J Doom is an up-and-coming American rapper who has found success at a young age. Despite having only been performing for five years and releasing his debut EP recently, he has built a sizable fanbase and following in the US. During an interview at his hotel after a concert performance, J Doom comes across as friendly yet mysterious. He discusses how his new EP "Crooked Doubt" aims to shine a light on issues rarely discussed in hip-hop and help people feel comfortable being different. J Doom hopes to carve out his own unique style within the hip-hop industry.

1. 12/2/16 Sam Bethune J Doom
J Doom ishere ina hotel room;describingtome hiscrazy yet goodlifestyle he haslivedsofarand
how‘Abstract’it is. J Doom hasalso clearly made areputationforhimself afterperformingtojusta
small chunkof his 5,000 followers.Althoughbeinga new kidonthe block amongstthe UK hip-hop
scene,withhisdebutEP inthe top10 in the charts. His sizeable venues, fanbase andclothingline
justshowhowpopularhe is inthe US.
The concert he playedearlierthateveningshowedhisnotoriety toitsfull strength withagreat
performance,eventhoughsomeof hiscriticswouldbegtodiffer. He hassuch a stage presence with
hiscocky attitude andhisarrogant ways, yetthisisonlyhalf of whatwe know about him. When
meetinghimatthe hotel,we hadto be ushered intoanotherroomto avoidthe adoringamountof
fanswaitingforhim.
Fame and popularityinthe US hascome at a youngage, itdefinitelyhasn’taffectedJDoom. He has
a friendlyandcharismaticora abouthim,but he can be mysteriousandcompletelyunquestionable
at the same time. “Isthere anythingIcan get you”he saysafterour initial greeting.
Unlike alot of mainstreamhip-hop,JDoom’snew EP‘CrookedDoubt’shiesawayfromwhatpeople
assume hip-hoptobe.The EP tellsthe storyof how it isok to be differenttoeveryoneelseandto
justfollowyourdreams. “It’sa subjectthatpeople prefernottotalk about”J Doom exclaims,“I’m
shiningalighton these issuesthatnoone else has tackledbefore.It’saway of therapyfor me,but
it’salsoto outline the problems facedby society anditmakesusquestionourselves. Inall honestyit
doesn’tactuallymatter,butwe make itmatter."He alsolikestokeepacertainimage throughwhat
he wears (see picture). He said“I try to keepaneutral,butlow-keystyleinpublic, althoughthat
completelygoesoutthe windowwhenitcomestoperforming”. Ialsonoticedhow unique hisstyle
was comparedtootherrappers.
JamesLeatham,(alsoknownasJ Doom) was bornand raisedinDetroitto a veryaverage American
family. He wasintroducedtothe rap scene throughNas’s‘Illmatic’and fromthere,he was
engrossedintohip-hop. At 17, he startedto MC at a local nightclubin Detroitbutwas going
nowhere. He decidedtomove tothe hip-hopcapital of the world,New York. Hisaimwas to hand
hisdemoto aspiringrapperJCole. He tookthe take to J Cole ,he likedit and J Cole askedJDoom if
he wouldaccompanyhim as hissupportact forhis forthcoming tourof Canada.“I was completely
star struck; I hadno ideawhatto say. Me accompanyingJ Cole onhistour, youmustbe joking”.
Afterthis,JDoom releasedhisdebutmixtape “Infectious”which catapultedhiship-hopcareer.His
firsthip-hopstudioalbum was“SubstantialVariations”, whichenteredthe top20 in itsfirstweekof
release,followedbyhis new andcurrentEP,“CrookedDoubt”.
The Detroitrapperis very grateful forhisparenting."Ialwayssaythat I feel blessedtohave the life
I've had". Since hisfirstEP,J Doom hasbeentippedtobe the nextbigthinginthe hiphopindustry,
he is currently involved inthe newwave of rappersincludingBigSean, PushaTand more.
It isdefinitelyclearthat JDoom hasmade an impacton the hip-hopscene ingeneral,butI'mnot
quite sure howthiswill playoutin the future. He is like abreathof freshair. As we are aboutto
leave,he signsafew more autographsand takesa few more picturesandthena blackcar with
tintedwindowspullsupandthe risingstarof hip-hopheadoff inthe distance.