The world received word that Earl “DMX” Simmons passed away and it hurt. The Gen X and Millennial generations felt a pain that could only be soothed by the sound of his voice, so they turned to his music.

If you grew up in Philadelphia during the years of the “Greek Picnic” you’re not a stranger to the ‘Ruff Ryders Anthem”. It was released in 1998 but has the same relevance today. “Stop, Drop, Shut em’ down, open up shop. Oh No” …… that’s all it took – that’s all it takes.

Throughout the years DMX gave the world multiple hits, his raspy voice and signature growl spoke of the demons he battled, demons that ultimately became too much for him to overcome: it hurts because we witnessed the struggle from the sidelines and prayed for him to win.

We’ve been in this space before, the area of losing greatness to battles against addiction – some we watched unravel, some suffered in silence, each one stung.

When Whitney Houston passed away I questioned how many of us have relatives in the midst of the struggle that we’ve turned a deaf ear to. When her daughter Bobbi Kristina died I asked how many times are we going to post “RIP” without acknowledging addiction is real.

Gerald Levert, Michael Jackson, Prince, Rick James, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, etc .. etc .. we’re continually being robbed of talents the world benefitted from – and then there’s those without name recognition.

We have to stop viewing addiction as a choice and start treating it like an illness! Until we do this families will continue to lose a link, RIP will continue to trend on social media, and we’ll continue to feel the hurt caused by the loss of sons and daughters, known and unknown.

I took time off to grieve the loss of an icon. For solace I went to “Lord Give Me A Sign” – in the words of DMX, “I really need ta’ talk to you Lord – Since the last time we talked, the walk has been hard
Now I know you haven’t left me, but I feel like I’m alone” …..