Around 2002, I met Rodan at one of my G.A.ME Hip-Hop union meetings at Hunter College. G.A.ME is non-profit union founded by Omowale, myself, m1 of dead prez, Francis, Diop, Neh, and SoSoon, as well as cosigned by Immortal Technique. Our union offered free dental, legal advice, free general check-ups with a doctor, and free show bookings for just $5 a month. As activists in our early 20s, we saw a need for there to be a resource to address the health concerns that started to plague the Hip-Hop community. One of our first concerts titled “Hip-Hop for Healthcare” featured Common, Afu-Ra, Talib Kweli, Killah Priest, Saigon, DJ Kuttin Kandi, and more as a tribute show for the ascension of Poetic (Rest in Peace) of the legendary group the Gravediggaz, a group which arguably may be responsible for laying down the foundation for the rap subgenre of Horrorcore. I was head of promotions and artist outreach at the time so hit I up the Monsta Island Czars’ website to try and see if the Czars like MF DOOM, Rodan, and etc would want to be a part of our union. I got a reply from X-Ray aka King Cesar and he shared the info with his team. I totally managed my own expectations because I know artists had a lot going on but, it was super unexpected that Rodan (I believe it was Kong and Kamackeris as well) showed up to our Hunter College union meeting. As the meeting concluded, I gave Rodan my beat CD and told him if anything resonated to just hit me up. I was young and this was my first entry point into the music business. Creative collaboration with artists was so important and I cannot front, I wasn’t rapping much at the time – I was mostly focused on making beats and just going with what my spirit was telling me to do, both with G.A.ME and with pushing myself as my own solo artist under the moniker RAVAGE (which KEO would soon after define to mean “Restoring Artistic Vision And Growth Everywhere”).
Prior too, when practicing and studying how to make beats (Newsflash- the game was sold and not told back then so if you didn’t have an IG mentor, you learned how to cook up by listening to hours of music, deconstructing songs in your mind to analyze the individual sounds and then trying to replicate the styles that you heard and make them uniquely your own- there was no YouTube, no Beatstars videos, no how-to books, no how-to anything – people didn’t “bite” each other’s styles back then either – you had to come with something unique), you really had to spend time figuring out how to filter the way Pete Rock did, how to get punchier drums and swing like DJ Premier (“Nas Is Like” is a perfect example), how to reverse a sample to get a new texture that you could use and more. The cost of equipment to do these things was in the $100s of $1000s and it was a very expensive lifestyle to have if you weren’t in it to practice every day and try to make a name for yourself. It’s very different from MCing and breaking in that regard. DJing/beat-making got really expensive as another part of cultivating that style was vinyl collecting and digging for samples (going to record shops to purchase new vinyl; if you were smart though, you would hit up relatives to raid their personal record collections of old vinyl they no longer play to get your crates and personal collection up!). While studying other artists, I would spend hours navigating the ughh.com forum (shouts to !llmind, SoundsforSamplers, Mphazes, and Craig Rip) and going through Napster to find hidden Hip-Hop gems to study song structure and artists doing unique stuff. Napster back then wasn’t regulated by ‘Big Brother’ so I found some really rare gems from J-Dilla, Björk, RZA, and other artists on there. I was on the ughh forum because the general public that I was around just wasn’t into the NY sound anymore as their love for Hip-Hop music continued to change while many of the DJs on the air in NY continued to play what Clear Channel’s program directors told them to play. Those songs didn’t represent the full spectrum of music that many of NY’s artists were creating back then and my union actually tried to combat that. DJs weren’t breaking new records in the way that they used to and the DJs that did… didn’t necessarily get the best radio slots to reach the masses. The NY sound was changing a lot – so it was important to find a place that shared the realness. I give thanks to Pete Rock, Marley Marl, and Callie Ban for their tireless work with “Future Flavas” as well and Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito for their show because my friends and I would record those shows onto cassette, dub and share them, and play the music loud AF in the car on our way to hoop throughout NY.
I had a notebook full of ideas of what I wanted to sample prior to even having the equipment to make beats. I often heard music from TV/Film that would be perfect for Beat Making & sampling. I didn’t like most of the primetime radio DJs much cuz at the time they were not playing Wu-Tang Clan’s music much and most of NY’s sound that the radio featured was way less gritty and too clean and shiny for me- almost like Shiny Suit Music. There was something about the NY sound that had grit and dirt to it, a raw texture, that was a lot more alluring to my ears, and when following artists, I always gravitated to the ones that stayed true to that sound. It’s not to say you cannot evolve that style, which countless artists have since then, but there’s a gritty, punch, slap, and dirtiness to that sound that makes New York so legendary when it comes to rap and music production. Anyways, while going through ughh’s forum, many of the forum heads kept mentioning MF DOOM and Operation Doomsday (OD) as being the album of the year. So I purchased it along with an EP by Brick Records. The Operation Doomsday record was sooooo crazy that it was addictive to listen too and so was that EP – it made me really think about the other artists DOOM was linked to as they were all so dope in their own right. The OD album was an enhanced CD so when you put it in a computer you got bonus material – I believe it was the music video for “I Hear Voices.” Enhanced CDs back then were very rare and such a great additive to an LP to really grab the listener and convert them to a super fan. Mobb Deep and Wu-Tang Clan both had enhanced album CDs prior to the release of OD. The OD album featured MF DOOM shining as 2 different characters, one as DOOM (modeled after Dr. Doom, the supervillain from the Fantastic Four Marvel comic books) and as King Geedorah (a remix of King Ghidorah the 3 headed monster that would give Godzilla a run for his money in those 70s Giant Monster movies)! It was crazy to realize that DOOM repped for Long Beach- Long Island, NY as it took me a second, a few months actually, to realize that MF DOOM was actually Zev Love X from the 3rd Bass “Gas Face” record that my sister had.
When I did the knowledge and realized I remembered some of the KMD songs and I was floored to really see this transformation – what was ill was that the world really didn’t catch on at first that Zev Love X fully transformed into MF DOOM.
It was funny because when it came to building about music I love, and actually playing it in the car while driving with friends in the passenger, I would play the DOOM work and people SLEPT SOOOOO HEAVY ON IT! HAHA. They didn’t get it (side note: I got similar reactions with Dilla’s Slum Village work on Fantastic Vol. 2. but what was ill with Dilla’s music is the girls that loved to dance/strip loved a lot of Dilla slaps – particularly “Climax” and “Players” haha – once in Huntington going through a drive-through with 3 shorties, one of them that stripped, hopped out the whip while “Players” was blaring through my speakers and started twerking – I dead ass drove the whip through at like 2 mph as she zoned out dancing lol… Dilla low-key got girls to make it clap lol… anyways…).
Rewinding a bit, in my childhood, especially on the weekends, I would zone out to Saturday morning cartoons from 7:30 AM all the way until 1 PM to end the cartoon run with Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends and The Incredible Hulk cartoon hour. I would then go outside to kick it with my friend for hours and around 4 PM/5 PM I would be back in. The bonus was that sometimes I would catch either a Godzilla giant monster movie or a Kung Fu flick often starring Gordon Liu. Both movies featured Chinese and Japanese people and thus my love affair with visiting Asia, especially Japan, where I would eventually live for a short time in Sangenjaya (in 2010) and visit 1-2 times annually thereafter (my first visit was in 2005). There was a mystique about Asia back then, something so alluring that it almost felt like it didn’t exist because my lens and knowledge were only informed by experiencing this beast we know as America which is curated by the white patriarchal hands of Big Brother (aka Godzilla). So watching countless hours of Godzilla movies on repeat (via VHS – Shouts to my mom for gifting me the Godzilla vs. Megalon film after school one day which had a prophetic image of my favorite Kaiju of all time Mechagodzilla on the cover – what’s crazy is the “No Snakes Alive” beat from the King Geedorah project is inspired by the Godzilla vs. Megalon film), and scouring the video stores to determine if there were any more Godzilla films I haven’t seen yet, it was a rush and a high to learn and wonder about the group of people from the Far East that I would rarely ever see in the town I grew up in, Freeport, NY in Long Island. Back then, Long Island wasn’t super diverse so you rarely saw Asian people, let alone their children in the schools – that started to change a lot in the 90s as Long Island started to get more, and more integrated (thankfully) with other kinds of people moving out there.
What I saw in the Godzilla films was that monsters would rest, for long, long periods, and when they emerged, they were insanely strong and flexing superpowers. Due to the long periods of downtime, that created stories and legendary dialogue amongst the average everyday person in those films. In general, you’d never have enough personal time seeing the monster to really figure out what their plans/visions were – they would just show up at the right time in those films and BODY SHIT. This is a style and technique that I would witness first hand when later joining forces with some of the greatest MCs to ever rep for Strong Island, NY (Long Island). Each one of these MCs, Rodan, Megalon, Kong, X-ray, Kamackeris, Spiega, Gigan(I never got to me him), and extended family Raylong and Stonz all had bars, really unique flows, and crazy skills on the beats.
Those days and lessons with cartoons, Kung fu, and Godzilla films were pretty amazing but as I evolved out of my adolescence, being a geek for these types of things was frowned upon in my community. It was NOT cool to still be watching cartoons or anime (you are BUGGING if you don’t fux with Vampire Hunter D, Golgo 13, or Fist of the North Star) as people were growing into young adults and getting into different things like hitting up clubs like (shouts to Speed, Webster Hall, 40/40, Limelight, The Tunnel, and countless whole in the wall spots), macking on girls, party hopping, trying to get better-paying jobs, and avoiding potential shoot outs in those situations (NY’s gun violence was really crazy at one point and shit would POP off – One of the reasons I stopped hitting clubs is because I saw someone get shot right in front of me and they fell into my arms – actually at a club that was the border of Long Beach and Oceanside, Long Island). So, someone like DOOM, whose music didn’t seem to reflect those societal tropes at all, gave you the sense that it was ok to still enjoy cartoons, giant monster movies, lyricism, the art of beat-making, and other things on some Blerd ish- which was NOT necessarily driving the pulse and current of the wave that the rest of society was riding on.
When you think about being out in “left field,” MF DOOM’s presence in Hip-Hop culture (and the Hip-Hop game/hustle for that matter) was like you personally being at home plate waiting for a pitch, and then you glance out into left field noticing that there’s a Galactus sized being with a metal mask grinning and chewing through the planet. Like for God’s sake he sampled the Scooby-Doo cartoon via the song “Hey” and then rapped on it and made that one of the most innovative rap songs of all time.
It makes you question what game everyone else is even experiencing because clearly, this artist is on some other shit, low key chewing up most MCs bar for bar, and just drastically reshaping the art form in a monstrous way pun intended. Daniel Dumile (MF DOOM) was truly such a beast – jeeeezus and him being so unique, witty, funny, mysterious, and off the cuff made him a living legend. He legit became many of your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper and it was dope to see when artists actually celebrated him in that regard. Yasiin Bey (fka the Mighty Mos Def) totally comes to mind when thinking about that and below is just a little proof:
After listening to Operation Doomsday like 50+ times, I zeroed in on how he started “Gas Drawls” it’s insanely funny because DOOM invites you into the rhyme like he’s actually continuing a conversation with you by starting his verse with “By the way…” lol like very matter of factly as if you have been in the conversation with him the entire time and he’s just sharing another thought with you… that shit made me laugh. He legit referenced the McDonald’s Hamburgler in a rhyme and the shit was FUNNY AS HELL as he quoted “Roggle, Roggle” in a rap lol… that’s some real TV ish right there as his raps were at times quirky, and other times masterful mixing in the type of humor that I personally enjoyed, with it not really being funny, but totally being fucking hilarious on some dry humor ish LOL… He has another funny opener on the De La Soul song “Rock Co.Kane Flow” off “The Grind Date” where he says “From the top of the key for 3… Villain..” Lol.. who says shit like that HAHA…
Like imagining DOOM at the top of the key in a basketball game, with the mask on and the belly shooting straight cash from 3 point land is hilarious… What’s even funnier is the way he says it reminds you of the announcers that give you the play-by-play for the New York Knicks like Marv Albert, etc. Rapping in 3rd person makes things a LOT more interesting and I honestly do not know anyone that is fucking with DOOM’s pen or mind in this regard. The only way I can explain it was like imagining if Basquiat gave a Ted Talk about his process. That is how much Operation Doomsday and MF DOOM’s pen on that record impacted me.
From the Godzilla references to sampling & rapping over Sade & Scooby-Doo (sampling such an insane chop of that cartoon’s music) you couldn’t help but love DOOM’s style that didn’t sit in the trend of the 60s soul music sample world but rather anchored itself on nostalgic cartoons, film, and 80s R&B samples. Additionally, some of the OD songs featured these amazingly unique MCs all with very different rap styles and it was dope to realize many of those guys seemed to be from a few towns over in Long Beach, NY – Long Island. What is crazy is that when you first visit Long Beach, you will see a really beautiful beach with lots of beachfront property. It legit looks like a bootleg Miami strip BUT – there is a handful, and I mean a handful, of blocks in Long Beach (LB) that are just gully as f*ck! I don’t know what it is about LB, but LB created some of the toughest and most talented Hip-Hop practitioners that I’ve ever met for real, for real. Scaling that out to Strong Island as a whole, Strong Island did not and does not really get the love for its contribution to Hip-Hop so it was REALLY amazing to vibe not only to DOOM’s lyricism but the lyricism of the featured artists, who all had the craziest bars I have heard in a while – all of their bars are comparable to how filthy the MCs of the Wu-Tang Clan are.
The “Who You Think I Am?” record is one I would have on repeat often as the beat embraced the uptempo boom-bap style that I love and some of the Monsta Island Czars (M.I.C.) that lyrically demolished that instrumental (this beat showed that DOOM was perfectly capable of making polished beats and made me think about his previous work on the KMD albums which is a testament of that as well). Rodan, Kong, and Megalon were the favorites of mine on that song which forced me to spend hours upon hours searching for any and all things I could find about those 3 MCs online (which resulted in not much information at all- very mysterious, just like the giant monster names they all took on). This record alone made me a huge fan of Rodan’s rap flow and moved him into my top spot next to Inspectah Deck as my favorite MCs (of course I fux with tons of other MCs, Raekwon, Ghostface, Nas, Prodigy, KRS-One but Rodan’s lyricism and flow really took it there for me). It is insanely important to note that years later when I met the legend that founded Monsta Island Czars, I learned that there are/were more Czars that repped for Monsta Island which you can hear here on “Wack Emcees.” It really opened up another arena of understanding that made me truly respect the legacy and history that much more.
The mystique of DOOM and the other M.I.C. members were unparalleled… you’d get to hear some of the music in these little spurts followed by huge gaps in time, wondering what was going on behind the scenes. What was dope is finding out that the crew DOOM rapped with on Operation Doomsday had a group project out on Rhymesayers called “Escape From Monsta Island.” It was really, really dope to finally get to hear more of Rodan, Megalon, Kong with the bonus of hearing more Kamackeris and a new czar named Spiega aka Spice (who I learned actually repped for Freeport, the town I was raised in, along with his younger siblings that were going to the same High School I went to on some real Strong Island shit!! Spice don’t kick me in the chest for this but I think everyone had a crush on your sister me included lawda mercy).
Prior to doing G.A.ME’s artist outreach, I pretty much was listening to DOOM, Pete Rock, DJ Premier, Nas’ “It Was Written,” older Wu-Tang & Mobb Deep records on repeat. Fast forward, meeting Rodan at one of those G.A.ME meetings changed a lot for my life, and a handful of weeks later (after the G.A.ME meeting) Rodan called me and said he did 3 songs with 2 of my beats.
My first official feature with a War in Heaven Pt 1, Human Inquisition, and War In Heaven Pt 2 on Rodan’s “Theophany: The Book of Elevations” album. I remember building with Rodan and he shared he was wrapping up his solo record and that my 2 instrumentals, which he used to make 3 new songs, really helped complete the sound he was looking for to finish up his album. With perfect timing following the Escape From Monsta Island record, Theophany was being prepped and I got introduced to KEO of the X-Men (also known as Scotch 79, Lord Smog, Lord Scotch, or Smog Monsta).
KEO and I would team up to make Rodan’s album cover and I would flex my visual art skills alongside one of New York City’s illest graffiti legends of all time. Learning more about KEO was humbling as he shared he created MF DOOM’s first metal mask doing a remix of what I believe he shared, was the Russell Crowe mask from the Gladiator film. KEO mentioned the remix included taking just the faceplate and then using the webbing of a construction helmet so that the mask fit perfectly. When you think about New York City and how all of the elements of Hip-Hop are rooted here, and how you can connect and build with artists that rep for the different elements, it is mindblowing to see how our culture is so interconnected and working as one unit, often behind the scenes. In this case, a graffiti writer (who low key has the filthiest bars tucked away), not only created MF DOOM’s Operation Doomsday album cover (teaching himself, out of need, how to use and do graphic design on a computer) but also remixing his visual art skills to create a tangible and functioning mask for an MC to use and conceal his identity with. In parallel, DOOM low key was an incredible graffiti writer/artist, artist, MC, and more. I saw first hand the Hip-Hop elements connected as one day I was on the train (NYC subway system) and I saw DOOM’s name scratched in one of the metal panels inside of one of the subway cars. I was zoning out on the train and at random, I saw it and the low key was GEEKED! It was so mind-blowing because he got his tag on still, even though he was making waves as a rapper… I actually took a photo of it and once I find it, I will add it to this post, I just have to go through my archives to try and find it. It was dope to see it randomly while running through the veins of the city on the subway.
It was so ridiculously ill to see how multifaceted (MF) the artists I grew to learn and build with were and that helped inform many of the directions I took being fully self-expressed as a visual artist, Hip-Hop producer, MC, and activist. I did a really dope illustration for Rodan’s cover, remixing the giant monster Rodan into a more angelic type figure here:
And then I did a quick photoshoot of Rodan at the mall. We gave the material to KEO who took it from there, creating the album font from scratch and prepping the art for print via something like Photoshop, and boom, we have this below:
Rodan’s album would go on to sell out all copies in a matter of weeks, and when riding around bumping the album in the whip, it sounded more and more amazing with each listen. Rodan shared a gem once that the reason why the album continues to sound that way is because all of the fans are playing it and the sound, the jewels, and the message itself are all reverberating at roughly the same time. It was days like that that were really dope knowing that some of the Czars were super informed about energy, scientific/metaphysical concepts, and more as many of them did the knowledge via Dr. York’s Nuwaubian books, the Ansar community, the Five-Percent Nation, Moorish science, and more. If you look on the back cover of Operation Doomsday, the image present would give you this same impression just of the visual alone that DOOM himself also possessed a powerful foundation of knowledge (of self).
Rodan’s assist using my beats got me honorable mentions on some of Hip-Hop’s top websites notably AllHipHop.com – huge thanks to Unagi aka Brolin Winning who always kept an eye out for us, often writing about the Monstas. Prior to Theophany being released, Rodan told me as far as he was concerned I am family. With my name being RAVAGE, I asked him if I can get the name MeccaGodZilla. He told me there was one prior to me and when building with X-Ray about it, it seemed that the previous MechaGodzilla was inactive. Being the geek I am, I knew that in the Godzilla films, especially some of the newer ones, there were newer iterations of MechaGodzilla so I decided to embrace that. Shortly after, Rodan started referring to me as G-Mecca here and there and shouted me out on the Theophany project which kind of cemented the MeccaGodZilla cosign for me. I really appreciated that and am grateful for Rodan looking out like that (I learned a lot/the most from him back then) as all of the dots from childhood to adulthood started to connect for me and as an artist I could start to run with it.
I started to link and meet the M.I.C. crew one by one visiting X-Ray’s studio. I was the youngest at the time (I think Raylong and myself are the same age) so I was watching, listening to, and studying as the Czars would stop by, kick it, and record or just chill and build while X-Ray played beats and songs of previously recorded music, songs in progress, and really crazy instrumentals. I think one of the illest days was when he plays some exclusive DOOM joints which later turned out to be songs from the Madlib and MF DOOM collaboration album titled “Madvillainy.” I ended up getting a show booking for M.I.C. at the Knitting Factory which was one of the craziest nights ever… on the bill was Pumpkinhead who ended up bringing up Karniege, Jean Grae, Substantial, and I think it was Blitzkrieg, GMS, Mr. Mecca, Pack FM and many MCs for this insanely crazy posse cut before M.I.C. took the stage. That show was the cross-section of the hood and underground rap where all that mattered was how dope you were lyrically on the microphone. Also, lemme just add that shorties were dancing on top of the bar vibing to the show – that’s how lit the vibe was at one point. That night I got to meet Spiega and Megalon which was really dope, and seeing Spiega rap with Stonz (extended family) was really, really ill. I was already going to shows at the Lion’s Den, Knitting Factory, Rocksteady Crew’s anniversary festivities at Pier 54, and more, just studying MCs and producers before eventually taking my own swings on stage and touring, so it was really dope to finally link with the very elusive MCs from Long Island that were part of the M.I.C. crew. Seeing them all in real life and rolling with them is beyond articulation.
I started crafting the MeccaGodZilla sound having lots of fun remixing a lot of the Godzilla music and exploring my own identity as a young black Brooklyn-born, Long Island raised, artist, Hip-Hop practitioner, and activist that was truly anti-establishment and looking for ways to continue challenging and questioning conventions in mainstream rap music which really just seemed so false and materialistic – (which we are all now witnessing today as there is a true war between the digital world, our mental health, spiritual selves, and our ecological system that is currently gagging on the ropes for various reasons, COVID-19 is one of the newest ingredients to that pretty f*cked up meal we are continuously being served here – we have a choice to not eat it though).
While working on my own music, finding new/unreleased songs on Napster after working my day job, hooping, working out daily, and trying to learn new beat making techniques, I fell deathly ill with kidney and liver disease which resulted in me being hospitalized, losing my eyesight, ability to talk, eat, and walk – I could barely move. The mortality rate for what I had gotten sick with at the time was 90%. It made me think about all of the music I wanted to make, ideas I had, and how that may not be possible if I did not pull through. I remember motioning in the hospital with my hands to my family to give me something to write on and I scribed out that I needed the Escape from Monsta Island CD, Raekwon “Only Built for Cuban Linx” CD, and Lauryn Hill’s acoustic album “Unplugged No. 2.0” in order to not die- Real talk! My spirit and soul needed these 3 albums, in particular, to stay alive because I felt myself slipping. Once those albums arrived, I would listen to the music on repeat with headphones for days upon days and it all helped raise my internal vibration – how you asked? Cuz it was music that made me feel good. Coupled with a Kyokushin-Kai breathing technique my father helped me do, the music, and breathing, miraculously got my body to throw up a ton of gross stuff that would jumpstart my healing process. Weeks later I got out, embraced a new way of looking at life, took on the MeccaGodZilla name, and started cooking up a LOT more beats while still half-blind. I was just really inspired that I survived NOT dying and had another shot at living my life on my own terms. And trust me, that I did as I decided to choose things that would made me happy and stopped living with other people’s expectations of me – this type of lifestyle led to very rough patches, tough lessons, and perilous roads but I would never EVER trade that for the world – as I got to rack up an insane amount of wins to balance out all of the losses. I share that to say, when thinking about DOOM and how he had a run with the Music industry (which was too stuck up to support such authentic and real messaging), it was amazing to see how he transformed his circumstance, trailblazed his way from the underground, raised the vibration and importance of underground Hip-Hop and lyricism with his releases, and powerfully got the message across that age, appearance, and the Big Four’s white collar curation of rap music releases means nothing. In true giant monster movie fashion, it is perfectly ok to take LOTS of time to disappear, to reinvent yourself/identity and return being as unique as you want to be, going against the grain of conventional music ideas/styles, and being fully self-expressed regardless of naysayers, critics, and close friends/family that may hate on your ideas and the creative direction you want to go in.
As the years went on, I started to meet more of the Czars and the extended family that all knew DOOM. They shared with me stories that were humbling as some of them were around DOOM when they were way younger – I liked knowing that he could really, really draw. Being a huge fan of Marvel comics, I was known in Freeport for being nice with illustrating. Many more opportunities started coming my way as I navigated the streets of New York City with some of the Czars just taking advantage of the new opportunities we were creating for ourselves. God, we saw and experienced so many crazy, fun, and wild moments lol. One highlight that unfortunately fell through on the art tip was I got offered a chance to create a mural that would supposed to go up on the wall at the Carhartt store in the UK. This illustration was a gentle flex of my love for illustration/visual art (truly inspired by M.I.C.) however the situation didn’t work out – it is definitely one of those what-if moments for me. This situation helped remove any doubts in my mind about the possibilities of collaborating with corporate entities which was a huge plus even though the collab didn’t happen.
I will share this one story one of the Czars told me – He and DOOM were kicking it outside in the neighborhood and DOOM saw a record near the garbage on the sidewalk..the record was broken and chipped. DOOM picked it up and brought it back home to sample from … that’s the type of mind that the God shared with me that DOOM had. It was really dope hearing that story.
As I did my own thing, working with the group (M.I.C.), and navigating girlfriends, and some really wild life situations, I would always think in the back of my mind, when would I actually meet DOOM or if I would ever have a chance to build with him? I would think about it a lot – and eventually, that day came.
DOOM was doing a show at the legendary B.B. Kings venue in Times Square and I was with some of the Czars that day. We rolled through and I was gifted a VIP pass to have access all throughout the venue. It was REALLY dope just feeling how electric the crowd was. I ended up on the stage prior to DOOM’s set with the other Czars and I ended up just staying on stage as DOOM’s set began – really, really dope seeing Ben on stage for the first time ever. I just vibed on the side of the stage, totally out of the way, as DOOM bodied the crowd. He tore through his set and had the crowd’s reactions in the palm of his hands. Halfway through, while chilling on stage left, the Mighty Mos Def, known now as Yasiin Bey, stands right next to me rocking a fez and gives me dap – haha. Fam, my mind was on tilt as 2 of the greatest MCs that I studied for YEARS were both on the same stage right along with me? I was cool on the outside but flipping the FUCK out on the inside FOR SURE haha. I had a chance to go backstage after the show but I just didn’t want to be on some fan steez with DOOM or Yasiin backstage. I felt like if I kept going creatively with my career, I would get to meet both of them again in a different setting. That night, I just enjoyed being a part of history on stage and just enjoyed (studying) the set. The footage that exists, filmed by a team of students from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, will show me on stage all throughout just vibing and reacting with the crowd. You will see me rocking all black, a black leather, and black durag, holding up an Operation Doomsday CD lol.
The thing is with me, sometimes I may be introverted at the highest of levels although I may be in an extroverted setting and doing extroverted things while having fun. I am totally comfortable with gently not having anything to say at all to artists and people I admire/look up to; I totally just want to listen, watch, and take the energy in. It’s almost like the reaction Allen Iverson had with talking about his 1st encounter with Michael Jordan – you just cannot believe you are looking at or standing next to one of, if not the greatest of all time – I was speechless and just cheesing like a mofo lol! Seeing DOOM on stage and being with the crew that night just connected a LOT of dots for me as it was inevitable (from my childhood experiences with Toho’s Godzilla movies to tons of cartoons) that I would encounter someone that appreciated those things equally as much as I did if not more while also being at the highest level of expressing himself through the art of MCing, beat-making, entrepreneurship, and showmanship.
What I really respect about MF DOOM is that he was unyielding with being uniquely himself.
It didn’t matter what the world thought, he fully embodied the alter egos and created some of the most groundbreaking art through rap/MCing and beat-making. Like WHOOOOO embodies the Doctor Doom character from the Marvel Universe, gets booked for a rap show, doesn’t show up, but then sends “Doom Bots” to wear his mask. Those same Doom Bots lip-sync and rap at those shows, and like pieces of the Villains plan, collect the bag from promoters $$$ and bounce, leaving fans stunned, entertained, and gently confused LOL. That’s some REAL next level life is art, art is life shit. MF DOOM literally sent doppelgangers to rap for him a few times and it was HILARIOUS reading when fans were insanely upset that clearly whoever was rapping on stage, was clearly not MF DOOM but some type of imposter rocking his mask. It was also dope when both he and a Doom bot were on stage at the same time. You can peep the crowd’s reaction below as they thought they were not going to get their money’s worth with the Doom imposter on stage:
In the comics, superheroes often battled against DOOM bots not realizing they were engaging with a facade as the real MF DOOM was off planning other things of importance. It is hilarious to think about especially because a decade later, those same outraged fans that saw a DOOM imposter show, can now appreciate how far ahead Dumile’s mind was… in chess, to play a great game, you often have to be 10 steps ahead – MF DOOM (also known for his Metal Fingers moniker) always seemed to be 10 steps ahead creatively and it is clear now, he really was. He deconstructed rap and beat-making in such a way that there’s literally subgenres of these elements (like Lo-fi Hip-Hop) that he is instrumental in birthing alongside the likes of Dilla (RIP), Nujabes (RIP), and others.
Additionally, MF DOOM’s evolution as an artist allowed him to gain mass appeal without EVER selling out – his work and guest appearances with Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim, the Gorillaz, and other artists placed him in a space of being one of America’s greatest and often unsung legends of all time. Just writing that out reminded me of seeing him on summer stage during the De La Soul set… he came out for his verse on Rock Co. Kane flow – I was there, I think I may have been with Abdul and Luna, and let me tell you, the ENERGY IN CENTRAL PARK EXPLODED WHEN MF DOOM CAME OUT! The videos that remain only capture a tiny bit of what you witness in person. For all that may read this, I HOPE that you’ve made it to a MF DOOM show when DOOM is actually the one rapping and not one of the DOOM bots lol – the energy was always on tilt.
In closing, after being gifted the name MeccaGodZilla, rapping at shows, touring, and creating a really nice buzz for myself in Tokyo, Japan just off the name alone (it’s wild because many in Japan at the time didn’t know much about Monsta Island but they did know KMD as vinyl collectors and students of the late 80s and 90s Hip-Hop eras – it was also great that the Godzilla type name was a huge green light of cultural exchange that allowed for a ton of fun experiences and conversations), I have to give thanks for MF DOOM for being my entry point to knowing about M.I.C. I got to embrace my own inner Blerd, my love for Japanese pop culture, cartoons, anime, and carve a little lane for myself as an artist and activist with the name MeccaGodZilla aka RYU BLACK which yielded a REALLY dope review of my “PERFECT 天” album in The Japan Times where Mike Sunda shares that my style “…brings to mind the likes of RZA and MF Doom.”
Prior to leaving M.I.C. in 2008 and taking on 2 new names (RYU BLACK and ADUM⁷) never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that an idea from an artist like that, would have so much impact on my own moral compass of creativity and identity. That allowed me the chance to be fully self-expressed as a remixed version of one of MeccaGodZilla (which had a direct connection to a gift that my mother gave me when I was 8 years old), while fully sharing my artwork and my ideas as I figured out my own way in the music business.
I don’t know what else to even write right now as I shared a TINY bit of what I got to experience this lifetime. I can talk about some of the other DOOM albums which I’ve purchased and vibed to but – Operation Doomsday had the biggest impact on me and I just truly give thanks for it all. For 3 days on the Clubhouse app there was a really dope tribute to MF DOOM (and side note, I started a vow of silence on December 31st that will end on January 7, 2020, so I was DYING to share but I couldn’t because of that spiritual vow to myself). The way that Bobbito, Ben, KEO, and a few others that were close to MF DOOM shared those amazing behind the scenes stories was so next level and I WISHED that everyone would’ve been in those clubhouse rooms to just listen. I laughed a lot. Additionally, DJ Critical Hype and Just Blaze were playing gems from MF DOOM’s catalog, one of which was a song where MF DOOM was on a track with Busta Rhymes and Sadat X from the 90s era (one some real Native Tongues steez) – FAM, when I tell you my mind damn near imploded on itself hearing that stream on the clubhouse app… yeah… It damn near did that… CRAZY, crazy connections with MF DOOM and artists that rep for Long Island and the boroughs.
In his personal life, and totally not going into any details here, the stories hint that he had some really tough challenges in the past but, in a true test of a man’s mettle, he never bent or folded – he just continued onward and upward. Rodan once said, “it’s better to go in the backyard and bend a piece of steel than to try and bend a man’s will.” When thinking about MF DOOM and his will to forge ahead, that Rodan quote does come to mind. Let me share this crazy gem with you… A year into my journey of working being in M.I.C., I picked up the Secret Wars book which was a compiled reprint of the individual comic books that came out in the early 80s. After reading The Secret Wars comic series, it was CLEAR to me that MF DOOM was literally living out that comic book’s storyline in actual reality in relation to the rap universe and the Divine source itself (at least that is part of what I convinced myself of over 15 years ago). It was fucking mindblowing because I had no idea, prior to buying the 12 issue series that the storyline would focus primarily on Doctor Doom, and in reality, being around who I was around in music, and seeing how MF DOOM was dropping projects, I just kept going back to my understanding of this book, saying to myself often that “he really figured it out.” I cannot even front, it made me feel crazy that I could see this parallel but really didn’t have anyone to talk to about it as most people I know didn’t read Secret Wars and don’t give a crap about it or Comic Books like that… but quietly, I just saw it all happening and I knew in my core – this was a piece of inspiration to him (sadly, I will never be able to ask him about it). The only way I can explain it is if you literally read this book and then critically think about what MF DOOM was doing the entire time.
MF DOOM adds on to the legacy of Long Island Hip-Hop music to where both him and Rakim are arguably the greatest MCs of all time as they both are your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper. There is a LOT more I can share especially for the fact that I got to work with and join some of my favorite MCs on songs throughout the years on projects like Rodan’s “Theophany: The Book of Elevations,” Kongcrete’s “Shackles Off,” Megalon’s “A Penny For Your Thoughts,” and I also made some really great, lifelong friends (peace to Mez and Azar/Raynashine). I could totally share a lot more but I think this is enough. I hope that fans continue to support and stream up MF DOOM’s music so that his family can enjoy the fruits of an incredible and unparalleled legacy. MF DOOM is arguably the goat – That is a convo he cannot be left out of. Rest in Peace MF DOOM. My condolences to MF DOOM’s family, friends, fans, and supporters. My condolences to the M.I.C. family that grew up with him and built with him as well – I cannot even imagine.
On December 31st, 2020, it was announced on IG that DOOM left us a few months prior on October 31st, 2020. Moving forward, all fans and supporters should proclaim October 31st as “Doomsday” in honor of the Metal Faced villain.
My Personal Takeaways from MF DOOM paving the way:
1. Don’t quit on your ideas, goals, & dreams – no matter if people are/aren’t supporting you
2. The tough times will show up while you go after your dreams but you have to have and truly exercise your inner strength to push through
3. When reinventing yourself, you will outgrow your old self, your old circle, your old ideas and that is ok
4. There is an ebb and flow for your personal success and you have to navigate that with a full understanding of your why
5. Age and physical appearance mean nothing if you have dope lyrics and can make dope songs
6. You don’t ever have to explain yourself and it’s ok to let your art speak for you
7. You don’t always need a huge team to trailblaze – you just need to vibe with the right kinds of people and energy to foster the success of your creative efforts
8. Being a BLERD is ok because BLERDs are the illest!
9. It is 1000000% OK and encouraged to not let the general public/the world know your personal business – I really liked that DOOM’s life was so private and you could only learn fragments of what that may have been like through his albums.
10. Sometimes a lot less is more
11. You owe it to yourself to keep striking until the iron gets hot – your personal success and fulfillment is tied into your work ethic and really believing in yourself
RIP MF DOOM – A True Test of Mettle
