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Earl Simmons, known to the world by his stage name as the legendary rapper DMX, had a wildly successful career. He was one of the most celebrated and highly respected hip hop artists in the 90s hip hop scene, and turned the heads of millions with his Ruff Ryders Anthem. His roots are in New York, but his name forever lives on the global scale of fame. His immense popularity in the late 90s was astounding, and he amassed a huge fortune, as a result.
However, Money Inc. reports that DMX began to self destruct., and was unable to hold or save his multi-million dollar fortune. He fathered many children and child support payments began to add up. A series of challenges soon followed, which proved to set him back in ways that he was unable to dig out of. Here's the story of DMX's financial journey from wealth to financial woes.
The Successful Days
DMX is a huge hip hop star, and a legendary one at that. Nobody can strip him of his talent or his wildly successful career in the world of music. In spite of facing severe financial crisis, he remains one of the most iconic contributors in the world of hip hop, and his music is engrained in the very culture of hip hop music.
His debut album It's Dark and Hell Is Hot led to the sale of over 251,000 copies in the first week alone. Today, there have been well over 5 million copies of this album that have been sold, and Meaww reports that he went on to release a total of 7 studio albums which "sold more than 70 million copies worldwide."
He has 3 Grammy Awards under his belt, and is also an AMA winner. DMX has even appeared on the big screen, with huge success. DMX has made millions upon millions of dollars.
Earning money wasn't his problem.
Spending money, was.
Issues With Addiction & Child Support
DMX came from a very troubled past. His childhood was a tumultuous one that included a deep and unfortunate history of family violence. As a teen, he turned to substance abuse as a coping mechanism and unfortunately, this habit followed him well into his adult years.
Spending a lot of money on his addiction, and becoming a slave to the side effects and the downfall, DMX's life soon began to spiral out of control. His rise to fame was quickly stifled by his inebriated state and his unwillingness and inability to put his focus on financial and career growth.
He fathered 15 children with a variety of different women, each of which relied upon him for child support payments. In spite of making a huge amount of money on music sales alone, it just wasn't enough to maintain his lifestyle, and keep all the mothers of all his children financially satisfied. He also owed money to a variety of different creditors, each of which was eager for settlement or repayment. The bills quickly piled up, and DMX opted not to deal with his finances professionally.
Tax Evasion & Legal Trouble
Soon enough, the tax man came knocking, and DMX didn't have his finances in order. He had fallen behind in his child support payments and was said to have had $1.24 million in child support that was in arrears.
DMX filed for bankruptcy protection in 2013 and Money Inc. reports his assets were only estimated to be roughly $50,000, with a possible $1-$10 million in debt remaining under his name.
He was charged with 14 counts of tax evasion in 2017 and spent an entire year behind bars. January of 2019 saw his release, and the amount of his IRS arrears had soared to $2.3 million.
DMX's legal woes didn't end there. The artist has also gone on to serve sentences for a variety of charges including weapons and reckless driving.
Forgiveness
DMX has seen payback forgiveness through filing for bankruptcy, and by the gracious dismissal of $12 million by Jay Z. In the mid 2000s, DMX left Def Jam Recordings, and Jay Z turned a blind eye to $12 million worth of unpaid debt.
However it does not seem as though DMX has been able to get on top of the situation at hand. Distractify reports that sources; "debate how far in the hole DMX really is, but agree that it’s into the millions. DMX’s estimated net worth is at -$1 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. But other sources like Money Inc. and Kingged report that it's actually up (or down, really) to -$10 million."
Sources: Money Inc, Distractify, Meaww