Born of tragedy and betrayal, a villain reigns throughout the underground. An evil genius and hip hop iconoclast, infamous and tormented, he is shrouded in mystery, hidden behind a mask of metal. Few know his real identity. He has been called Vicktor Vaughn, Metal Fingers, Danger Doom, Madvillain and King Geedorah. But to most, he is simply DOOM.

The legend begins circa 1991. A man, calling himself Zev Love X, creates the hip hop trio KMD with his brother, DJ Subroc. Armed with a major label deal with Elektra and heavy play on Yo! MTV Raps and Rap City, KMD was destined for success. Their critically acclaimed debut, Mr. Hood, was their ticket to the American Dream.

But two short years later, tragedy struck. KMD was set to release their sophomore album, Black Bastards, when DJ Subroc was killed in a car accident. That same week, they were dropped from Elektra and Black Bastards was shelved.

Reeling from the loss of his brother and exploited by a duplicitous music industry, Zev Love X became noticeably absent from the scene. Dealing with depression and “recovering from his wounds,” he swore revenge against “the industry that so badly deformed him.” During this time, the unreleased Black Bastards tape was bootlegged and his legend permeated every corner of the underground.

Four long years passed and Zev Love X and KMD were merely memories. Only the Black Bastards recordings lived on. Hip Hop was still recovering from the losses of Tupac and Biggie. And the genre was on it’s way to monetary success and societal irrelevance. It was during this tenuous time, a man began freestyling at the Nuyrican Poets Cafe in New York. He wore a mask and spit fire. A legend was reborn.

Zev Love X was back, this time as MF DOOM. Inspired by the comic book villains with whom he identified, he set out to exact his revenge on mainstream Hip Hop.

DOOM bucked fast growing trends like bitches, bling and fake gangsta posturing. He didn’t show up on 106th and Park with his hypeman and jewels rambling about his $90,000 watch. T-Pain never sang a hook on one of his songs. He never fed the machine of Hip Hop commercialism.

Instead, he embraced Hip Hop’s roots with his masterful flow, turntablism, and sick punchlines. He appeared on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim and talked to a wad of meat. He featured Charles Bukowski on records. He became the epitome of independent Hip Hop.

From 1999’s Operation Doomsday to last month’s Born Like This, DOOM has embodied the authenticity and developed the cultish following major label artists crave. But, not once, did he lose his integrity. Not once, did he deviate from his plan of exposing mainstream Hip Hop as the fraud it had become.

So who won the epic battle of DOOM vs. The Mainstream? Let’s compare:

It’s 2009 and Hip Hop has long been dead. We’ve seen a number of faceless “artists” rise to the top only to be forgotten as soon as the next fad comes along (anyone remember D4L or Baby Huey or Shop Boyz?). Flo-Rida, Soulja Boy and T-Pain dominate the charts right now. But they will be the next victims of a fickle marketplace (teenage girls).

At the same time, MF DOOM has ruled the underground for ten years. He’s amassed 17 solo albums and countless other appearances. He’s worked with Madlib, Rhymesayers, DJ Danger Mouse, J Dilla and many others. Born Like This even debuted on the Billboard Top 100, proving that DOOM can beat the industry at their own game.

Say hello to the motherfucking bad guy.