Shadows of Tomorrow: David Begun Breaks Down Inspirations Behind His J VILLAIN: DOOMnuts Mash-up Mixtape (MF DOOM Tribute)

Honestly, it doesn't even feel like there's a proper way to elegize an eccentric and extremely talented artist such as MF DOOM, who meant so much to so many of us for so many years for so many different reasons as truly unique as DOOM himself. So, what better way to pay tribute to The Man, The Myth, THE MASK himself than by speaking to those closest to him? With a heavy heart, I proudly present Shadows of Tomorrow; a new recurring column in tribute to DOOM in an effort to re-tell the tall tales, strange stories, and lesser-known tidbits of The Metal Face Villain himself. R.I.P. Daniel "MF DOOM" Dumile Thompson.

"I've been a fan of DOOM's music since his first release, Operation: Doomsday. Incredible beats, rhymes that had their own flow and imagination to them, and the ability to craft it all together with a theme to create a stand-alone piece of classic Hip-Hop was remarkable. He went on to do that with, basically, every project; his albums aren't just collections of songs that he recorded, they are true individual pieces of art. Hearing of his passing, I wanted to do something to show support and respect for the work that he did and I had always wished that we could have had a project with him and [J] Dilla in the same vein as his MADVILLAIN work with Madlib."


"So, I decided to put his lyrics over the Donuts Instrumentals, thinking that the two would mesh. Dilla's beats and loops were always so different than other producers, his drums tended to be a bit "off" (just slightly) to create a certain feel and swing to his beats that made them stand out. Donuts, in particular, had it's own distinct sound. DOOM's vocals always had a similar quality, where he was often off-beat with his lyrics, but in a way that seem to work. I figured that the two would work together. The whole project came together pretty quickly, I did re-do a few songs with different acapellas, but, overall, it was a pretty quick process. I think, overall, it came out pretty good with the sound that I wanted and the response and reaction has been almost completely positive."

- David Begun (@@dbegun82)