The year is 1998 and were inside the rustic brick walls of the New Yorkan

Poets Cafe in the lower east side of Manhattan. Like most nights here, the place is packed. The man stepping

onto the cafe's modest stage to perform next is wearing a loose white tank top, a red filly's hat,

and pannihoes stretched over his face. No one in the crowd knows it yet, but they're

about to witness hip-hop history. Throughout the 90s, historic nights were not uncommon at the New

Eurekan. The humble brick-walled cafe was one of the most important

creative hubs in the world,

a multicultural sandbox for aspiring and renowned poets,

playwrights, and musicians to showcase their work

at the nightly open mics.

By the mid to late 90s, when rap turned increasingly commercial,

the New Yorkan became the epicenter for the East Coast blossoming underground hip-hop scene.

On any given night, you might catch most deaf for Talib Qualee debuting a new verse, see an Improb to performance by Black Thought, Common, and Quest Love,

or witness a hungry pre-fame M&M backed only by a cassette tape.

For MCs that pride of themselves on the art of lyricism, performing at the

New Yorkan, had become a rite of passage.

Such are the circumstances tonight for the man now holding the mic with panniehose over his face.

His government name is Daniel Dumoulet.

But tonight he's performing for the first time under his new alias.

An alter ego of the hip-hop world would soon know as rap's mass super villain, one of the most fascinating,

mysterious, influential M.C. of a generation.

M. F. Dumas.

...