DMX

His mother was convinced by school officials to send him to a group home at the age of 7; he ended up spending more than five years in several of them. His mother took him to the group home 'supposedly' for a visit. His mother asked him how he liked the place. "It's all right," he said, "but I'm ready to go." She then told Earl that he would be staying for a little while, and she would be back soon. He did not cry. She came back 18 months later, but by then, the groundwork had been laid for X's revolving-door relationship with correctional institutions.

"There's a period in your childhood when you accept whatever you're given as normal," he says. By his early teens, Earl was familiar with the jail system. He would eventually spend seven years in jail. He also developed an appetite for alcohol and drugs, perhaps connected to his a lifelong battle with manic depression.

His grandmother, the late Mary Ella Hollaway, told him that "the Lord may not come when you want Him, but He's always on time."

X gives much credit to his grandmother, "I was her baby. I was nobody else's baby in the whole world, but I was hers. And I never felt that feeling before her or after."

Although DMX was trying to make a name for himself in the industry way before he caught his break, DMX emerged on the scene in 1998 opening a lot of eyes. ’98 was no doubt the year of the dog. With his debut single “Get At Me Dog,” DMX instantly blew up. He also made outstanding guest appearances that helped skyrocket his career with performances on LL's "4.3.2.1", the Lox's "Money, Power, Respect", and Mase's "24 Hours to Live."

X definitely got everybody’s attention as "Get At Me Dog" became an instant street anthem, his album “It's Dark and Hell is Hot” delivered even more hits like "Stop Being Greedy" and "Ruff Ryder's Anthem." The album quickly went multi-platinum.

With “It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot” still sizzling, DMX dropped another album six months later called “Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood.” He changed up on a more mellow vibe with the track "Slippin'." But he still brought his ruff house dog barking to the table with “No Love 4 Me” and “Bring Your Whole Crew”. “Flesh” went to the top of the charts and DMX was the first artist ever to have two number one debut albums in the same year.

With the success of both albums, DMX went on tour with Jay-Z, Method Man and Redman for ‘The Hard Knock Life Tour’ which was deemed the most successful hip hop tour ever.

But if you thought X would finally take a break, you must be slippin’ because he dropped "And Then There Was X" in 1999. This third album produced hits like “Party Up,” “What These Bitches Want” (featuring help from Dru Hill) and “More 2 A Song”. Some feel like “And Then There Was X” didn’t do as well as the first two albums, but X fans know better.

“More 2 A Song” was put out there to remind other MCs that DMX put a call out for them to “Stop talking about how much jewelry you got, stop talking about how much p---- you get. Stop talking about how many hoes you got, how big is your house, 'cause you got people really listening and living off of what you're saying.”

“Great Depression,” DMX’s fourth album, was released in 2001. That album gained reconition with tracks like “We Right Here,” "Who We Be" and "Shorty Was Da Bomb." In between records and tours, DMX has been working on films. He did “Belly” with Nas, “Romeo Must Die” with Aaliyah and “Exit Wounds” with Steven Segal. As far as his personal business, DMX is pretty quiet and doesn’t let the media into that aspect of his life. He’s been married to his wife for over 11 years and says he loves her more & more each day. He says his foundation is his family,”I have a wife, two beautiful kids. That's my foundation. That's what's important to me.”

There are other things that are important to DMX like helping out the community. Unfortunately, the media is so busy focusing on the negative aspects of hip hop that they forget that some people are trying to make a difference. DMX bought a local church in Yonkers that was served an eviction notice. DMX decided to keep the church in the community and he bought the building and renovated it.

He’s also working with his wife on a project called the Mary Ella House (named after his grandmother) and it’s a shelter and a soup kitchen. It isn’t for the homeless, but for teenage mothers. DMX says rather than give them a job, “we will put them back in school. Give them knowledge. [Teach them to] get a GED, and then send them off to college. Then they'll feel a lot better about themselves. They're in there for the kids, and they'll stay there, but they have to stay in school. You leave school, you leave here. We only help those who want to help themselves. I know it's hard out there.”

But with more people out there like X (especially those with the means to offer financial help) we just may make a difference in the community. A new cd entitled "DMX Files" will drop in December of 2002 so make sure you cop that.