Rare Video of MF Doom’s Group KMD From 1990 Released

Footage of Daniel Dumile — who is perhaps best known as MF DOOM — performing early in his career is few and far between; that’s what makes the recently remastered live performance of him and his hip hop group KMD so exciting. Before MF DOOM came to be, Daniel Dumile went by Zev Love X and was one-third of KMD alongside his brother DJ Subroc and Onyx the Birthstone Kid. In the video, the trio performs “Peachfuzz,” a single off of their debut and only album, and “Gasface Refill.”

The MF DOOM REMASTERED YouTube channel has been posting DOOM-related content since February 2021, and it’s run by a dedicated fan. 

Watch the performance here:

The video shows part of KMD’s performance at the “Hard to the Left” party on December 10, 1990 in Washington, D.C. A sign reading the club’s name, “Kilimanjaro,” glows behind the trio as they rotate leading roles in their songs. Breakdancers share the stage as well, and they work together to keep the stage abuzz. DOOM interacts directly with the audience to transition into “Peachfuzz,” leading them to repeat the song’s name after him.

Their album Mr. Hood wouldn’t be released for another five months on May 14, 1991. KMD was active from 1988, when Dumile, Subroc and Rodan formed the group, to 1993. The recording was “unearthed from DJ Iran’s storage unit,” and the group would only be active for another three years after this performance. 

Rodan was in KMD’s starting lineup, but Onyx the Birthstone Kid replaced him soon after the group’s conception. They were signed to Elektra Records in the early ‘90s. 

MF DOOM receded into the shadows of Manhattan and out of the hip hop limelight following his brother Subroc’s death in 1993, less than two weeks before the group intended to release their second album Black Bastards. While it was illegally spread amongst fans, the album didn’t make an official appearance until 2000, after DOOM had returned to the hip hop scene. 

While DOOM tragically passed in 2020, his work continues to make an impact in the music world, including his post-humous album Super What? with Czarface.