In April 2021, news outlets reported that rapper DMX was hospitalized after suffering a heart attack. While details of the singer's condition aren't public, many outlets have speculated that DMX, real name Earl Simmons, was hospitalized after an overdose.
Simmons' family said in a statement:
“On Friday night, April 2nd, 2021, our brother, son, father, and colleague DMX, birth name of Earl Simmons, was admitted to White Plains (NY) Hospital, facing serious health issues ... We ask that you please keep Earl/DMX and us in your thoughts, wishes, and prayers as well as respect our privacy as we face these challenges. Thank you.”
As fans worried about DMX's condition — former manager Nakia Walker told the New York Times he was in a "vegetative state" — a video started going viral that purportedly showed DMX talking about his struggles with addiction.
This video comes from an interview DMX gave to rapper Talib Kweli on the "People's Party" show. During this interview, DMX said that about his struggles with addiction and crack started when he was 14 years old, when he unknowingly smoked a marijuana blunt that had been laced with crack.
DMX says during this interview that he looked up to a local rapper named Ready Ron as an "older brother." While DMX said Ready Ron encouraged his interest in music, they also introduced him to drugs. Here's a partial transcript of DMX's interview:
This guy Ready Ron, he was like an older brother to me. He would rap and I would do the beatbox. I looked up to him like an older brother... This guy he introduced me to what would be the best part of my life, which would be the rap, but he also (inaudible) I think my life is blessed with a curse. And the curse aspect of it was... I didn't smoke cigarettes, I didn't smoke weed, I didn't do anything. I mean I'm 14 years old."
DMX goes on to talk about a night when he and Ready Ron committed a robbery. When they returned and started counting the money, the singer says that this person offered him a rolled up blunt. DMX said:
... And he came back with a blunt rolled up ... and he passed the blunt around ... and I hit the blunt ... I never felt like this before it f---ed me up. I later found out that he laced the blunt with crack... Why would you do that to a child? He was like 30 and he knew I looked up to him. Why would you do that to someone who looks up to you?"
You can see this full episode of The People's Party below: