Listen to DMX’s “Hood Blues” ft. Westside Gunn, Benny the Butcher, & Conway the Machine
Posthumous DMX album Exodus is out this Friday (5/28) and they’ve just shared a track from it — “Hood Blues,” which features Griselda’s Westside Gunn, Benny the Butcher, and Conway the Machine. Co-produced by Avenue Beatz and Swizz Beatz, the track is based around a sample of Lee Mason & His Orchestra’s “Shady Blues.” Listen to “Hood Blues” below.
Exodus also features Bono, Usher, Alicia Keys, Lil Wayne, Snoop Dogg, and the late Pop Smoke. Swizz Beats talked to Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 today about Exodus, DMX’s legacy, and the features on the album. “The only tribute was the Moneybagg track. Everything else X was present and happy for. We had the conversation, and I told him, I said, yo, I know you don’t like a lot of features, but I think it’s time that people should see that other people love you as well and you’re respected by serious, serious artists. Although you’re humble, although you don’t really have features, let’s have fun with it, come out the gate. Then the next album, we can get back to how you want to do it, but let’s have some fun. Let’s give them something they can’t expect. They’re not expecting you and Bono. They’re not expecting you and Alicia. They’re not expecting you and Griselda. They’re not expecting you, Jay, and Nas on one track. You know what I’m saying? They never expected an Usher with letter to my son, call your father, you know? He just loved the idea of it, but he was a little sneaky about it because in his mind, he loved that those people was, he was able to work with them. On the other hand, he figured out it was less work for him. He really loved it. He was like, oh, I only got to do three verses? Okay, tell Lil’ Wayne let’s go. So that was the good, the good part, man.”
DMX died on April 9 at age 50.