Smoke DZA
Don't Smoke Rock
Release Date: Dec 2, 2016
Genre(s): Rap
Record label: iHipHop
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Album Review: Don't Smoke Rock by Smoke DZA
Great, Based on 4 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
Bringing a taste of the Golden Age into 2016, Pete Rock and Smoke DZA remind listeners that solid production and thoughtful, socially relevant rhymes are timeless on their collaborative effort, Don't Smoke Rock. Employing his trademark sample style, the legendary Rock weaves jazz and soul snippets throughout each track, as DZA and a stacked roster of guests take turns with bars reminiscent of the '90s, a time when there was more to mainstream hip-hop than mumbling. The results are refreshing, nostalgic, and extremely satisfying for fans of that period.
Based on rating 4.0/5
Pete Rock. The name and reputation carries a certain gravitas. The Soul Brother has been digging crates and riding the wheels of steel for damn near thirty years. Smoke DZA, on the other hand, has achieved reputable fame but is still angling for a better spot in the limelight. Together, the two ….
Based on rating 7.4/10
Don’t take your eyes off Pete Rock. The early-‘90s albums he produced with rapper CL Smooth still live in legend; recent reports suggest the New York duo are reuniting for their first new music since Nas dropped Illmatic. This pair, like their contemporaries A Tribe Called Quest, weren’t about to go back into the studio just because fans wanted them to.
Opinion: Excellent
Smoke DZA first met Pete Rock 12 years ago. At the time, the Harlem MC was an aspiring rapper in his early 20s. His first interactions with Rock were carrying his crates of vinyl records into clubs just so he could get inside. Things have changed drastically in the dozen years since those first meetings.
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