The hip hop community is still reeling from the tragic news last night (Dec. 31) that an indisputable legend — MF DOOM — had passed away. Several artists and countless fans took to social media in the early hours of New Year’s Eve to pay their respects to the late rapper, who died on Oct. 31.
Late on Friday, Lupe Fiasco reflected on DOOM’s influence on his own career and shared a new freestyle in his honor. In one tweet, Fiasco encouraged his followers to start using the term “dumiles” instead of “similes” — a nod to DOOM’s intricate word play.
“To whom it may concern,” Fiasco wrote. “I ask and propose that from this point forward all rappers from everywhere and from every style and every level in the craft refer to ‘Similes’ as ‘Dumiles.’ Pronounced ‘Doom-ah-lays.’”
“A small gesture for a fallen master,” he added.
In another tweet, Fiasco wrote that he “wanted to be like” the masked icon and remembered channeling DOOM’s lyricism on his own 2015 track, “Mural.”
“‘When they get to know us people dig us, leaders in the fights for equal rights for ni**as…’ –MF DOOM. One of my favorite lines of all-time. Wanted to be like him,” Fiasco wrote. “‘Sit back and watch the world through the eyeholes in my oil paintings,’ -LF Trying His Best To Be Like MF.”
A few hours later, Fiasco shared a freestyle that he wrote in honor of DOOM. The snippet, posted on Twitter, was recorded in a style similar to DOOM’s, with Fiasco even weaving in a few of the late artist’s most memorable lines.
“Thanx DOOM…I learned so much from you about the art of rapping,” he captioned the freestyle. “Studied and analyzed you for years as recently as a few days ago. I wish I could’ve met you to tell you that..here’s some raps…rest easy…[Amen].”
See Fiasco’s tweets and his freestyle below. Rest In Peace MF DOOM.