Rapper DMX has died, his family announced in a statement on Friday. He was 50.
“We are deeply saddened to announce today that our loved one, DMX, birth name of Earl Simmons, passed away at 50-years-old at White Plains Hospital with his family by his side after being placed on life support for the past few days,” family’s statement read in part.
The artist, known as much for his troubles as his music, had been hospitalized since last week when he suffered a heart attack at his home in New York, according to his longtime attorney, Murray Richman.
He began rapping in the early 1990s and released his debut album, “It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot,” in 1998. He sold millions of albums, boosted by hits like “Get At Me Dog” in 1998, “Party Up,” in 1999 and “X Gon’ Give It to Ya,” in 2003. He also rose to fame as an actor, appearing in multiple films including, “Romeo Must Die” and “Cradle 2 The Grave.”
But his professional achievements were often overshadowed by his issues with substance abuse and run-ins with the law. He pleaded guilty to tax fraud in 2017 and was sentenced to one year in prison.
In 2019, DMX canceled a planned concert tour to seek treatment for addiction, saying at the time that he was “putting family and sobriety first.”
