Public Enemy: 'On the Grid' 35th Anniversary Tour

Overview

They started as an opening act for the Beastie Boys. They've been fighting the power for almost four decades. They're no strangers to big hats and giant clocks, or for fighting for a worthy cause. They've been in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2013. They'll forever come to mind whenever Def Jam and Long Island come up. They're Public Enemy, of course, and they're about to get Australia believing the hype when they bring the noise — and their latest tour — Down Under in October 2024.

Chuck D, Flavor Flav and company are playing Melbourne's Margaret Court Arena on Saturday, October 5. Audiences, you're gonna get yours when the icons take to the stage to play through 37 years of tunes that began with 1987 singles 'Public Enemy No 1' and, yes, 'You're Gonna Get Yours', all from their debut studio album Yo! Bum Rush the Show.

Expect tracks from 1988's It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back and 1990's Fear of a Black Planet — two of the most-influential records of the period, and home to 'Bring the Noise', 'Don't Believe the Hype', 'Rebel Without a Pause', '911 Is a Joke' and 'Fight the Power' — as well, through to songs from 2020's What You Gonna Do When the Grid Goes Down?, their most-recent album.

For company, Public Enemy have AB Original in support, pairing one classic duo with another in Briggs and Trials — and matching the US group's commitment to social rights activism with an Australian act just as devoted to standing up against injustice.

Public Enemy last played in Australia a decade ago, on a 2014 tour that included Golden Plains, plus gigs in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Launceston.