HBO boxing music films usually begin with a brief statement from the director. For “Don’t Try to Understanding,” Christopher Freeson suggests. That “many people never see the real man behind the headlines” when it comes to DMX. Yonkers, a New York-born rapper and actor, has a loud, sometimes vicious presence at the microphone. Which is known for his rough handshakes and rhymes that bleed with intensity.
But offstage and off-music videos, DMX’s drug problems, lawlessness and conflicts. With his ex-wife and children are also often in the spotlight. Understanding begins on January 25, 2019, when his entourage greets DMX upon release from federal prison. (Simmons had already served 12 months of tax evasion.) Plans were in place for the tour, although the Early Release Council had set some parameters and the rapper met with Def Jam Records to sign a new record deal. Exodus, DMX’s three-year-old son with fiancé Desiree Lindstrom, is almost always present.
Paul Rosenberg, CEO of Def Jam, calls DMX a “legacy executor”:
Who best represents what the label is actually trying to do. And also when the show first appeared on the “It’s Dark & Hell Is Hot” tour, it’s clear X still has a touch. “I’m serious when I’m here,” he said to the screaming and adoring crowd. And everyone got their X’s as they shouted every verse of the lyrics. Edits keep popping up moments from archival footage filling DMX history with excerpts from historical records.
These days you think about where he is (the scene from the street party at Yonkers is full of tears, encouragement, and nostalgia) and where he’s gone. Do you love me or want to get something from me? DMX’s disgusting talk about the music industry/celebrity drainage. And the times when everything went wrong (he’s never seen anything quite as beautiful as Arizona, in God’s land”). Celebrities from the hip hop world perform all the time, including Jay-Z’s Flavor Flav, Chuck D, Juvenile and Ye.
In Don’t Try to Understanding, DMX is portrayed as an individual. Whose passion for performing is only combined with his tendency to self-destruct. When a drug relapse stops the film, frustrated directors become characters in their own stories. His recovery, reappearance, and eventual reconciliation with his estranged son intimate Understanding and the reality of DMX’s final death.
The Vérité style direction captures DMX in many dimensions. He’s a solid performative presence and a loving father to a young child.
He’s the guy from the shooting pool at his favourite Yonkers tavern. And in the flashy segment right after his exit, he’s the one to spend the same amount of money. Time to read in “Novel Hood”, “Daniel Steele’s Bet”, and the Bible. “I can’t get much out of it…”
“I’m speechless,” DMX told a young rapper at an upcoming show while hanging out at Yonkers.
“I mean, what did I say?” And that’s always been the rapper’s calling card. Militant, Bragging and Arrogance? Safe. But also connections to its audience and employees, who are often peerless. He has been referred to as a “prophet” by longtime fans. By reflecting the evangelical spirit that X brings to his live broadcasts. And while Don’t Try to Understanding isn’t a direct demonstration of that enthusiasm in person. The recordings found here appear in fragments or as part of archival returns. The documents make a real connection between DMX in the album and the concert with the Earl of Yonkers. The man who knows more than many people that God will never lift you if you don’t fall.
The moments DMX he is shared with his young Exodus. It became clear that he was trying to remodel fatherhood a bit. Xavier, his eldest son, calls his Life a “six year old tabloid”. And Understanding features memorable footage of the family’s controversial confrontation. With the missing DMX in the 2013 episode of Iyanla: Fix My Life. His family, however, argued for the more significant pain behind the drugs and the causes of chronic addiction. Still, this reconciliation has been bombarded with melancholy. Not only because it comes from DMX after relapse and disappears again, but also because audiences see grief future. The Years Doesn’t Try to Understand Life format is more vital than our knowledge. That the DMX years are allowed to return professionally. And personal safety has reached its limit.
DMX: Don’t Try to Understand, with similar notes of resilience, chronic self-destruction, extraordinary talent. And troubled personal life, offers a compelling portrait of a rapper who left too early.