The Chronicles of DOOM. Unraveling Rap’s Masked Iconoclast
Synopsis
★ Fernando provides a comprehensive look at DOOM’s life and career, meticulously researched through interviews with the rapper’s many collaborators and those closest to the man behind the mask. His track-by-track breakdowns of DOOM’s albums will have sample spotters diving into their record collections. A perfect pairing with Dan Charnas’s Dilla Time (2022), this is an essential exploration into the world of ‘your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper.’ —Carlos Orellana, Booklist (starred review)
The Chronicles of DOOM is superbly written, and incredibly well researched, but also full of heart and the pure love and appreciation of any true DOOM fan. Here you get everything you would want to know about the man, the myth, the mask. It is written as compellingly as the origin stories of the greatest superheroes and supervillains. If you love DOOM, I could not more highly recommend this book. —Tommy Orange, New York Times–bestselling author of Wandering Stars and Pulitzer Prize finalist for There, There
This authoritative guide to one of hip hop’s most enigmatic figures peeks behind the mask to reveal Daniel Dumile’s rebellious spirit and creative genius. —Rob Kenner, author of The Marathon Don’t Stop: The Life and Times of Nipsey Hussle
Reading through The Chronicles of DOOM has me weepy. SKIZ is a thoughtful and careful handler of the life and legacy of enigmatic great MF DOOM—an artist who sought to preserve his privacy and individuality in the face of an often phagocytic media hype machine. Balancing well-researched biographical notes, elegant prose, and accessible story-telling, SKIZ gives us a text that should be required reading for any hip hop head. —Andrew E. Colarusso, Taylor & Co. Books
An insightful celebration of a beloved rapper. —Kirkus Reviews
From the journalist behind From the Streets of Shaolin and packed with behind-the-scenes content, for fans of hip-hop biographies like Dilla Time and The Marathon Don’t Stop.
On December 31, 2020, the world was shocked to learn about the death of hip-hop legend MF DOOM. Born in London and raised in the suburban enclave of Long Beach, New York, Daniel Dumile Jr.’s love of cartoons and comic books would soon turn him into one of hip-hop’s most enigmatic, prolific, and influential figures.
Sweeping and definitive, The Chronicles of DOOM: Unraveling Rap’s Masked Iconoclast recounts the rise, fall, redemption, and untimely demise of MF DOOM. Broken down into five sections: The Man, The Myth, The Mask, The Music, and The Legend, journalist S. H. Fernando, or SKIZ, chronicles the life of Daniel Dumile Jr., beginning in the house he grew up in in Long Beach, NY, into the hip-hop group KMD, onto the stage of his first masked show, through the countless collabs, and across the many different cities Daniel called home. Centering the music, SKIZ deftly lays out the history of east-coast rap against DOOM’s life story and dissects the personas, projects, tracks, and lyrics that led to his immortality.
Including exclusive interviews with those who worked closely with DOOM and providing an unknown, intimate, behind-the-scenes look into DOOM’s life, The Chronicles of DOOM is the definitive biography of MF DOOM, a supervillain on stage and hero to those who paid attention.
Marketing Information
- Mentioned in an NME article about MF DOOM on the occasion of his birthday, published July 13, 2024
- Assigned for a review at the Washington Post (TBD)
- Reviewed in the October 1, 2024 issue of Kirkus Reviews; online August 30, 2024
- One of The Washington Post’s “41 new books to read this fall,” published August 30, 2024
- Featured in the UK magazine The Wire October 2024 issue