It was ten years ago today that I bought DMX's first album "Its Dark & Hell Is Hot." I was in the 6th or 7th grade at the time and me and my friends were stuck on stupid for this album. The influence and impact that X has had on Hip Hop music was insane. Def Jam won over the game with not only help from Dog himself, but from everyone a part of this classic project we all have come to know. From the phenomenal production of Dame Grease, P.Killer Trackz, Young Lord, Lil' Rob & Irv Gotti, to the art direction by hip hop's elite photographer Jonathan Mannion. All the pieces came together to make a perfect fit. It was this album that ended Puffy's shiny suit run and the annoying sound of bubble gum hip pop music. This is the album that saved my life and made me want to actually pursue a career in music. The depth of each song gave real meaning to what music should of stood for. It took the commercialism out of Hip Hop for a moment and gave fans a real reason to respect the actual art form.
[Featured Artists:] From Left 2 Right:
-THE LOX
-KASINO
-BIG STAN
-DRAG-ON
-LOOSE CANNON
-MASE MURDER
THE PLAYERS
DEE & WAAH started Ruff Ryders as a management company in the Late 80's. The two brothers managed local acts through out their neighborhood before stumbling onto a couple of acts that would change their management company to a label, and later on, a movement. Dee & Waah discovered acts such as Harlem rapper at the time, Mase, who were then known as Murder Mase. They also managed to get their group at the time "The Warlocks", who later changed their name to The Lox and signed with Puffy as a trio under his Bad Boy imprint. It was until the brothers discovered a hardcore emcee by the name of Dark Man X in Yonkers and was able to get him a deal with Def Jam to upstart their own label Ruff Ryders Entertainment.
DAME GREASE came into this project while being managed by Dean Brothers Dee & Waah at the time when Ruff Ryders were just a management company. Holding down more than his share of tracks, he gave this album a tuning that would make the industry bow to his presence and take notice of the heat he really had to offer. Vacant Lot is more than just a sound, and Grease proved with his gritty production that he could definitely change the course of history alongside X by being the belt of this classic LP. From bangers such as "GET AT ME DOG", "LET ME FLY" (Grease/Young Lord), "ATF", "FOR MY DOGS" and the notorious underground classic "Niggas Don Started Somethin'" featuring The Lox & Mase, Grease took everyone along for a ride and showed niggas how this was really suppose to be done.
IRV GOTTI was the A&R ear at Def Jam who scouted and found X after getting much word about him through brothers Dee & Waah in Yonkers. Gaining a hand in Executive Producing the project with the Dean brothers, Gotti & Lil' Rob (Top Dawg Productions) opened up the album with a classic intro that would never be forgotten. It was Irv's hungry street mentality that gave this project a boost from the corporate end of the table. He was able to construct and orchestrate the perfect album with the help of everyone else around him. As much impact the intro had on this album, it was "Crime Story" produced by both Irv & Lil' Rob that got much recognition. 
P.Killer was one of the producers who helped croon this album to the classic it came to be. Holding down songs like "Fuckin' Wit' D", "Stop Being Greedy","X is Coming", and the single "How It's Going Down", PK brought just as much heat to show that he meant serious business behind the boards. My favorite cut from PK off the album had to be "Look Through My Eyes" with back up production by Grease. On the title track, X was able to air out his emotions where he battled with inner demons.
SWIZZ BEATZ, younger nephew of the Deans were just coming out of High School at the time, but were able to make the album just in time to give X a hit that would have everyone from Baltimore to New York chanting "THATS HOW RUFF RYDERS ROLL". Swizz orchestrated "RUFF RYDERS ANTHEM" for X although the dog wasn't too happy about recording to the beat. Swizz's style of production evened out the gritty sound and gave some originality to X's album. Ruff Ryders Anthem put Swizz on the map giving him the opportunity to expand his horizon to later work with big acts such as Jay-Z, The Lox, Mya and many others. He served as an inhouse producer for Ruff Ryders until he later on branched off and started his Full Surface imprint with J Records. Swizz's simple melody was enough to give everyone a reason to jump on the Ruff Ryder bandwagon.In closing, I love everything about this album. It gave hip hop a voice again when we were all lost to the antics of shiny suits and poppy 80's sample records. DMX and the team responsible for this album not only inspired me, but inspired a generation who would take notice of how real music could be again. Because of this album, I was able to attain an internship working for Grease himself after I graduated High School and learn everything I could about the game itself. Fuck the critics, Its Dark & Hell Is Hot is a true Hip Hop Classic Album with over 20 million records sold to date and counting.
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