Ten questions for DMX as he considers fighting George Zimmerman - Los Angeles Times
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Ten questions for DMX as he considers fighting George Zimmerman

DMX performs during the first day of Rock the Bells Festival at the San Bernadino Nos Events Center.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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On what would have been Trayvon Martin’s 19th birthday, news surfaced that the man acquitted of murdering the unarmed teenager would go toe-to-toe in a “celebrity†boxing match with DMX.

The rapper was reportedly picked out of more than 15,000 applicants after Zimmerman issued the open challenge to fight anyone willing to take him on (the Game was apparently rejected).

While nothing about this story makes logical sense, it’s another low in what’s been a spectacular nosedive for DMX’s career.

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Over a decade ago, the Yonkers-bred emcee was an untouchable force on the charts. But in recent years his legal battles have surpassed his hits. His rap sheet is a doozy, with everything from possession of cocaine to criminal impersonation to theft dotting his record.

As DMX continued to unravel, he’s tried to find some redemption. He tried to pull his act together on a 2006 reality show, appeared on VH1’s “Couples Therapy†in 2012 and sought counsel on life coach Iyanla Vanzant’s series on OWN in 2013 (most of the episode featured him shouting expletives at Vanzant).

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While the deal to fight Zimmerman remains in negotiations, DMX has made hideously ignorant statements such as he wants to do this for “every black person who has been done wrong in the system†and that he plans on urinating in Zimmerman’s face after beating him.

It’s pretty much the saddest news you’ll hear all week, and while TMZ covers this train wreck as if it’s the story of the year, we have a few questions for DMX.

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(Actually quite a few.)

1. Why?

2. How much are they paying you? Never mind, you can’t be this hard up for money -- can you just say no? Is it too late?

3. We’ll ask again: Why? Has anyone on your team mentioned how much of a mockery you’re making of Martin’s death by engaging in this spectacle?

4. What, exactly, do you hope this fight will accomplish?

5. Where were you in the aftermath of Martin’s shooting and during the trial, when your peers in the music industry were showing up to rallies and writing lyrics in protest?

6. Have you thought about the additional layer of grief this adds to Trayvon’s family and friends, considering this mess has unfolded on his birthday?

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7. How does this benefit you in any way other than financially?

8. Seriously, dude, why?

9. Can’t you just box an actual celebrity instead? Like maybe Justin Bieber or Chris Brown? At least then we could maybe have a little fun in the process.

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10. You don’t really expect us to buy your next album do you?

We could go on, but this writer is now feeling as sad as this news.

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