The history of Hip Hop is one of the most diverse, multi-faceted and layered musical histories in the modern world. You could write fifty articles on it and still not touch the impact, policing, cultural significance and battles that went into solidifying it as one of the most important genres we have today.
However, everyone has their favourite rappers. The artists that inspired them and opened a doorway to other worlds to get lost in. Many of us disagree, but what can be agreed upon up and down the genre, is it can be argued that no man has had more of a unique impact on the genre as the man we knew as MF DOOM.
October 31st 2020 was one of the saddest days in Hip Hop. MF DOOM had died, his family announced, at age 49. The British-American phenom enjoyed his privacy, so whilst his personal name is out on the internet for all to see, I will refer to him as we all knew him, as a mark of respect.
“Yep listening to nothing, taking no suggestions or destructive criticisms, that can’t improve on perfection.” Viktor Vaughn, The Drop.
MF DOOM was and still is one of the most enigmatic, imaginative and mysterious figures in the underground and alternative rap scene. His inspirations hit far and wide, with Tyler the Creator and Earl Sweatshirt being extremely vocal about his influence on the genre for years. Upon the announcement of his death, rappers from every level of the genre paid their respects. Everyone had a MF DOOM story.
Born in Hounslow, London, DOOM moved to Long Island, New York young. Beginning his career in 1988 as a member of KMD, performing under the pseudonym Zev Love X. After the death of DOOM’s brother, DJ Subroc, the group disbanded. After a break, DOOM started performing on open mic nights in the late 90s. Donning a metal mask reminiscent of Marvel’s Doctor Doom, the animated appearance of the masked figure on his debut album Operation: Doomsday changed the game. After this album, he fully embraced the masked icon and very rarely made any appearances without the mask.
DOOM released 4 solo albums and 3 collaborative albums between 2003 and 2005. Mm…Food carried on the MF DOOM figure but he also released a solo album under his moniker Viktor Vaughn and another under King Geedorah. Take Me To Your Leader introduces us to the intergalactic monster King Geedorah, based on the three-headed King Ghidorah, Godzilla’s enemy in the films. Vaudeville Villain gives us greetings to Viktor Vaughn, a time-travelling street hustler modelled on Marvel Supervillain Victor Von Doom. Vaudeville Villain describes Viktor’s everyday life, with every track detailing a situation Viktor has to go through to get money to fix his time machine.
“I’m doing the shows, the stage is my canvas, I’ll put whatever up there for the visible eye.” – MF DOOM
One thing everyone can unanimously agree with is that DOOM’s wordplay and flow are impeccable. He references constantly from comic books and often goes into the metaphysical, which gave him a style which is often looked upon in awe but impossible to imitate.
One of the most special things about DOOM to me? He was a fucking nerd. I mean that in the highest level of appreciation. Many hip-hop artists are nerds, with special interests in comics, video games or anything else society had said all those years ago was uncool, but DOOM made it cool. He crafted worlds with different characters on the level of the greatest sci-fi writers. With his fierce vocabulary, and his masterful command of beat, flow and entendre, he is one of the most interesting rappers to ever pick up the mic.
And then came Madvillainy. Madvillainy is arguably DOOM’s most prolific album. Under the duo Mad Villain for most of the album (DOOM and Madlib), DOOM works with all sorts of beats. Accordion and piano melodies, beats that sounded like a jazz band vibing together after a sell-out show, funky beats with the grooviest bass lines and everything in between. It’s one of the albums not solely produced by DOOM himself. His imagination is still present, with his breakfast bar and grill in “Bistro” and his confidence is second to none, cooly solidifying his legacy on “All Caps”. As he becomes ever-present in his legacy, his choice to present himself as the album cover speaks to a duality of identity. I’m here, I’m masked, and you’ll only see me the way I want you to. In concealing his identity, he fashioned himself into one of the most iconic figures in Hip Hop.
As hype built, he stayed true to the underground. He collaborated with a wide run of artists (Madlib, Ghostface Killah, etc) but refused the industry climb. He crafted everything from the ground up and the respect came organically. His flow was both conversational and precise, surgeon-like, easy and loose with masterful puppetry of the mic and his baritone raspy voice as an instrument from Geedorah themself.
Between 2005 – 2009, he would go on to collaborate with DJ Danger Mouse, produce for Ghostface Killah and release Born Like This in 2009, which was a harkening back to his earlier days of ragged and intense rhymes. In 2010, on a rare appearance outside of the States, he was refused entry back into the US and settled in the UK (He had always had UK citizenship). Across a career that can never be replicated, we lost one of the single most important figures in Hip Hop in 2020. The man, the urban myth and the lyrical beast crafted a legacy many are envious of.
DOOM would often employ people to be decoys, sending them to his concerts to perform as an extension of his sci-fi and comic-infused world.
On that day in October, we hoped this was the case. A rebirth or a stunt. It broke our hearts to know it wasn’t. So we said goodbye to one of the fiercest artists to ever pick up the mic. We said goodbye to Viktor who returned to his own time.
We said goodbye to Geedorah, off to his home planet.
MF DOOM, Accordion
Finally, we said goodbye to the man in the mask, the greatest, MF DOOM.
“Know who’s the illest ever like the greatest story told.”
