Hip-hop icon DMX dies at age 50
NEW YORK — Hip-hop icon DMX, the talented but troubled rap star whose hit-making careers in music and movies disappeared amid his drug addiction and constant legal woes, died Friday after suffering a heart attack in his Westchester County home a week ago, his family confirmed.
He was 50.
The platinum-selling rapper, known for his breakout single “Get at Me Dog” and and the Top 10 smash “Party Up (In Here),” was rushed to a critical care unit at White Plains Hospital after collapsing in his White Plains home on April 2.
The comatose rap legend, a three-time Grammy Award nominee, was placed on a ventilator and never regained consciousness as fans and friends gathered outside the hospital to offer their love and support.
The rapper, born Earl Simmons and raised in Mount Vernon, released a record five consecutive Billboard No. 1 albums between 1998-2003 and co-starred in movie box office hits opposite martial arts star Jet Li and action film icon Steven Seagal.
He toured with hit-making contemporaries Jay-Z and Method Man, created five platinum-selling records, sold more than 74 million albums and boasted 15 singles in the Billboard Hot 100. DMX was widely considered the top star in hip-hop after the violent deaths of predecessors Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur.
But his career took a precipitous plunge as DMX wracked up a long rap sheet, descended into drug addiction and was eventually jailed for tax evasion. A post-prison comeback tour was derailed in 2019 when DMX checked himself back into rehab.
His dark lyrics drew from a difficult childhood of parental abuse and stints in group homes before he turned to petty crime. DMX soon found salvation in his music, starting as a DJ and human beat box before becoming a rapper known for his blowtorch delivery and hardcore lyrics.