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33⅓ Main Series #171
Madvillainy
This book celebrates Madvillainy as a representation of two genius musical minds melding to form one revered supervillain. A product of circumstance, the album came together soon after MF DOOM's resurgence and Madlib's reluctant return from avant-garde jazz to hip-hop.
Written from the alternating perspectives of three fake music journalist superheroes-featuring interviews with Wildchild, M.E.D., Walasia, Daedelus, Stones Throw execs, and many other real individuals involved with the album's creation-this book blends fiction and non-fiction to celebrate Madvillainy not just as an album, but as a folkloric artifact. It is one specific retelling of a story which, like Madvillain's music, continues to spawn infinite legends.
Written from the alternating perspectives of three fake music journalist superheroes-featuring interviews with Wildchild, M.E.D., Walasia, Daedelus, Stones Throw execs, and many other real individuals involved with the album's creation-this book blends fiction and non-fiction to celebrate Madvillainy not just as an album, but as a folkloric artifact. It is one specific retelling of a story which, like Madvillain's music, continues to spawn infinite legends.
- GenresMusicNonfictionHip Hop
152 pages, Paperback
First published March 9, 2023
23 people are currently reading
625 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
June 22, 2023
The info about the making of the album is fantastic, but the framing device using fictional characters was embarrassing and tacky.
April 25, 2023
The author choosing to frame this as a series of articles by supervillain-like characters was a perfect choice, given MF DOOM and Madlib’s penchant for alter egos. It was almost like a concept book for a concept album, which was a fantastic read and one of the better entries in the series.
I also loved the stories about the creation of the classic album and underground hip-hop in general. It has almost a mythical aura around it, so it only makes sense that the album has a ton of possibly true and possibly false stories surrounding it. DOOM was a genius and a poet, and I’m so glad we finally got a 33 1/3 about one of his greatest albums.
I also loved the stories about the creation of the classic album and underground hip-hop in general. It has almost a mythical aura around it, so it only makes sense that the album has a ton of possibly true and possibly false stories surrounding it. DOOM was a genius and a poet, and I’m so glad we finally got a 33 1/3 about one of his greatest albums.
April 2, 2025
Great book. Loved how it was written from the perspective of fictional characters, much like the super villain at the centre of the album. ‘Madvillainy’ is my favourite album of all time, so any amount of reading about its evasive nature is good reading in my book. It even ended on a hopeful note, tying how how the album’s secretive, legendary status can relate to the beauty of the unknowable truths of the universe. Loved it! Would love to read more from this series, especially J Dilla’s ‘Donuts’ and A Tribe Called Quest’s ‘People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm’ books.
August 13, 2023
Enda en banger i serien her!!
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January 1, 2025Will Hagle tells the story of MF DOOM and Madlib’s sole collaborative album through the prism of three related characters grappling with the truth, the desire to be seen, and the battle with artificial intelligence. This narrative choice has polarised readers here, but the Kurt Vonnegut interludes, played out between characters with little to differentiate them, match the energy of an album where the rappers’ multiple personalities duet with and argue among themselves. Otherwise, it’s the collection’s standard approach of combining first-hand sources (interviews with the album’s associated personnel, given Madlib won’t talk and DOOM can’t but wouldn’t have anyway) and second-hand sources to present a through line on the album’s genesis and completion. A gift, so no rating.
October 29, 2024
Hard to find a reason to not give this 5 stars. I loved the fictional ideas going on in this book but I found it withdrew me from the incredible history of my favourite hip hop album of all time
I thought I knew all there was to know about Madlib and DOOMS 2004 masterpiece but I am left amazed at the factual research that the author went through to gift this book to us.
Truly one for fans of Madlib and DOOM or hip hop junkies.
I thought I knew all there was to know about Madlib and DOOMS 2004 masterpiece but I am left amazed at the factual research that the author went through to gift this book to us.
Truly one for fans of Madlib and DOOM or hip hop junkies.
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December 30, 2024The best MC with no chain you ever heard
March 19, 2024
Any shred of information surrounding this masterpiece of an album always tickles my fancy. So a firm informative 200-odd page effort dedicated to just that with some serious independent research to boot made a fantastic impression. The skits the author adds are thematic yet lacking in much substance that implores me to care about whatever they waffle on about. Really neat gift for a pal who likes this album a lot already. This had me relistening to Madvillainy for the ump-teenth time with a newfound appreciation.
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September 30, 2023No solo se limita a contar los pormenores de la creación del album, intenta hacer honores al aura de misterio que rodea a los creadores. Incluso tira algunos comentarios sobre quienes intentan llevarse el crédito (los productores y managers de Stones Throw Records) y menciona que los artistas invitados no recibieron ni un miserable céntimo por sus colaboraciones. Difícil traducirlo al español, eso sí, perdería mucho.
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February 7, 2023Well, after I said the Rio 33 1/3 was very much at the straightforward end of the series, I suppose it makes sense for the next one I read to be considerably more high concept, opening "Greetings. Self's name Timothy A.I. Verselli, sentient computer program and the last remaining employee of The Daily Daily's Music Journalism department." Then flashing back to introduce two more authorial avatars, in passages whose involved worldbuilding is never quite matched by the commitment to the bit once the book – supposedly in the voice of one or other of these personae – starts talking about the album itself and its creators. Still, you can see why the approach might appeal: lots of rappers have a handful of aliases, but this is an album where one of MF DOOM's AKAs does a track about his girlfriend cheating on him...with MF DOOM. And if the album's voice obscured his identity behind various identities, not to mention that mask, then producer Madlib's reluctance to engage with the public took the more straightforward form of reclusiveness, a man for whom "we just make music for ourselves" seems to have been far truer than for any of the indie bands associated with the cliché. Between which, and DOOM having died (or, to use the book's preferred albeit potentially confusing term, transitioned), obviously neither of them was available for interview, so first-hand contributions come largely from assorted associates and hangers-on, all of them now with clashing stories about what happened, who deserved more credit, and so on. Which could easily have become dispiriting – this is what we're reduced to saying about the album? – if it weren't for how much they all agree that it's a brilliant album and, whatever their quibbles about credits and cash and such, they remain proud to have been a part of it in whatever capacity. Also, there does seem to be a general agreement, at least among everyone bar Peanut Butter Wolf, that Peanut Butter Wolf was a bit of a bell-end. Which surprised me, because I remembered a vague sense from around that time of his being a genial sort of presence in the whole movement for which, even at the time, nobody liked the 'backpack rap' term. But then, by that point I wasn't really keeping up with what was left of the music press, and my hip hop connection was largely through one really plugged-in colleague, who perhaps wasn't into DOOM for some reason, or maybe I just didn't pick up on that name, because despite how much of his stuff is right up my street, I was ridiculously late getting into the guy, probably only a few months before it turned out he was dead already. Meaning I was never up on the mythology compared to eg the early days of the Wu, and I can't comment on how this might read to someone better acquainted with it all. But as a primer for those of us to whom it's just a bonkers, brilliant piece of music in itself, a good read, even if the AI et al stuff doesn't altogether come off.
(Netgalley ARC)
(Netgalley ARC)
April 18, 2023
Madvillain's Madvillainy by Will Hagle is an interesting addition to the 33 1/3 Series in that it offers the backstory of the album within a fictional frame.
I found the idea of the fictional framing story to make sense, even if I thought the execution could have been better. That said, it did work for the most part, and certainly played up the way MF DOOM created characters, the way both he and Madlib generated stories around the album, and the way the album has largely been viewed, used, interpreted, and appreciated through very different lenses.
The fiction of the different music journalists doesn't get in the way of Hagle's examination of the record, though I'm not sure the degree to which it helped or added anything. Admittedly that may be because I pretty much read for the information and ignored most of the superfluous fictional frame. The frame may work well for some readers, it neither helped nor hindered my reading.
I did enjoy reading what those who worked on it had to say. It isn't unusual for people, long after a project (album, book, movie, etc), to frame (there is that concept again, maybe it was more functional than I realized) their accounts to suit how they want to remember it. Pretty much anyone who has read any kind of criticism that includes interviews knows to read recollections with a grain or two of salt. That applies here. It doesn't make the book or the information less interesting, but you have to read between the lines as much as possible.
I mentioned this book to a couple of friends and they seemed to only vaguely remember the album, which may speak more to the genres most of my current friends like than anything else, but as I talked about it they gained interest. So I think this will appeal to most music and music history lovers, as well as those who prefer hip hop.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
I found the idea of the fictional framing story to make sense, even if I thought the execution could have been better. That said, it did work for the most part, and certainly played up the way MF DOOM created characters, the way both he and Madlib generated stories around the album, and the way the album has largely been viewed, used, interpreted, and appreciated through very different lenses.
The fiction of the different music journalists doesn't get in the way of Hagle's examination of the record, though I'm not sure the degree to which it helped or added anything. Admittedly that may be because I pretty much read for the information and ignored most of the superfluous fictional frame. The frame may work well for some readers, it neither helped nor hindered my reading.
I did enjoy reading what those who worked on it had to say. It isn't unusual for people, long after a project (album, book, movie, etc), to frame (there is that concept again, maybe it was more functional than I realized) their accounts to suit how they want to remember it. Pretty much anyone who has read any kind of criticism that includes interviews knows to read recollections with a grain or two of salt. That applies here. It doesn't make the book or the information less interesting, but you have to read between the lines as much as possible.
I mentioned this book to a couple of friends and they seemed to only vaguely remember the album, which may speak more to the genres most of my current friends like than anything else, but as I talked about it they gained interest. So I think this will appeal to most music and music history lovers, as well as those who prefer hip hop.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
November 25, 2023
Madvilliany is a real before-and-after record. Madlib and MF DOOM’s collaborative masterpiece is markedly different from anything that came before and has influenced almost every rap album made after it. In the same way, Dr.Dre’s The Chronic altered the sonics of hip-hop albums for a generation, Madvilliany has changed the notion of what a good rap record should sound like. In this latest installment of the 33 1/3 book series, author Will Hagle takes us behind the curtain to see how this enigmatic album was made.
This book excels when Hagle parses through the murky Madvilliany origin story by juxtaposing the recollections of people directly and tangentially involved, including Stones Throw Records founder Peanut Butter Wolf. As a die-hard fan of this album, my listening experience has been enriched by the behind-the-scenes tidbits from this book. There was undoubtedly a safe way to approach writing this book. Do the interviews, mix in some informed analysis, and you have a decent book. Hagle chooses a different, riskier route by inserting a fictional narrative on top of the mysterious legend of Madvilliany’s creation. While I admire the attempt to do something out of the ordinary, I found this approach grating and distracting. With all that said, this book should be required reading for anyone who is a fan of Madlib, DOOM, or Independent Hip Hop generally.
This book excels when Hagle parses through the murky Madvilliany origin story by juxtaposing the recollections of people directly and tangentially involved, including Stones Throw Records founder Peanut Butter Wolf. As a die-hard fan of this album, my listening experience has been enriched by the behind-the-scenes tidbits from this book. There was undoubtedly a safe way to approach writing this book. Do the interviews, mix in some informed analysis, and you have a decent book. Hagle chooses a different, riskier route by inserting a fictional narrative on top of the mysterious legend of Madvilliany’s creation. While I admire the attempt to do something out of the ordinary, I found this approach grating and distracting. With all that said, this book should be required reading for anyone who is a fan of Madlib, DOOM, or Independent Hip Hop generally.
February 7, 2023
This is a great book for all fans of underground hip hop.
I was initially uneasy about the framing of this book as a series of essays by different comic book like characters. But Wagle was able to weave this conceit into the narrative in an engaging way. Each section is written by a different character, and Wagle is able to give each a different voice. This dovetails nicely with the fact that Madlib and DOOM each have myriad alter egos. It was a great idea and well executed.
The description of the album creation process was fascinating. I've liked Madlib's music for a while, but this book exposed me to the true depth of his dedication to his craft. To be in Brazil and still be mostly interested in getting local records to make beats is next level. DOOM on the other hand, remains an enigmatic figure. The more that's described about his spontaneity and process, the more questions arise as to how he was able to create so much. How was he able to keep juggling projects from all his different aliases at the same time? With his passing, we'll never fully know. But Wagle is able to shed some light on both of these artists.
I fully recommend this book to any fans of the 33 1/3 series. This is another winner.
I was initially uneasy about the framing of this book as a series of essays by different comic book like characters. But Wagle was able to weave this conceit into the narrative in an engaging way. Each section is written by a different character, and Wagle is able to give each a different voice. This dovetails nicely with the fact that Madlib and DOOM each have myriad alter egos. It was a great idea and well executed.
The description of the album creation process was fascinating. I've liked Madlib's music for a while, but this book exposed me to the true depth of his dedication to his craft. To be in Brazil and still be mostly interested in getting local records to make beats is next level. DOOM on the other hand, remains an enigmatic figure. The more that's described about his spontaneity and process, the more questions arise as to how he was able to create so much. How was he able to keep juggling projects from all his different aliases at the same time? With his passing, we'll never fully know. But Wagle is able to shed some light on both of these artists.
I fully recommend this book to any fans of the 33 1/3 series. This is another winner.
September 23, 2024
A great read in that it provides extra insight into the album's creation, with a lot of information coming from sources other than DOOM and MadLib. There is no "definitive" history of the making of Madvillainy, but this is probably as close as it gets, and so it scratches that itch better than any other source. However, the book suffers on two main fronts:
1. MadLib (because he's unwilling) and DOOM (because he's dead, and likely would have been unwilling anyway) don't participate in the book's creation. This is to be expected, but if you're hoping for new or even archival first-hand information from the album's main creators, you will be disappointed. Again, it is to be expected if you know anything about DOOM and MadLib, but it does make this a very difficult task from a writer's standpoint.
2. The author's decision to insert himself into a pseudo-meta-narrative is just... weird. I can see what he's going for, and he can be commended for taking a big swing, but I can't help but think that the extra fiction was included because there wasn't enough non-fiction for a full book.
I'm a big Madvillainy fan, and I was going to like this book no matter what, but it still left me wanting more. The itch doesn't get completely scratched.
1. MadLib (because he's unwilling) and DOOM (because he's dead, and likely would have been unwilling anyway) don't participate in the book's creation. This is to be expected, but if you're hoping for new or even archival first-hand information from the album's main creators, you will be disappointed. Again, it is to be expected if you know anything about DOOM and MadLib, but it does make this a very difficult task from a writer's standpoint.
2. The author's decision to insert himself into a pseudo-meta-narrative is just... weird. I can see what he's going for, and he can be commended for taking a big swing, but I can't help but think that the extra fiction was included because there wasn't enough non-fiction for a full book.
I'm a big Madvillainy fan, and I was going to like this book no matter what, but it still left me wanting more. The itch doesn't get completely scratched.
August 14, 2023
I picked this up in NYC and started it in a crowded cafe, the city’s noise the perfect backdrop to read about DOOM’s early life and art. By the next day I had finished it, reading most of it on the bus home to PA.
I mention the time and place I tore through this book since its subject is an album that evokes a very specific time in the history of rap music, existing at the forefront of truly weird hip-hop classics and standing in opposition to the commercialization of the bling era it was released in. This is an album that confused me when I first heard it and somehow continues to challenge me years later, and Will Hagle does an excellent job of capturing its beguiling, time-defying power in this small volume. What I especially loved is the upfront admission that it is impossible to know the definitive truth behind the myths of the project’s creation, and the examination of the album as mythmaking folklore rather than an objective article.
Reading this made DOOM’s death hit me in a way that it never fully had since I heard the sad news 3 years ago. And it made me heard Madvillainy again like it was my first time - and for that I’m grateful.
I mention the time and place I tore through this book since its subject is an album that evokes a very specific time in the history of rap music, existing at the forefront of truly weird hip-hop classics and standing in opposition to the commercialization of the bling era it was released in. This is an album that confused me when I first heard it and somehow continues to challenge me years later, and Will Hagle does an excellent job of capturing its beguiling, time-defying power in this small volume. What I especially loved is the upfront admission that it is impossible to know the definitive truth behind the myths of the project’s creation, and the examination of the album as mythmaking folklore rather than an objective article.
Reading this made DOOM’s death hit me in a way that it never fully had since I heard the sad news 3 years ago. And it made me heard Madvillainy again like it was my first time - and for that I’m grateful.
October 20, 2025
it was so weirdly written. The different comic-esque characters - I get it, it refers to the artists they’re trying to describe. But it was unnecessary and awkward in my opinion, also when within the chapters he would mention something about the backstory of his own fictional characters. Just very unnecessary and it only stilted the flow of the book. I don’t like how he used the different aliases of the same person haphazardly. It didn’t feel intentional and only made it more confusing. Also, obviously he couldn’t speak to MF DOOM, but he also didn’t speak to Madlib and thus, interviewed all these people around him and put in their words verbatim, under the guise of everyone having their own Truth. Again, I get the point, but it’s really not necessary for me to listen to everybody’s grievances.
I don’t know. I learned a bunch from the book, I’m happy I read it, but I do not feel at all motivated to explore other works by this author.
I don’t know. I learned a bunch from the book, I’m happy I read it, but I do not feel at all motivated to explore other works by this author.
April 22, 2023
The truest story of Dumile is intuitive and simple but profound like his verses tend to be: a person was born and, in their brief time on earth, created music and alter-egos for the present moment that will have an unquantifiable impact on whoever encounters them, now and in the future. The albums, the singles, the myth-making mysteriousness, the antics, the jokes, the lyrics, and the evolving personality coalesced into an entity much larger than the beer-engorged belly of the human from which they originated. Daniel Dumile the person was not perfect, but he obscured his imperfections perfectly.
I call myself a hero, but the truth is that through my pursuit of falsehood, I am nothing more than a villain.
DOOM calls himself a villain, but his manipulation of falsehood exposed the truth: he is a hero.
RIP DOOM x
I call myself a hero, but the truth is that through my pursuit of falsehood, I am nothing more than a villain.
DOOM calls himself a villain, but his manipulation of falsehood exposed the truth: he is a hero.
RIP DOOM x
May 6, 2023
The author narrates this book through comic-bookish-like characters. Given the album, this choice makes sense. I still held my breath for the moment it overstayed its welcome, but that thankfully never quite happened. On the other side of the book, I think I'm alright with the frame even though it never quite reached transformative heights either. It is what it is.
As for the content, it had everything I need as someone outside the MF DOOM diehards. The origin stories, the encounter, the arguments over who deserves more credit. It highlights peculiarities that only albums of this time could experience---the brave new world of internet leaks, for example. It's no deep dive into the lyricism itself, so you have to take its word on how much some people venerate Dumile's lyrical ability. Still, it's a good place to start out.
As for the content, it had everything I need as someone outside the MF DOOM diehards. The origin stories, the encounter, the arguments over who deserves more credit. It highlights peculiarities that only albums of this time could experience---the brave new world of internet leaks, for example. It's no deep dive into the lyricism itself, so you have to take its word on how much some people venerate Dumile's lyrical ability. Still, it's a good place to start out.
August 11, 2023
I appreciate the insight into and deeper understanding of one of the greatest albums released in my lifetime provided by this book. I don’t have a lot of patience for the conceptual stuff that Will Hagle does with his three fictional characters, who take turns ‘writing’ the book, but when it focuses on Madlib, DOOM, and the people around them, this really works. I appreciate how Hagle brings Walasia Shabazz and her unique place in this story to a larger audience (listen to her interview on the Fly Fidelity Podcast for more), and struggle with further evidence that the guys behind Stones Throw were not good people. This book is not Dilla Time, but it does a great job of showcasing what made DOOM and Madlib special at this time.
February 23, 2023
Another gem in the 33-and-1/3 series of books about some of the greatest and most interesting albums of all time. Hagle takes a creative approach to telling the back story about two geniuses who came together to create one of hip-hop's most intriguing, ground-breaking and influential releases. Here, two AI "journalists", a father and son, actually, dig into the story of Madlib's and MF DOOM's landmark collaboration. It's a intriguing concept in itself, and it's easy to get just as lost in that part of the story as it is to get lost in the story of the album itself. This is truly one of the best I have read in the series and sets a high bar for any future entries to live up to.
May 25, 2023
This had a lot of good information about how the album got made. The device to tell it was very unique and I thought a little all over the place and stepped in the way slightly in presenting the story of the album. I understand why it was used I just thought it could have been done a little better and less jarring
July 6, 2023
The way the book is written as part fictional story, part biography is a bit hard to follow at first but after reading the whole thing I think it’s a fun way to represent the album which has a lot of folklore behind it. Would definitely recommend to DOOM and Madlib fans as well as anybody who has an interest in the music making process.
December 21, 2023
At first I wasn't sure what I thought of the meta framing around this one, with the various fictional voices telling the story, but I guess it fit the concept of what DOOM did but, more importantly, it didn't get in the way of talking about a classic album. Glad this one received the 33-1/3 treatment.
January 5, 2024
There's some cleverness to this entry into the series, and with that, it makes it an easily enjoyable piece. Perhaps Hagle at times gets too carried away with the Seen and Dr. Truthaverse, but the approach provides a bit of absurdity and humor to an important storytelling endeavor that still very much remains foggy when considering the folklore of this album.
January 12, 2024
I would of rated higher if they would of stuck to the story of how this album came to be. The creative writing weaved it was distracting and confusing. While a short book it took me a few months to read because I would get lost at times. Only a 3 because there were all facts that I learned from reading.
May 9, 2023
The Essential Reading List for Hip Hop History now adds this breezy tome from Will Hagle who manages to profile a landmark album produced by two reticent to interview artists, DOOM and Madlib. Great lil'book though and a must cop for historians and fans.
June 23, 2023
The experimental format doesn't work, and there's plenty of score-setting, but it directs the listener to a fine indie hiphop album whose influence (and lack of hooks) lasts two decades on from its release.
October 15, 2024
Not familiar with MF DOOM at all, but I was interested in how the album became a classic. The fictional journalists story was an interesting concept but don't kinda poorly. Aside from that, an interesting read
February 28, 2025
I wasn’t sure when i started this book but it was an outstanding telling of MF DOOM and his circle making this (and other) records. I had forgotten about his unforgettable verse on The Gasface… genius got around.
April 12, 2023
A fun read! The author creates three characters to tell the story of Madvillainy. Very informative.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews