Short description
It's Dark and Hell Is Hot is the debut album of rapper DMX, released May 19, 1998 on Def Jam subsidiary Ruff Ryders Records. The album featured four singles with music videos, "Get at Me Dog", "Stop Being Greedy", "How's It Goin' Down" and the "Ruff Ryders Anthem". The album is widely considered a hip hop classic by numerous hip hop fans and critics, mainly due to its revitalization of the hardcore rap mainstream scene, after Puff Daddy and Bad Boy Entertainment briefly dominated the charts with their pop-orientated and sample-reliant songs.
Long description
DMX grew up in Yonkers, New York, where he originally got his name for his human beat boxing skills. He started drawing more attention recently for his guest appearances on songs by artists like Ice Cube, LL Cool J, Mase and Onyx. Now DMX presents his solo album It's Dark And Hell Is Hot. He says, "I love to write rhymes. I love to express what real (people) feel, what street (people) feel. They need to be heard. They need to know there is a voice that speaks for them, and I am that voice." DMX has defined himself as one of hip hop’s most exciting new voices. His solo album is a showcase for a cleverness and fierceness that puts him above the ranks of the hip-hop hordes.