The song, released by Def Jam Recordings, features Benny the Butcher alongside brothers Conway the Machine and Westside Gunn.
DMX's posthumous album, Exodus, is out this Friday, and fans got a taste of what's to come with a fresh single release.
On Wednesday, Def Jam Recordings dropped the song 'Hood Blues,' co-produced by Avenue Beatz and Swizz Beatz. The song features DMX alongside Griselda rappers Westside Gunn, Benny the Butcher, and Conway the Machine. The Mount Vernon-born rapper's verses recall the trauma of growing up in the hood and include some of his classic ad-libs and growls.
"I grew up at the dark side, apartheid / Where goin' against the grain will get you kidnapped and hogtied," DMX raps on the track. He later adds, "Do damage 'cause I’m a savage. Sometimes I can't manage all the sh*t in my attic / I was promised the world but I got the dirt instead / It's just life, I was bred to shed blood."
Exodus comes nearly two months after DMX, born Earl Simmons, suffered a heart attack that left him on life support in the hospital in White Plains, New York, for a week before his eventual death on April 9, at the age of 50. The album, which shares its name with the youngest of DMX's 15 children, Exodus Simmons, and was produced by Beatz, is said to predominantly feature "themes of redemption."
Beatz recently paid tribute to the late rapper when he took the stage at the 2021 Billboard Music Awards to present the award for Top Rap Song.
"This year in hip-hop has been really hard," Beatz reflected. "We lost so many amazing souls. We would like to honor their lives, and I would like to honor my brother, DMX, the great."
"He made music with raw passion. He spoke to the streets, he spoke to the world. He prayed for others before he could pray for himself. He loved others before he would love himself. His music is iconic magic to the world. His legacy will forever be remembered."
Exodus will be released on Friday, May 28.
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