"Rebel Without a Pause" is a song by hip hop group Public Enemy and the first single from their 1988 album, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back.
The group had recently finished a tour with fellow Def Jam artists LL Cool J and Eric B.
Bum Rush The Show was already dated, as production innovations had occurred during the album's release that he felt made it sound like a timestamp of 1986.
[1] Shocklee got the idea to sample an alto saxophone glissando from the J.B.'s instrumental "The Grunt", which became the track's distinctive whistling sound.
He had a Mirage sampler that was only able to hold 4 bits' worth of audio (or 3 seconds) to create his demo to give to Chuck to write his rhymes.
[1] Shocklee made the final mix with Steve Ett and upon hearing the finished product, Chuck D announced, "I could die tomorrow.
"[3]The song appeared in 2004 videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas on the in-game radio station Playback FM.
The video then cuts to footage of the DMC International Awards London 1988 and Public Enemy winning Best Hip-Hop Record for "Rebel Without a Pause".