Doomtree

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title: "Doomtree" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["doomtree", "alternative-hip-hop-groups", "midwest-hip-hop-groups", "american-independent-record-labels", "independent-record-labels-based-in-minnesota", "hip-hop-record-labels", "companies-based-in-minneapolis", "2001-establishments-in-minnesota", "musical-groups-from-minneapolis"] description: "American hip hop band" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doomtree" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American hip hop band ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox musical artist"]

Field	Value
name	Doomtree
image	Doomtree Cecil Otter, P.O.S., Mike Mictlan, Dessa, and Sims.jpg
landscape	yes
caption	Doomtree performing at First Avenue in 2010 (left to right: Cecil Otter, P.O.S, Mike Mictlan, Dessa, and Sims)
origin	Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
genre	Hip hop
years_active	2001–present
label	Doomtree Records
current_members	* Dessa
past_members	* MK Larada (aka Kai Benson)
website
::

| name = Doomtree | image = Doomtree Cecil Otter, P.O.S., Mike Mictlan, Dessa, and Sims.jpg | landscape = yes | caption = Doomtree performing at First Avenue in 2010 (left to right: Cecil Otter, P.O.S, Mike Mictlan, Dessa, and Sims) | origin = Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. | genre = Hip hop | years_active = 2001–present | label = Doomtree Records | current_members = * Dessa

• Cecil Otter
• P.O.S
• Sims
• Mike Mictlan
• Paper Tiger
• Lazerbeak | past_members = * MK Larada (aka Kai Benson)
• Turbo Nemesis
• Tom Servo
• Divine (aka Beautiful Bobby Gorgeous) | website = Doomtree is an American hip hop collective and record label based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The collective has seven members: Dessa, Cecil Otter, P.O.S, Sims, Mike Mictlan, Paper Tiger, and Lazerbeak. The collective is known for incorporating a wide range of musical influences into their work with lyrical complexity and wordplay, and their annual "Doomtree Blowout" events held in Minneapolis venues to showcase their group performances and the Twin Cities music scene.

Early years

The name "Doomtree" is a made-up word that doesn't have a meaning, according to P.O.S, who says that it has come to represent "my people and my life's work so far." When Dessa was asked about the name, she said "Initially it was a proposed name for a Cecil and P.O.S. record. The name followed us when we all lived together in a big rundown house a few years ago. Whether it was the fault of architecture or some sort of cosmic wormhole, dead pigeons always showed up on our doorstep." The group was originally named "False Hopes" when it was just P.O.S and Cecil Otter, but after consideration, it was traded off to be the name of a series of releases (there are 15 total) by Doomtree members (such as Cecil Otter's or Doomtree's debut).

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Wingsandteeth.png" caption="Doomtree's "Wings and Teeth" logo"] ::

Members of Doomtree have described the group's formation as a gradual process. The initial lineup saw P.O.S and MK Larada, friends from high school, making songs with other local artists such as Cecil Otter and Beautiful Bobby Gorgeous. The beginning of the name began when P.O.S and Cecil Otter first envisioned Doomtree to be an in house production team. Soon enough Sims and Lazerbeak, fellow Hopkins High School alumni, followed. Mike Mictlan, having also attended high school with P.O.S, became an official member when he moved back to Minneapolis from Los Angeles. Dessa joined after having a chance encounter with P.O.S, who was living down the street from her at the time along with Sims, Turbo Nemesis and MK Larada. Sims and Dessa were said to be the last to join the collective. After its final formation, members MK Larada, Turbo Nemesis, Tom Servo, and Bobby Gorgeous gradually drifted away from the group. MK Larada is responsible for Doomtree's famous "Wings and Teeth" logo.

Musical career

Doomtree's first official album, Doomtree, was released on July 29, 2008.

Their second official album, No Kings, was released to critical acclaim on November 22, 2011.

In 2012, Time included Doomtree in the "11 Great Bands You Don't Know (But Should)" list. December 12, 2012 was proclaimed by Mayor R. T. Rybak as "Doomtree Day in the city of Minneapolis" in conjunction with the opening night of the Doomtree Blowout 8 show at First Avenue.

Doomtree's documentary film, Team the Best Team, was also released as a DVD in 2012, and also as a digital stream and download in 2013.

In December 2014, Doomtree had the final installment of the annual Blowout concert series, which the crew hosted for 10 years.

On January 27, 2015, Doomtree released their third group album, All Hands. In October 2015, Doomtree curated the first Doomtree Zoo festival at the CHS Field.

Distribution

While P.O.S and Cecil Otter have released solo albums on other record labels (Rhymesayers Entertainment and Strange Famous Records, respectively), each of the group albums and the majority of the collective's solo work are released on their own label, Doomtree Records.

Doomtree has also formed a publisher, Doomtree Press. In 2009, it put out Spiral Bound, Dessa's first book of poetry and fiction.

Officially, the CEO of the label is Dessa, but the label is run by the entire group, with outside help from friends such as Ander Other, Doomtree's "Intern/Merchant/Graphic Designer/Webmaster/Video Editor/Social Media Agent/Librarian."

Style

As a group, Doomtree's sound reflects being a collective of many members with unique individual musical influences. Officially classified as hip-hop, the influences of jazz, punk rock, blues, rock, and soul can be detected throughout their music. Doomtree is known for having "tangled, multihued and pointedly intellectualized lyrics" with "cerebral rhymes and moody beats."

Honors and awards

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Doomtree_-_First_Avenue_Star.jpg" caption="access-date=2020-05-10 }}"] ::

Members

Current

• Dessa: rapper
• Cecil Otter: rapper/producer
• P.O.S: rapper/producer
• Sims: rapper
• Mike Mictlan: rapper
• Paper Tiger: producer/DJ
• Lazerbeak: producer

Former

• MK Larada: producer
• Turbo Nemesis: producer/DJ
• Tom Servo: producer/DJ
• Beautiful Bobby Gorgeous: producer

Discography

Studio albums

::data[format=table] | |Title | |Release date | |Formats | |---|---|---| | Doomtree | July 29, 2008 | CD, vinyl, digital download | | No Kings | November 22, 2011 | CD, vinyl, digital download | | All Hands | January 27, 2015 | CD, vinyl, digital download | ::

EPs and mixtapes

::data[format=table] | |Title | |Release date | |Formats | |Notes | |---|---|---|---| | False Hopes | December 16, 2007 | CD, digital download | 12th False Hopes record and the first to feature all members of Doomtree (14 tracks) | | False Hopes 13 | December 9, 2008 | CD | Accompanied by Doomtree Blowout DVD | | FH:XV (False Hopes 15) | December 6, 2009 | CD, digital download | | | Affiliyated | March 4, 2011 | Digital download | Remix of Gayngs' Relayted | ::

Singles

::data[format=table] | |Title | |Release date | |Formats | |---|---|---| | "Bangarang" | May 28, 2012 | Digital download | | ".38 Airweight" | July 29, 2014 | Digital download | | "Spill Me Up" | June 13, 2016 | Digital download | | "Five Alive" | February 24, 2020 | Digital download | ::

Other

::data[format=table] | |Title | |Release date | |Formats | |Notes | |---|---|---|---| | Doomtree Blowout | December 9, 2008 | DVD | Accompanied by False Hopes 13 | | Team the Best Team | December 11, 2012 | DVD, digital download | Documentary film | | Doomtree: Every Single Day | August 21, 2014 | Book | | ::

Doomtree Blowout

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Doomtree_Blowout_at_First_Avenue_in_Minneapolis,Minnesota-_2012_8285630473_o.jpg" caption="First Avenue]] in 2012."] ::

Between 2005-2014, Doomtree performed in annual group shows ("Blowouts") at local Minneapolis, Minnesota venues.

::data[format=table]

Blowout	Date	Venue	Notes
Blowout 1	December 10, 2005	Varsity Theater
Blowout 2	December 2, 2006	First Avenue
Blowout 2 Jr.	December 16, 2006	Triple Rock Social Club	"Under 21" show
Blowout 3	December 14, 2007	First Avenue
Blowout 4	December 6, 2008	First Avenue
Blowout 5	December 5, 2009	First Avenue
Blowout 6	December 10, 2010	First Avenue
Blowout 6	December 11, 2010	First Avenue
Blowout 7	December 4, 2011	First Avenue	Curated by Sims
Blowout 7	December 5, 2011	First Avenue	Curated by Mike Mictlan
Blowout 7	December 6, 2011	First Avenue	Curated by Dessa
Blowout 7	December 7, 2011	First Avenue	Curated by P.O.S
Blowout 7	December 8, 2011	First Avenue	Curated by Cecil Otter
Blowout 7	December 9, 2011	First Avenue
Blowout 7	December 10, 2011	First Avenue
Blowout 8	December 14, 2012	First Avenue
Blowout 8	December 15, 2012	First Avenue
Blowout 8	December 16, 2012	First Avenue
Blowout 9	December 12, 2013	Triple Rock Social Club	All Ages
Blowout 9	December 13, 2013	First Avenue	21+
Blowout 9	December 14, 2013	First Avenue	18+
Blowout 9	December 15, 2013	First Avenue	18+
Blowout 10	December 6, 2014	Turf Club	21+
Blowout 10	December 7, 2014	Surly Doomtree Day	All Ages
Blowout 10	December 8, 2014	Icehouse	21+
Blowout 10	December 9, 2014	Triple Rock Social Club	All Ages
Blowout 10	December 10, 2014	Varsity Theater	18+
Blowout 10	December 11, 2014	First Avenue	18+
Blowout 10	December 12, 2014	First Avenue	18+
Blowout 10	December 13, 2014	First Avenue	21+
::

References

References

1. Swiatecki, Chad. (March 20, 2012). "Doomtree Build Collective Hip-Hop Force".
2. Ali, Reyan. (March 4, 2015). "Doomtree". [[Salt Lake City Weekly]].
3. Parker, Chris. (March 15, 2012). "Boise Gathers Around the Doomtree". [[Boise Weekly]].
4. Ali, Reyan. (November 4, 2010). "The Gang's All Here: Minneapolis' slept-upon hip-hop crew head out on their first full tour". [[Salt Lake City Weekly]].
5. "Music: Merchants of Doom". Star Tribune.
6. (2 November 2011). "Wings And Teeth - An Interview With Doomtree {{!}} RESPECT.".
7. Abjekt. (August 30, 2006). "Doomtree Interview". Caught in the Crossfire.
8. "P.O.S. of Doomtree". URBAN BEAN COFFEE.
9. Bernard, Adam. (August 12, 2008). "RapReview Feature for August 12, 2008 - Doomtree Interview". Rap Reviews.
10. Scholtes, Peter S.. (March 3, 2004). "Doomsday!". [[City Pages]].
11. "DOOMTREE on Twitter". Twitter.
12. "Doomtree Talks No Kings And Their Famous Wings And Teeth Logo « Listen Up Denver!". Listen Up Denver!.
13. Inveigh. (April 2, 2010). "Doomtree - Doomtree". Sputnikmusic.
14. Koski, Genevieve. (November 22, 2011). "Doomtree: No Kings". [[The A.V. Club]].
15. "No Kings by Doomtree".
16. Locker, Melissa. (August 7, 2012). "11 Great Bands You Don't Know (But Should)".
17. Fischer, Reed. (December 13, 2012). "Doomtree Day in Minneapolis is Friday, proclaims Mayor Rybak". [[City Pages]].
18. Fischer, Reed. (November 7, 2012). "Doomtree to release documentary, Team the Best Team DVD". [[City Pages]].
19. Tardio, Andres. (December 8, 2013). "Doomtree Releases "Team The Best Team" Documentary". [[HipHopDX]].
20. Fagerberg, Jerard. (December 15, 2014). "What Does the "Last Blowout Ever" Mean for Doomtree?". [[City Pages]].
21. Thompson, Erik. (December 12, 2014). "The Best Twin Cities Concerts This Weekend: 12/12-14". [[City Pages]].
22. "All Hands, by Doomtree".
23. Warner, Ryan. (October 5, 2015). "Our likes and dislikes of Doomtree Zoo 1.0". [[City Pages]].
24. Parker, Chris. (March 15, 2012). "Steady As She Grows". [[Colorado Springs Independent]].
25. (January 13, 2009). "Dessa 'Spiral Bound' Review". Culture Bully.
26. "Dessa the CEO". Minnesota Business Magazine.
27. "ANDER OTHER (Doomtree) {{!}} First Avenue".
28. Ali, Reyan. (February 14, 2012). "Hip-Hop Collective Doomtree Lands In Philly This Week". [[Philadelphia Weekly]].
29. Brickner, Sarah. (February 11, 2010). "Doomtree's Brain Fruit". [[Eugene Weekly]].
30. . ["The Stars"](http://first-avenue.com/about/thestars).
31. Bream, Jon. (2019-05-03). "10 things you'll learn about First Avenue in new Minnesota History Center show". [[Star Tribune]].
32. Marsh, Steve. (2019-05-13). "First Avenue's Star Wall". Mpls.St.Paul Magazine.
33. (20 November 2005). "Doomtree Blowout". Doomtree.
34. (3 December 2006). "Doomtree Wrapup". Doomtree.
35. (25 October 2007). "Blowout 3". Doomtree.
36. "89.3 The Current and Vita.mn present DOOMTREE BLOWOUT IV". First Avenue.
37. "Doomtree Blowout V". First Avenue.
38. (19 October 2010). "Doomtree Announces Blowout 2010". Reviler.
39. "Doomtree Blowout Week at First Avenue". First Avenue.
40. "Doomtree Blowout 8". First Avenue.
41. (30 September 2014). "Doomtree Blowout 10". Doomtree.

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