Artist’s
longtime New York attorney Murray Richman said DMX had been on life support but
was later breathing on his own
Rapper DMX has been admitted to
a hospital in New York on Saturday with a suspected heart attack.
The American rapper
DMX was hospitalized on Saturday evening after falling ill, his New York-based
lawyer Murray Richman said.
“He had a heart
attack. He’s quite ill,” Richman said.
Richman said he could
not confirm reports that DMX, 50, overdosed on drugs and was not sure what
caused the heart attack.
“I’m very sad about
it, extremely sad. He’s like my son,” Richman said.
“He’s just a
tremendous person, tremendous entertainer, tremendous human being. And so much
to offer, so much to say. Not the run-of-the-mill rapper. A person of great
depth.
Earlier reports had
said DMX, 50, had been on life support. Richman told Pix11 that DMX was
breathing on his own, but later said he was “given wrong information” and
clarified that DMX was on life support.
A representative for
the rapper told TMZ that the rapper “remains in ICU in critical condition. Earl
has been a warrior his entire life. This situation represents yet another road
he must conquer … the Simmons family appreciates the overwhelming outpouring of
heartfelt love, encouragement, support and prayers for Earl.”
DMX, whose real name
is Earl Simmons, has had five US No 1 albums, featuring hip-hop anthems such as
Party Up (Up in Here), What’s My Name and X
Gon’ Give It to Ya. His first two albums were released months apart
in 1998, each going multi-platinum and attracting critical acclaim for bringing
a gothic darkness to an increasingly glitzy rap scene. He has released seven
albums in all, and earned three Grammy nominations.
He began an acting
career in 1998 in the crime drama Belly, alongside hip-hop stars including Nas
and Method Man. Specializing in crime thrillers, he took a lead role alongside
Steven Seagal in Exit Wounds (2000) and another with Jet Li for Cradle 2 the
Grave (2003).
Over the years, DMX
has battled with substance abuse. The rapper canceled a series of shows to
check himself into a rehabilitation facility in 2019. In an Instagram post, his
team said he apologized for the cancelled shows and thanked his fans for the
continued support.
In 2015, he was
sentenced to six months in prison for failing to pay child support. Simmons has
15 children. The most recent, Exodus, was born in 2016.
In 2018, he served a
year-long sentence for tax evasion.
Last year, DMX faced
off against Snoop Dogg in a Verzuz battle, which drew more than 500,000
viewers.
Guardian
UK
The
Associated Press contributed to this report