Losing DMX this past spring was absolutely devastating to hip-hop. One of the many ways fans and peers paid tribute was through storytelling. DMX was always the most effervescent character in his stories—it was a Ruff Ryder’s [Role], indeed. On Sunday, The Root was OUTSIDE at the BET Awards 2021 red carpet. We chatted with folks like Ashanti, Rapsody, Eva Marcille, Ms. Pat, Coi Leray, Moneybagg Yo, Sevyn Streeter and more about their fondest memories of DMX. “Fondest memories” can mean anything from actually meeting and chopping it up with him in real life to listening to his songs, which had an impact on their own personal lives. “We took a flight to Africa together,” Ashanti recalled. “We had a show and after the flight, he grabbed my hand and he said ‘Come on, let’s pray!’ My team and his team stood in the airport and he said this soulful prayer that was so touching and so moving, I was like, “Oh my gosh!’ I was so happy to have witnessed that.” Moneybagg Yo brought up the hugely viral video of DMX performing at Woodstock 99 High Def, where we could see a ginormous crowd going up for the rapper—he truly had a hold over the crowd, and Moneybagg Yo could definitely appreciate and respect that. “I probably conceived (a child) to one of his songs,” Ms. Pat (The Ms. Pat Show) said, which had me cracking up, but also like, “girl, you right!” “When I heard him do a Christmas song in the only way DMX can do it,” Eva Marcille noted, referencing his beloved “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer” remix. “I remember listening to that and I was like, ‘This man is definitely different.’ He’s always been stylized and a man of his own.” To be honest, it should be a part of global Christmas traditions! Rest in power, Dark Man X. We’ll always shine a light for you.