All caps: remembering underground rap supervillain MF DOOM
by Max Mwaniki, staff writer
Daniel Dumile, better known as MF DOOM, was a great musician who influenced and inspired generations of artists. He was “your favorite rapper's favorite rapper,” who produced beats, verses, and a story with his music. On Dec. 31, 2020, news broke of the death of MF DOOM. With heavy hearts, we remember who he was and the influential mark that The Supervillain MF DOOM left.
Before he became MF DOOM, Daniel Dumlile was the middle child of a Trinidadian mother and Zimbabwean father. Growing up, he had a love and fascination for comic books and videogames. With his brothers, Markham Temple and Dingilizwe Dumile known as DJ Subroc, he formed a rap group known as KMD. This marked the start of Daniel Dumlile's career first under the name Zev Love X. The group KMD took off after known hip hop group 3rd Bass offered them to appear on a song and it went viral. From then on, KMD gained traction and attention from labels and records and soon they signed to Elektra Records. Under this new label Daniel Dumile and his brothers released their first hit album Mr. Hood, and KMD became well known as a rap group.
He was “your favorite rapper's favorite rapper,” who produced beats, verses, and a story with his music.
At this point KMD was well on its way to fame and success in the music industry, so the group started to work on the next addition to their catalogue. But during the creation of their second album Black B*stards, Dj Subroc, was killed by a car while attempting to cross the Long Island Expressway. His death caused work on the album to halt, and the group evidently disbanded. Elektra Records dropped KMD, and Daniel Dumile was left alone and grieving.
Daniel then left the group to recuperate and prepare to gain revenge in the name of his fallen brother on the rap system that had so wronged them. He was gone for four years, and during this period he slept on park benches, raised his son, and produced music on his own with the money he had left. This is where the supervillain alter ego of MF DOOM started to form, inspired by Marvel character Dr. Doom.
With the goal to get revenge on the system that had left him broken, Daniel Dumile brought his musical career back under the name MF DOOM, a name symbolizing the destruction and control he felt he carried with his craft. His return shook the world with his first album Operation: Doomsday. A creative rap album, showcasing new styles and completely produced and mastered by the artist himself, marked the iconic start of MF DOOM’s career. MF DOOM went on to release five more albums, influencing and collaborating with artists such as Tyler the Creator, Earl Sweatshirt, JoeyBadA$$, The Weekend, Playboi Carti, and Anderson.Paak.
MF DOOM had built and inspired a whole generation of artists, creating his style, career, and legacy from the ground up. On Dec. 31, 2020, the announcement of MF DOOM’s death came as a shock to everyone. In the statement put out by Daniel Dumile’s wife and family, they talked about him as a father and a teacher. As of now we do not know about the cause of death except that he passed on Oct. 30 and his death was kept secret until the announcement on New Year’s Eve. Millions of fans, artists, and even the management at various big-name streaming platforms were shocked and immediately went to social media to pay respects to MF DOOM.
MF DOOM was a musician, a father, and a villain who during his life inspired and paved a way for thousands of artists. MF DOOM was your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper, and he mastered his craft to the fullest. I highly recommend listening to MF DOOM’s album MadVillainy or this fan created Spotify playlist if you are a fan of artists like JoeyBadA$$, CapitalSteez and Earl Sweatshirt. Daniel Dumile will forever be remembered as the supervillain MF DOOM.
Just remember: ALL CAPS when you spell the man's name.