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Why was DMX in Sum 41's 'Makes No Difference' video? As MV resurfaces, fans say it takes them ‘down rabbit hole’

The pop-punk band's frontman Deryck Whibley shared that, 'He (DMX) was doing a movie ('Exit Wounds') with Steven Seagal in Toronto. We were doing our video and someone said, ‘Would you like him to be in the video?''

In the wake of actor-rapper DMX's passing, celebrities have poured their heartbreak and condolences on social media, paying tributes and homages to the late musician who died on April 9, 2021. Among the slew of tributes, punk rock band Sum 41's bassist Cone McCaslin also shared a link to a song from the band, which soon caught attention for featuring DMX. For those unaware, the celebrated rapper had once even starred in a punk music video. Here's how all of that unfolded.

In his tweet offering condolences for DMX, McCaslin wrote "RIP DMX........ Sum 41 ft DMX (Makes No Difference) R.I.P" along with the link to the particular song that featured the rapper. Others too reminisced about the music video, "I love how DMX was filming Exit Wounds in Toronto and ended up in Sum 41’s first music video,” wrote journalist Marlow Stern of the Daily Beast. Stern also shared a clip of the music video for the song 'Makes No Difference' which was a single off of the band's first debut EP titled 'Half Hour of Power'. 

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DMX rides on an ATV in a Sum 41 music video

The music video sees Sum 41 perform at a house party, where riding around is DMX on an ATV. For those wondering how these two peak genres of music clashed in such an underrated cameo, the band's frontman Deryck Whibley once shared with MTV in a 2011 interview that, “He (DMX) was doing a movie ('Exit Wounds') with Steven Seagal in Toronto. We were doing our video and someone said, ‘Would you like him to be in the video?'”

Then-drummer Steve Jocz recounted that the experience was a treasured one. "He’s awesome, he’s really funny,” Jocz told the network. “We were all scared. It’s DMX! He’s a big dude. He was telling jokes and then we were taking pictures with him. We were all laughing at him because he was so funny. And he was like, ‘No laughing, no smiling,’ and we were like, ‘OK.'”

An avid fan of the rapper also replied to Stern's tweet with a link to a behind-the-scenes clip for the music video. Another user replied to the tweet writing, "I remember reading that he called up management and told them he wanted to be in a punk video. He and Sum 41 were on the same label and were making a video so the record company made it happen." Others, upon learning that it was DMX in that video, said the realization "put me down a rabbit hole." 

DMX's death from an alleged overdose

Rapper and actor Earl Simmons (best known as DMX) died in April 2021 after an apparent overdose left him battling for his life on life support at New York's White Plains Hospital. With just three albums in his 15-year-long career, the Grammy nominee was celebrated for his acting cameos on TV and for his work in direct-to-DVD films. Although a death hoax went around in the late hours of April 8, the rapper was reported dead by Def Jam Recordings, who said in a statement: “Earl was a warrior who fought till the very end. He loved his family with all of his heart, and we cherish the times we spent with him. DMX was nothing less than a giant. His legend will live on forever."

DMX is survived by 15 children, the youngest of whom was born in 2016.