Lyrics:

This anthem, originally from the soundtrack to Spike Lee’s classic movie Do the Right Thing and later on PE’s seminal album Fear of a Black Planet, is perhaps the group’s best-known song. Peace to Radio Raheem.
Yet our best-trained, best-educated, best-equipped, best-prepared troops refuse to fight
Matter of fact, it's safe to say that they would rather switch than fight

1989 the number, another summer (Get down)
Sound of the funky drummer
Music hittin' your heart 'cause I know you got soul
Brothers and sisters (Hey, hey)
Listen if you're missin', y'all
Swingin' while I'm singin' (Hey), givin' what you're gettin'
Knowin' what I know and while the Black band's sweatin'
And the rhythm-rhyme rollin'
Got to give us what we want (Uh)
Gotta give us what we need (Hey, haha, hey)
Our freedom of speech is freedom of death
We've got to fight the powers that be

(Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
Fight the power (Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
Fight the power (Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
Fight the power (Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
We've got to fight the powers that be

As the rhythm's designed to bounce, what counts
Is that the rhyme's designed to fill your mind
Now that you've realized the pride's arrived
We got to pump the stuff to make you tough
From the heart, it's a start, a work of art
To revolutionize, make a change, nothing's strange
People, people, we are the same
No, we're not the same 'cause we don't know the game
What we need is awareness, we can't get careless
You say, 'What is this?'
My beloved, let's get down to business, mental self-defensive fitness
Bum-rush the show
You got to go for what you know
To make everybody see
In order to fight the powers that be

(Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
Fight the power (Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
Fight the power (Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
Fight the power (Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
We've got to fight the powers that be


(Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
(Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
Fight the power (Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
Fight the power (Let me hear you say)
Fight the power (Let me hear you—)
We've got to fight the powers that be

Elvis was a hero to most, but he—
Elvis was a hero to most—
Elvis was a hero to most, but he never meant— to me
You see, straight-out racist, that sucker was simple and plain
Mother**** him and John Wayne
'Cause I'm Black and I'm proud, I'm ready, I'm hyped, plus, I'm amped
Most of my heroes don't appear on no stamps
Sample a look back, you look and find nothing
But rednecks for four hundreds years if you check
'Don't Worry Be Happy' was a number-one jam
Damn, if I say it, you can slap me right here
Get it, let's get this party started right
Right on, come on
What we got to say?
Power to the people, no delay
Make everybody see
In order to fight the powers that be

Fight the power
Fight the power
Fight the power
Fight the power
We've got to fight the powers that be


What we got to say? (Yeah)
Fight the power (Y-y-yeah)
What we got to say? (Yeah)
Fight the power (Come on)
What we got to say? (Yeah)
Fight the power (Y-y-yeah)
What we got to say? (Yeah)
Fight the power (Come on)
Yo, check this out, man
Okay, talk to me about the future of Public Enemy
The future of Public Enemy got a—