I think comic books and hip hop have always shared an interesting relationship. Both are distinctly American inventions whose intended audience were children. And in many ways the rapper is an alter ego put on by normal people, much like a super hero. Daniel Dumile, known in the early 90s as Zev Love X began his hip hop career with his group KMD (Kausing Much Damage or a positive Kause in a Much Damaged society). KMD consisted of Zev, his brother DJ Subroc, and Onyx. They made their debut appearance in the video for 'The Gas Face' by 3rd Bass.
Shortly there after released their overlooked full-length album Mr. Hood in 1991. Onyx soon left the group and during production of their second album Bl_ck B_st_rds in '93, Zev's brother Subroc was tragically hit by a car and killed. The album was shelved by Elektra Records due to the controversial cover and wouldn't be released until 2008 on Metal Face Records. Zev vanished from the music scene for 4 years, living homeless and sleeping on benches on the streets of Manhattan. He would return with a new identity, as the masked super villain/rapper MF Doom.
Doom's mask was a reference to the Fantastic Four super villain Dr. Doom, and represented what he felt was a commentary on how hip hop had become image driven. The mask also served as a transformation. MF Doom's rapping had changed dramatically, adopting a darker style than his days in KMD. During his years with his former group, Doom handled the production for both KMD albums, however was never credited as the sole producer. When he returned to the rap scene as Doom he released Operation: Doomsday in 1999. As a producer Doom credits himself as Metal Fingers (hence the MF).
Many of the beats on Operation: Doomsday feature a lo fi sound that is distinct to his style of production. Not to mention his broad use of samples (everything from Yusef Lateef to Scooby Doo). For 'Dead Bent' Doom uses a sample that could be considered an obvious choice.
Isaac Hayes' 'Walk On By' has been sampled by a number of artists, including but not limited to the Wu-Tang Clan, Compton's Most Wanted, the Notorious B.I.G. and 3rd Bass. The song appear on Hayes' 1969 landmark album Hot Buttered Soul, and the song itself is a cover of the original by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. The sample used is sped up almost beyond the point of recognition.
The next sample used is 'Super Hoe' by Boogie Down Productions, a song from the classic Criminal Minded. Boogie Down Productions was a 1980s hip hop group made up of KRS-One, Scott La Rock and D-Nice. Judging from how Doom samples the chorus I believe he is referencing to how he is the super villain of hip hop.
The singing you hear at 0:11 is from the song 'Always' by Atlantic Starr, an RnB group from New York that was popular in 1980s. 'Always' was their hit single, and helped them crossover into the mainstream.
Although this song is not the best example of Doom's talents as a producer, I think that it goes to show how he took something like Hayes' 'Walk On By' and made it his own. If you look at the list of samples used throughout Operation: Doomsday there are a number of obscure samples (such as samples from cartoons) along with fairly obvious ones. To sample something that has been already used by another producer is sometimes frowned upon by other beat makers, however I feel as though there is nothing wrong with this as long as you can make it your own.
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