Ironically, his hit What’s My Name has drawn protests from The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), which they say glamorizes dog fighting, though Def Jam countered that there is no actually dog fighting in the video and that no dogs were harmed. He also was arrested on drug paraphernalia and weapons charges in addition to spending two nights in a Trinidad jail for swearing during a concert, were the practice is legally forbidden. In addition, he’s been arrested in connection with stabbings in Denver and Yonkers, though both of those cases were dropped. In 1998, charges that he raped a 29 year old stripper were dropped after DNA tests on the woman came back negative for a match. Like Tupac, DMX’s post celebrity life has been touched with crimes and alleged misdeeds. He appeared on Saturday Night Live, Queen Latifah, as well as an episode of Moesha. His latest album, …And Then There Was X, has been his biggest hit to date, helped in large part by an all-out media blitz in support of its release. This and the success of Jay-Z helped catapult Def Jam from near extinction in the prior year to the leader of the hip-hop pack, as the downward spiraling Bad Boy Records (Puff Daddy) and the post Tupac Death Row Records were headed in the opposite direction.
The album featured a duet called Omen with Marilyn Manson (though the two never met, it was the product of a recording studio match).
#DMX AND THEN THERE WAS X ALBUM COVER FULL#
The controversial cover had DMX in a bathtub full of blood. The cash strapped Def Jam was eager to get another album out and released the 2nd DMX project of the year with Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood. DMX also branched out into film, starring in Belly, a Hype Williams directed crime saga which featured other rappers such as T-Boz and Method Man. His first full album, It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot, went on to sell 3.6 million copies (and counting). In fact, DMX has a tattoo dedicated to his late pit bull and what he calls his “best friend” which says “One Love Boomer”. With this created the artists affection for ‘the dog’. He appeared as a guest of sorts for the likes of LL Cool J, Lox, and Mase before releasing his first single in 1998, Get at Me Dog. 1997 brought Ruff Ryders Entertainment and DMX was quickly signed by the Def Jam label. In the early days, he paid his dues rapping on street corners, playing in clubs, and distributing his tapes, all this created a buzz for the performer in the New York scene. What turned Simmons life around was rap music. The results were compelling enough to make DMX the first artist ever to have his first four albums enter the charts at number one. He could move from spiritual anguish one minute to a narrative about the sins of the streets the next, yet keep it all part of the same complex character sort of like a hip-hop Johnny Cash. Plus, there was substance behind the style much of his work was tied together by a fascination with the split between the sacred and the profane. This also led to other troubled behavior such as alcoholism and drug abuse, a response to his manic depressed state.Įverything about DMX was unremittingly intense, from his muscular, tattooed physique to his gruff, barking delivery, which made a perfect match for his trademark lyrical obsession with dogs. He also endured an abusive mother, which in combination helped mold Simmons into a life of crime, where he spent years in group homes and jail. The early days for Simmons were definitely real, born Decemin Baltimore Maryland’s projects, his family quickly moved to Yonkers with his aunt, with a father that left him at a young age. His rapid ascent to stardom was actually almost a decade in the making, which gave him a chance to develop the theatrical image that made him one of rap’s most distinctive personalities during his heyday. He was that rare commodity: a commercial powerhouse with artistic and street credibility to spare. People like a real person.”įollowing the deaths of Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G., DMX took over as the reigning, undisputed king of hardcore rap. I haven’t crossed them yet, I haven’t been on no fake sh*t yet, no bullsh*t yet. And when people say I’m the second Pac, I’m not, I’m the first X.” That being said, Earl Simmons (DMX’s real name) has said of Tupac “I think Tupac was a strong-minded black man, and that’s what America fears.” Nevertheless, perhaps the real reason people flock to DMX is because the man is real, not a multi-million dollar record executive dressed like a rapper (listening Puffy?) to which he apparently agrees, saying “I’m real. Dark Man X, considered the next coming of the slain Tupac Shakur, though asking him to comment on this will bring this angry response “I say they don’t know what the f**k they are talking about.
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