REMEMBERING DMX

April 9th 2021 was a very dark day for Hip Hop and the world on a whole as it was the day we lost Earl Simmons, better known to the world as DMX.

Hip Hop is nearly 50 years old so it is fair to say we have seen a huge amount of its artists pass away in varying circumstances, some of which were before my time of involvement in the culture.

I've been listening to Hip Hop for 30 years now and have witnessed the passing of many rappers in my time, the likes of:

2Pac

Eazy E

Guru

Prodigy

Heavy D

Nate Dogg

ODB

Phife Dawg

Notorious BIG

Big L

MF DOOM

Fred The Godson

Craig Mack

Jam Master Jay

Proof

Freaky Tah

Nipsey Hussle

Pop Smoke

Soulja Slim

Ty

Juice Wrld

Malik B

King Von

XXXTENTACION

Mac Miller

.... and with all due respect, so many more I have not listed.

Even with such a significant amount of precious lives lost, it doesn't make writing those "RIP" messages any easier.

Thinking about it now, I would say the loss of 2pac, BIG and Prodigy hit me the hardest until now with the passing of DMX, this is why I have decided to write this small piece, in honour of his memory, legacy and to share with you all why I believe his run was so important to me and to hip hop in general.

I know when people begin to talk about the greatness of an artist they usually go to stats to make or strengthen their argument but one of the beautiful things about Hip Hop is that most of us who are heavily involved in the culture don't really care about stats- as good as it is to see your favourite MCs go gold and platinum and win awards etc we understand that this does not automatically make the album great to the culture or even a classic. 

There are generally two worlds in Hip Hop, the commercial world and the underground world, sometimes an artist or project skillfully ticks both boxes and impresses both worlds but on a whole, there are classic underground records and rappers that are some of the best in the game but they don't get the recognition or accolades they deserve because they are not backed by major labels which is one of the reasons why stats and record sales don't usually mean that much to genuine Hip Hop fans.

With all the above mentioned, I still think its important, in relation to DMX's career, to mention how commercially successful he was and still had the ability to be real, raw and rugged.

DMX started his career in the early 90s with a couple singles and mixtapes which created a local buzz but his career never really took off. In 1995 X featured on Mic Geronimo's debut album on a song with Jay Z and Ja Rule which brought him more attention but it was his guest spots on "Money, Power & Respect" by the LOX, "4,3,2,1" by LL Cool J and "24 Hrs to Live" by Mase that really started to create a huge buzz for X, then he dropped his first single "Get At Me Dog" and most of the world stood to attention.

DMX became one of the best selling Hip Hop artists of all time, one of the only Hip Hop artists to have his first 5 albums all debut at No.1 on the billboard charts and reach multi platinum status, he was in multiple movies, even a video game and in 1999 he performed his crucial performance at Woodstock festival which is still spoken about and referenced to today. Its fair to say that between 1998 and 2005, DMX's run was an incredible one.

In the years running up to 1998 you could say Hip Hop was having a bit of an identity crisis and was consumed by the drive for radio play and commercial success. This resulted in a heavy focus on material things, jewellery, cars etc Hip Hop had almost seemed to have slightly lost its edge in favour of what we refer to now as the "Bling Era" or even the "Shiny Suit Era" but many would agree that X helped to bring back that raw early 90s grime and hardcore Hip Hop without having to water down his sound. Even with all the barking, yelling, screaming and growling, X managed to shine through all of the gloss and drip of that era.

I mentioned that commercial success and stats are not that important to hardcore Hip Hop fans but its important to remember the state of popular Hip Hop when DMX exploded on to the scene and blew up.

Its Dark & Hell is Hot is the 1998 debut album from DMX (which you can read more about in my top ten albums in Hip Hop blog).

Was it super lyrical? No it wasn't, Did it have an array of popular/well known producers? No it didn't, Was it filled with impressive guest features from the top artists of that time? No it wasn't... but it still ended up being one of the best releases in an overall good year for Hip Hop and one of the most impressive debut albums to date.

It felt like DMX ushered in a whole movement of Hip Hop that we didn't even realise how badly we needed. In 1997, family members Chivon, Dee & Waah Dean started Ruff Ryders which is the record label and Hip Hop collective that brought us the likes of Eve, Swizz Beatz, Jin, The LOX, Drag-On and others but X was clearly the star of the movement.

Many artists wanted X to feature on their projects, even Jay Z said on Vol 2, that he doesn't fu*k with cats other than X and the LOX.

X never ever compromised his sound, style, content or message which was one of the reasons his impact on the game was so felt.

DMX is one of my favourite rappers and is listed in my personal Top Ten favourite MCs blog.

One of the many things that make X so great to me is the fact that he never shied away from speaking on his struggles or his pain. He said it best when he said "I merely say what's in my heart and you call it a style" . This is what Hip Hop needed.

DMX experienced problems with the law, betrayal, addiction issues, rehabs, relapses, evident struggles with good and evil but tapped into a way of connecting with the listener and communicating all the above perfectly.

"I speak for the meek and the lonely, lost and hungry" -DMX-

X was no stranger to pain or rough circumstances, he experienced life to the fullest, he went from the lowest of lows, to the highest of highs and everywhere inbetween. Due to this, X was remarkably empathetic through his music when needed, but on the other hand he could be incredibly aggressive. He was learning to deal with what 'Good' was expected FROM a person while fighting against the pull of what 'Bad' could do TO a person.

By no means am I saying X was an angel, far from it, he clearly spoke on the wrong he had done but went even further by giving a sort of explanation as to why, which increased his vulnerability on wax and made the listener appreciate him even more.

His music felt like a cry for help and a public apology at times. His prayers to God and his battles with evil were significant in his music and brought balance, clarity and even an inside look at the man behind the music.

One of the reasons X's music is so relatable for me personally is because it's the first time (as far as I can remember) that a manistream and seemingly secular artist made such direct and clear mention of spiritual, religious and godly matters. X had no issue with opening his albums with a prayer and directly speaking to God, even pleading with God at times.

This meant alot to me due to decisions, circumstances and things I was experiencing in my own life in the late 90s to early 00s. I had lost a number of friends through gang war, I had battled with the whole concept of Christianity Vs the world, without getting into it too much, all I will say is that the whole Good Vs Evil inner battle was very real for me around that time and DMX's music helped me to process the balances of life.

One of the hardest things about losing X at this time was that he seemed to be doing so much better of late. We were blessed with an excellent VERZUZ between him and Snoop Dogg last year, he was recently on Drink Champs with NORE, he featured on The LOX new album, he was working on a new album himself and many videos of  him simply enjoying life were floating around on social media. DMX was that dude everyone was rooting for, the type of dude you rejoiced to see doing well and more importantly the type of dude you wanted to remain drug free and in good health.

Even with all his struggles, his ups and downs and his negative press at times, I think its fair to say that we as the Hip Hop community have always loved X and one of the many reasons is because he has been so honest with his failures and is so relatable. His passion and love for life was contagious and his spirit was regularly laid bare...We Will miss you X.

"To live is to suffer, to survive is to find meaning in the suffering" -DMX-

Rest Well King!

Before I close this edition I would like to take the time to send a message of rememberence to all the other rappers who have lost their lives and a message of encouragement to all of their loved ones left behind.

As always, thanks for taking the time to read this blog and for remembering the legendary DMX.... In The Spotlight!