He went on to executive produce DMX's first studio album, 1998's It's Dark and Hell Is Hot, and started the Murder Inc. Records label under Def Jam alongside his brother Chris Gotti that year.

Irv Gotti, the head of the Murder Inc. Records hip-hop label, helped shape the sound of American popular music in the early 2000s. Gotti passed away at the age of 54 on Feb. 5 after suffering a ...