DMX: It's Dark and Hell is Hot

Today I read the cnn.com article which named Nas as the greatest lyricist in the history of hip hop.  Reading the article made me think about other great artists who are no longer alive or never reached their potential. DMX was the first artist to come to my mind.  To be completely honest, that might be, in part, because I recently watched the VH1 "Behind the Music" special about his life.  DMX had so much potential, but his drug and alcohol addiction have derailed his once promising career.  Hopefully he will be able to recover and release more good music.  His first album, "It's Dark and Hell is Hot" was released in 1998.  If you recall, that was a competitive time in hip hop, as many artists were competing for the illusive crown that B.I.G. left behind.  

"It's Dark and Hell is Hot" is one of my favorite albums of the 1990s.  It was completely different than the material being released by the mainstream artists of the time period.  It was a dark, gritty, street album. Hip hop music can become very boring when people realize that a certain type of music will help them sell records.  Remember the "bling bling" era?  (Kill me now please)  What about the "shiny suit" era?  (Just tell Diddy and Mase to stop dancing in videos wearing shiny suits)  DMX released his debut album when hip hop was predictable.  It needed an influx of talent.  It needed an new artist with a different sound.  In short, it needed DMX.

I heard "Get at me Dog" on the radio.  It caught my attention because it was such an aggressive track.  I watched the music video on Rap City: The Basement with Big Tigger.  The video had a grimy, anti-shiny suit vibe that I appreciated.  DMX was featured in the Source magazine and that only led to more buzz around the release of his album. At that time, if the Source gave an album at least 4 mics, you knew it was worth purchasing.  Notice I said purchasing and not bootlegging or stealing.  

From start to finish, the album is great and it took you on a journey.  The skits were perfectly placed and the production was top notch.  The next logical question is, what is my favorite song on the album?  Of course the answer cannot be straight forward.  The truthful answer is my favorite song changes from day to day.  For instance, when I listened to the album today, the first song I played was "Niggas Done Started Something" featuring Da Lox.  At first listen, I thought Jadakiss stole the show, but DMX had the last verse and he absolutely bodied the track.  Do you have a favorite track on the album?  If so, leave a comment with the name of the song.

Peace