Snoop Dogg paid tribute to his beloved friend and fellow rapper DMX, who died Friday, while stopping by the Today show.
Fans praised the Verzuz battle between Snoop and X last July as one of the last celebrations of the Ruff Ryder’s music and legacy. The West Coast MC posted several snippets of their battle over the weekend to commemorate their camaraderie. “Love u brother. C u when I get there,” Snoop wrote underneath one of the videos, while captioning another, “What they thought was a battle ended up being a family reunion. Of 2 Doggs who loved everything about each other thank. U. X for loving me back.”
When talking with Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager after DMX’s death, the 49-year-old rapper touched on his friend’s higher calling. “I’d like to say that DMX was wanting to glorify his relationship with God, and he was always pushing the right thing, and he was always trying to help other people,” he told them in an interview snippet that was released Monday (April 12). “And that leads me to believe that’s why God chose His angel to come back home with him. He did his time out here. He did what he was supposed to do. He influenced, he inspired and he represented. So, DMX, his soul will live on and his music will live on, as well. We thank you, brother, for what you brought to us.”
Snoop also acknowledged X’s greater calling via Instagram on Monday when he shared a message that read, “DMX did NOT wait to be perfect for God to USE him. He taught people that u can be flawed and still be a vessel.” But he added in his new interview that Darkman’s messages translated best through genres of music outside of rap.
“He was funny. He loved old-school music. He loved old-school cars. And when I say he loved old-school music, he loved old-school music and gospel music, probably more than rap music. And that’s what people didn’t know,” he said. “But if you listen to him talk and you listen to what he testify and what he’s always giving up, it’s either that R&B or the gospel music that always pushed the message behind DMX.”
DMX (real name Earl Simmons) died Friday after suffering a heart attack triggered by a drug overdose. He was 50. The rapper had been on life support and was in a “vegetative state,” according to his former manager Nakia Walker, since last Sunday.
Snoop’s Today interview about DMX will air in full on Friday, April 16, exactly one week after his death. Watch a preview of it here.
