Flying Lotus has revealed that he was working on new material with MF DOOM, as tributes pour in for the late rapper. The announcement that DOOM (real name Daniel Dumile) had passed away was made December 31 by his wife Jasmine, who explained that he died two months earlier, on October 31, 2020.
FlyLo was one of the first musicians to react to the news of the rapper’s death. “DOOM my hero. My villain,“ he writes on Instagram. “I am stuck with the most empty feeling in me knowing we will never cross paths or make music again. My heart is broken. I will love you forever.”
The musician also posted the album cover for MF DOOM’s much-celebrated album with Madlib, Madvillainy, writing: “All u ever needed in hip hop was this record. Sorted. Done. Give it to the fucking aliens.”
The revelation that he had been working on a new record with DOOM, meanwhile, came in response to a fan, who wrote: “Lots of us always dreamed of a long-length project between you and MF DOOM... now that hits differently.”
“I hate to say this but we were actually working on an EP,” FlyLo says. “There were more songs that I haven’t even heard.” The pair have previously collaborated on the tracks “Masquatch” and “Lunch Break”, which both appeared via the producer’s in-game radio station in Grand Theft Auto. The latter was released just last month.
Flying Lotus also celebrated MF DOOM in a Twitch stream on New Year’s Eve, while tributes have been shared to social media by fans and collaborators including Gorillaz, Tyler the Creator, Thundercat, and Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest.
Listen to Flying Lotus and MF DOOM’s “Lunch Break” below.