sample style on Straight Outta Compton. -
king hassan wrote: »It Takes a Nation production was off the ? charts, the Bomb Squad put it down
Bomb Squad had Dre biting their sample style on Straight Outta Compton.
I think NWA owned a lot of their style to PE. They was rocking baseball caps and clock chains on the cover of NWA and the Posse just like Chuck and Flava on Takes a Nation which came out half a year before. And I heard Chuck say in a interview that when he met Dre and Eazy the first time he gave them two copies of the album
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackI never noticed Eric B at the end of the Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos video
-
Raising HellIt takes a nation was the best album ever.. IMO.. Its personal...
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackI never noticed Eric B at the end of the Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos video
Erick Sermon too lol
The track for "Night of the Livijng Bassheads" with that JB sample was insane -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackIt takes a nation
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackWe thought Raising Hell was a 5 mic album at the time it was released. But compared to It takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, Raising Hell is 3.5 mics.
It Takes a Nation redefined what a perfect album sounds like. They upped the ante.
This is really no comparison. Public Enemy should win this by a landslide.
Run DMC was my favorite group when I was 12. Their lyrics made sense but their subject matter was always simple. When I got a little older I couldn't listen to them. they sounded like nursery rhymes.
IMO...Raising a Hell is still a 5 mic album...name one wack track on that joint...the greatness of It Takes A Nation doesn't diminish what Run DMC produced...two different styles and both both are dope.. -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackIMO A Large Portion Of Run DMC's Catalogue Sounds Very Dated....PE's On The Other Hands Holds Ups Quite Nicely Especially This Classic
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Backsoulbrother wrote: »We thought Raising Hell was a 5 mic album at the time it was released. But compared to It takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, Raising Hell is 3.5 mics.
It Takes a Nation redefined what a perfect album sounds like. They upped the ante.
This is really no comparison. Public Enemy should win this by a landslide.
Run DMC was my favorite group when I was 12. Their lyrics made sense but their subject matter was always simple. When I got a little older I couldn't listen to them. they sounded like nursery rhymes.
IMO...Raising a Hell is still a 5 mic album...name one wack track on that joint...the greatness of It Takes A Nation doesn't diminish what Run DMC produced...two different styles and both both are dope..
@ the bolded; Walk This Way
-
Raising HellThere would be no It Takes w/o Raising Hell IMO.
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackThere would be no It Takes w/o Raising Hell IMO.
Eplain. -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back^^Explain.
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back^^Explain.
Nvm. You prolly talkin bout the adidas moment in the o/p. -
Raising Hell^^Explain.
They are both great albums but I don't think it is fair to compare them because w/o RUN DMC and arguably raising hell, there would be no PE. Chuck D cites RUN DMC as THE quintissental hip-hop band. Raising Hell dropped in 1986. PE dropped Yo! in 1987. -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
True but i like Yo waaaaay better than Raising Hell. -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackGreat thread. Both albums are indisputable classics, but It Takes a Nation completely chaanged the course of hip-hop into social-political movement. Plus the album is simply better - beats are sparser, more tense and chaotic (Bomb Squad yo) , wordplay is more complex and clever and Chuck D's flow was simply unmatchable at that point. It Takes a Nation is the greatets hip-hop album ever made.
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Backsoulbrother wrote: »We thought Raising Hell was a 5 mic album at the time it was released. But compared to It takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, Raising Hell is 3.5 mics.
It Takes a Nation redefined what a perfect album sounds like. They upped the ante.
This is really no comparison. Public Enemy should win this by a landslide.
Run DMC was my favorite group when I was 12. Their lyrics made sense but their subject matter was always simple. When I got a little older I couldn't listen to them. they sounded like nursery rhymes.
IMO...Raising a Hell is still a 5 mic album...name one wack track on that joint...the greatness of It Takes A Nation doesn't diminish what Run DMC produced...two different styles and both both are dope..
@ the bolded; Walk This Way
You really calling that track wack?...not my favorite joint on the album but far from wack...guitar sample is super ill...drums are on point....and the rhyme were dope...bruh you tripping -
king hassan wrote: »
That was like one of the first videos I remember that had a who's who of hip hop in it. You had Eric B, EPMD, Kool Keith, Orange Juice Jones, and other in that video. -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackBuilt 4 cuban linx wrote: »Love this album, bought it from a Library in Upstate NY
My favorite song on the album and one of my favorite hip hop songs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM5_6js19eM
"I got a letter from the government the other day, I open and read it, it said they was SUCKAS"
-
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Backsoulbrother wrote: »soulbrother wrote: »We thought Raising Hell was a 5 mic album at the time it was released. But compared to It takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, Raising Hell is 3.5 mics.
It Takes a Nation redefined what a perfect album sounds like. They upped the ante.
This is really no comparison. Public Enemy should win this by a landslide.
Run DMC was my favorite group when I was 12. Their lyrics made sense but their subject matter was always simple. When I got a little older I couldn't listen to them. they sounded like nursery rhymes.
IMO...Raising a Hell is still a 5 mic album...name one wack track on that joint...the greatness of It Takes A Nation doesn't diminish what Run DMC produced...two different styles and both both are dope..
@ the bolded; Walk This Way
You really calling that track wack?...not my favorite joint on the album but far from wack...guitar sample is super ill...drums are on point....and the rhyme were dope...bruh you tripping
Walk This Way might be the most skippable song in the history of rap music. It was a novel idea and the video put it all in perspective, but it has very little replay value imo. Wasn't really feel in Its Tricky or You Be Illin either.
Truth be told, Raising Hell would of been better with fewer songs. -
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us BackNot even close for me. I ? with both tho. But imo It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back is one of the greatest albums in any genre.