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Rapper DMX (2016 in New York): Five number 1 albums in a row
Photo: Shahar Azran / WireImage / Getty Images
At the turn of the millennium there was hardly a musician who mixed up the rap world - and in his case I mean really mixed up - like DMX.
His rap beginnings started in prison in the 1980s and brought him to stages that were as huge as you would otherwise know from the really big rock stars, if you think of his creepy performance at the Woodstock Festival in 1999, for example.
DMX was also an effortless actor, released five number 1 albums in a row from 1998 to 2003 and, together with his collective and label "Ruff Ryders", helped artists such as Eve and The LOX to become better known.
His last official studio album was released in 2012, rumor has it that he was working on a comeback before his death with features from Alicia Keys, Snoop Dogg and Bono from U2, among others.
Last but not least, DMX claims to have been the father of 15 children.
In 1992 he got a record deal with Columbia Records, his first official debut single was called »Born Loser«, on which he reflected on his biography, sometimes deeply sad, but repeatedly peppered with artistic superlatives, razor-sharp and self-ironically.
This song of all things was supposed to be the first door opener into the music industry, get DMX off the street and later turn him into a rap superstar that left a lasting mark on generations after him.
On “Born Loser” he raps: “The born loser, not because I choose to be.
But because all the bad shit happens to me «also» The born loser, not because I choose to be one.
It's because of all the bad shit that happens to me. "
Enlarge Image Photo: Noam Galai / Getty Images
"Bad shit" is a trivialization of everything that he was confronted with in his early years.
In 1970 DMX was born Earl Simmons in Mount Vernon, New York.
His birth father did not care, his mother abused him, at some point he was hit by a drunk.
The two constant companions of his life were music and crack.
His former mentor Ready Ron, who was a locally well-known rapper in the 80s, brought both of these into his life.
While DMX beatboxed for him and was able to live out his love for hip-hop, tragically, it was Ron, one of his few confidants, who unknowingly rolled crack into a joint - the beginning of a lifelong addiction.
Even behind the unmistakable barking, DMX 'trademark, there is an oppressive story.
To escape domestic abuse, he spent a lot of time as a child on the streets of New York at night and found security with stray dogs.
At the same time, he consciously and unintentionally used the throaty sound as a stylistic device: he had suffered from bronchial asthma since childhood.
Dogs run throughout DMX's work, whether in music videos, covers, or even as a back-up by teaching his dogs to assist him in performances.
DMX himself called his life "blessed with a curse", that is, blessed with a curse, and that sums it up quite well.
He was always someone who brought contradictions together, but of course was not free from mistakes either.
While he was a devout Christian and rapped again and again about how he was looking for redemption, or hoping for a divine sign in songs like "Lord Give Me A Sign", he also wrote texts about necrophilia, for example.
We can learn a lot about managing mental health from DMX's life and death.
Not only about what his addiction or bipolar disorder did to him, but also how the whole thing was received from the outside.
In contrast to what many would not expect from him at first glance, DMX repeatedly addressed his psychological problems and addictions as self-reflective as few others.
The only question that arises is whether he was actually being listened to.
The fact that at DMX, of all people, his previous history is still being negotiated after his death as to whether he was not to blame for everything and as if a life that ended by doing drugs was less worthwhile shows: No, he was not sufficiently listened to.
In the past few days, a video of him was circulating in front of colorful orchids in bloom, with a small golden spray bottle in his hand.
He says in this clip: “When I first started growing orchids, I thought they needed the most expensive soil and lights to bloom.
They died.
That's when I realized that all they really needed was time and attention. "
The history of DMX is also so overwhelming because it is often precisely those who are on the ground themselves who give others strength.
How many parties were celebrated on "Party Up" and how many of us roared hoarsely over "X Gon 'Give It To Ya"?
Few artists like DMX have managed to bring block party sounds to clubs around the world and at the same time write authentic Hood hymns, which primarily address the problems of many young, black men in the USA.
On “Born Loser” he says at the very end: “I was always a winner but I just didn't know it.” Maybe he should have been let know earlier that he was a winner.
What remains of him is definitely an asset for the music - forever.
Ryde in Peace, DMX.
