Traditional hip-hop fans might put Playboi Carti in a box. They might hear the ferocious ad-libs and unconventional rapping and toss him aside with the rest of the newer generation. If it doesn’t sound like the kind of music that built the genre and culture, it might as well be null and void to them.
However, it’s important to note that Carti isn’t just another “mumble rapper” as out-of-touch fans might claim. Instead, his music is reflective of the myriads of influences, from blog era favorites to the long, illustrious history of Atlanta hip-hop. However, one rapper that you might not immediately associate with Playboi Carti is MF DOOM. When he rapped “I just hit a lick with a mask, MF Doom” on Whole Lotta Red, it might come off as just another reference. But he was actually very intentional about the choice.
In a 2021 profile with MARVIN Magazine, the inner music nerd in him excitedly wanted to put his friends on. “Imma be real with you. After I said that line and the song was done, I went in the room with my n***as, and we singing the song, and none of my n***as knew who MF DOOM was, none of them. I had to show these n***as who MF DOOM was, then I had to show them who MF DOOM inspired,” he told writer Yoh Phillips.
Playboi Carti Reveals How He’s a Huge MF DOOM Fan
How did the Die Lit rapper come across DOOM in the first place? He explained how it came from a deep interest in all kinds of hip-hop. “I listen to everything,” Playboi Carti said. “I’m a big music head. If you see my earlier interviews, the first person I shouted out was Curren$y. That’s my boy, I love him. I love Wiz [Khalifa] too. I was on them early. And when I moved to New York, f***ing with A$AP Mob. A$AP Rocky would play old rap s**t like Tommy Wright III and MF DOOM. Remember, I was a big Tyler, the Creator, and A$AP Rocky fan. Tyler always quoted DOOM. You can hear it in the raps.”
Then, Playboi Carti shared how the Operation: Doomsday classic “Red & Gold” blew his mind early on. “When I first heard that one, I was sold. I can rap on that beat if I wanted to,” he continued. “It’s timeless. He’s just hard.”
At the time he made the song, the Atlanta star was just giddy at the prospect that DOOM might come across it. “I was more hype than anything. He’s alive to hear this s**t boy. I couldn’t wait for DOOM to pop out his shell and shout out Playboi Carti. I ain’t even do it for him to shout me out,” he stressed. “I just did it to show older people who hear me. Yeah, I f**k with Doom, feel me. I love Doom.”
The post Playboi Carti Explains the Impact MF DOOM Had on His Music: ‘I Just Did It to Show Older People Who Hear Me… I F**k With DOOM’ appeared first on VICE.
