Fear of a Black Planet is the third album by American hip hop group Public Enemy. It was released in 1990, by Def Jam Recordings and produced by the group’s production team The Bomb Squad, who expanded on the sample-layered sound of Public Enemy’s 1988 album It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back.

Having fulfilled their initial creative ambitions with that album, the group aspired to create what lead rapper Chuck D called “a deep, complex album”.

A commercial and critical hit, Fear of a Black Planet sold two million copies in the United States and received rave reviews from critics, many of whom named it one of the year’s best albums. Since then, it has been viewed as one of hip hop’s greatest and most important records, as well as being musically and culturally significant.

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