The public memorial service for late rapper DMX, born Earl Simmons, was held on Saturday afternoon at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, with fans, friends, and family coming out to pay their respects. While the event was kept small due to New York City COVID guidelines, the event was live-streamed so that many could witness the celebration of the rapper’s life. The service kicked off with a throwback video and some touching video footage of DMX and his daughter. DMX’s children then took the stage to pay tribute to their dad.
Our father is a king, our father is an icon,” Xavier Simmons explained. “I am so honored to have a father like we have.” “This man deepened my ability to love…I cried so much tears of joy, so much,” he continued. “Every time, every lesson he ever taught me: Always say thank you. No matter where you go, a blessing is everywhere. Be kind to everyone.”
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DMX’s longtime friend and collaborator Nas also took to the stage to share his feelings of loss. “As a longtime friend, it’s an honor to be here tonight. At the same time, it’s a sad day…I just want to say I’m honored to be here. That’s my brother,” Nas said. He went on to recount how they met on the set of the film Belly and that he knew DMX would be a star immediately. “We did a great movie together, and on that movie, he was just rising up as a star. His first album didn’t even come out yet,’ Nas shared. “But he knew his journey was starting. We stood outside The Tunnel nightclub about to shoot a scene and he looked at me, tears in his eyes because he knew about the journey he was about to embark on…to become a hip-hop icon.”
Rapper and actress Eve also shared a message of peace in honor of the late rapper. “First of all, thank you, thank you, thank you for the energy that everybody has brought here today,” she said. “The celebration of how great we all know DMX was what he has left behind. I am seriously the luckiest, luckiest woman in the world to have been adopted by the Ruff Ryders, but to have known DMX the way that I knew him as a man, a father, a friend. This is so hard, y’all.”
“What I pray. What I hope. I pray to God. I pray to our angels, I pray to our ancestors that his journey was smooth,” Eve concluded. “I know that he will rest in power, rest in love but most of all he will rest in peace. Thank you.” Several Ruff Ryders also participated in the tribute, making sure that DMX’s legacy lives on and is properly honored.
