Public Enemy are special guests at Spike Lee’s street party

Rap veterans Public Enemy stunned revellers with a surprise performance at a New York block party hosted by director Spike Lee on Saturday (28Jun14) to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his movie Do The Right Thing. A slew of celebrities, including Wesley Snipes, rapper/actor Mos Def, comedian Dave Chappelle and singer Erykah Badu, took part in the event, which was held on the same block in Lee’s native Brooklyn where the cult film about racial tensions was shot back in 1999.
Lee documented the occasion with a series of snaps on Instagram.com and alongside one image, he wrote,”10,000 people showed up, danced, sang, rap (sic) and had a great time. Thank you to everyone that showed mad love for the 25th anniversary of Do The Right Thing”.
He later posted a picture of Public Enemy’s Chuck D onstage and added, “For the finale Public Enemy was the surprise guest artists. When (they) came on stage… people went nuts.”
Lee will have more to celebrate on Monday (30Jun14) after Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams declared 30 June Do the Right Thing Day.
The Brooklyn block party took place a day after Lee attended a special screening of Do The Right Thing at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, where he signed autographs and took part in a question and answer session with director John Singleton.
The film was introduced by the President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, and also featured a pre-recorded video message from U.S. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, who reminisced about watching the movie on their first date.
The President said, “I took her to this new movie everybody was talking about, directed by a guy that not that many people had heard of… So Spike, thank you for helping me impress Michelle, and thank you for telling a powerful story…
“Do the Right Thing still holds up a mirror to our society, and it makes us laugh, and think and challenges all of us to see ourselves in one another.”