Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood

For DMX's second album of 1998, Jonathan Mannion prepared 50 gallons of fake blood, mixed to have what he called "nice viscosity." The label gave him free rein and warned him he would be taking chances, agreeing to the risky idea as long as DMX was willing to go along with it.

DMX was reluctant at first and worried about ruining his pants. Mannion told him, "I've never steered you wrong, man," then offered to shoot in his own boxer shorts and dropped his trousers in front of the whole studio. DMX agreed, and the finished cover shows him rising from the blood, arms outstretched, his body soaked red against a stark white background.

Mannion knew exactly what the image would do. "That shock value. You want to look away, but you can't," he said. Art direction and design were by The Drawing Board, with artwork by Estos and Sleep of the Ruff Ryders Art Department. The album was released on 22 December 1998.