Rapper arrested for swearing
American rapper DMX was arrested today for swearing during a concert in St Kitts and Nevis, police said.
DMX – real name Earl Simmons – was released on bail until Monday, when he is due to appear at Basseterre Magistrates Court.
The rapper, who this year was nominated for a Grammy for best rap solo performance for Who We Be, was performing on Friday night before an enthusiastic crowd of about 3,000 at St Kitts’ annual music festival.
Organisers said they warned DMX he would not be allowed to use obscenities on stage, which is a crime in the former British colony of about 40,000 people.
His road manager, Ali Samii, said the rapper never agreed to tone down his language and that his fans would expect nothing less than his full performance.
A US court earlier this year ordered DMX to make public service announcements for the Humane Society after he pleaded guilty to animal cruelty, disorderly conduct and possession of drug paraphernalia. The Superior Court in New Jersey also fined him around £10,000.
That case started on June 28, 1999, when police allegedly found pipes for smoking crack cocaine, a 9-mm pistol with hollow-nosed bullets and 13 pit bulls at his home in Teaneck, New Jersey, where he lived with his wife and son, who was six at the time.
