''Don't Smoke Rock'' is the first collaborative

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by rapper

Smoke DZA Sean Joseph Pompey (born February 8, 1984), better known by his stage name Smoke DZA, is an American rapper and songwriter. Biography 1984–2007: Early life and career beginnings Smoke DZA was born February 8, 1984, at Harlem Hospital in ...

and producer

Pete Rock Peter O. Phillips (born June 21, 1970), better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapping, rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned along ...

. It was released on December 2, 2016, by

Babygrande Records Babygrande Records is an American independent record label based in New York City, founded by Chuck Wilson. Babygrande is distributed by The Orchard and represented by the Creative Artists Agency in Hollywood. History Babygrande Records wa ...

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

and The Orchard. The album features

guest appearance The term guest appearance generally denotes the appearance of a guest in an artistic or pop-culture setting. The guests themselves (referred to as guest artists, featured artists, guest stars, or guest fighters, depending on context), are disting ...

s from

Dave East David Lawrence Brewster Jr. (born June 3, 1988), known professionally as Dave East, is an American rapper. East began his career in 2010, and gained attention in 2014 for his eighth mixtape, ''Black Rose''. Its release caught the attention of fe ...

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. An influential figure in modern Hip-hop, hip hop music, Rick Ross has become known for his "Wiktionary:booming, booming" vocal perfor ...

Royce da 5'9" Ryan Daniel Montgomery (born July 5, 1977), known professionally as Royce da 5'9" (or simply Royce 5'9"), is an American rapper. Best known for his association with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, they became acquainted in 1997 and formed the hi ...

Cam'ron Cameron Ezike Giles (born February 4, 1976), known Mononym, mononymously as Cam'ron, is an American rapper. Beginning his career in the early 1990s as Killa Cam, Giles signed with Lance Rivera, Lance "Un" Rivera's Lance Rivera, Untertainment, a ...

, NymLo,

BJ the Chicago Kid Bryan James Sledge (born November 23, 1984), better known by his stage name BJ the Chicago Kid (or simply BJ), is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, Sledge is best known for frequently collaborating with Top ...

Jadakiss Jason Terrance Phillips (born May 27, 1975), better known by his stage name Jadakiss (, ), is an American rapper who began his career in the 1990s and formed the hip hop trio the Lox alongside Styles P and Sheek Louch in 1994. The group signed w ...

Styles P David R. Styles (born November 28, 1974), better known by his stage name Styles P (also known Mononymous person, mononymously as Styles), is an American rapper, best known as a member of East Coast hip hop group the Lox. Formed with fellow rappe ...

Wale Wale or WALE may refer to: Places * Wale, Devon, a hamlet in England * Wale, Tomaszów Mazowiecki County, a village in Poland People * Wale (surname) *Wale (rapper), stage name of American rapper Olubowale Victor Akintimehin Radio and televisi ...

Big K.R.I.T. Justin Lewis Scott (born August 26, 1986), known professionally as Big K.R.I.T. (a backronym for King Remembered in Time), is an American rapper and record producer. Born in Meridian, Mississippi, he began his musical career in 2005. He was sign ...

Dom Kennedy Dominic Ross Hunn (born August 22, 1984), better known by his stage name Dom Kennedy, is an American rapper. His fourth mixtape, ''From the Westside with Love'' (2010), was met with critical acclaim; its sequel, '' From the Westside with Love II' ...

, theMIND and

Mac Miller Malcolm James McCormick (January 19, 1992 – September 7, 2018), known by the stage name Mac Miller, was an American rapper. He began his career in Pittsburgh's local hip hop music, hip hop scene in 2007, at the age of 15. In 2010, he signed ...

Critical reception

Bringing a taste of the

Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during wh ...

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 Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

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. Released in the same year that saw the return of

De La Soul De La Soul ( ) is an American hip hop music, hip hop group formed in the village of Amityville on Long Island, New York (state), New York in 1988. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, eccentric lyrics, and contributions to the evoluti ...

The LOX The Lox (stylized The LOX or The L.O.X.) is an American hip hop trio composed of East Coast rappers Sheek Louch, Styles P and Jadakiss. Each hailing from Yonkers, New York, the group formed in 1994 and signed with Puff Daddy's Bad Boy Reco ...

and

A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest was an American Hip hop music, hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985,Q-Tip< ...

, ''Don't Smoke Rock'' serves as another link between eras: paying respects to

old-school hip-hop Old-school hip hop (also spelled old skool) (also known as disco-rap) is the earliest commercially recorded hip hop music and the original style of the genre. It typically refers to the music created around 1979 to 1983, as well as any hip hop t ...

legacy with updated perspectives and production quality. In case their intent was unclear, DZA even introduces the LP reminiscing about a pre-gentrification "old Harlem" on ''"Intro"'' and later pining for the good old days on the creeping

Cam'Ron Cameron Ezike Giles (born February 4, 1976), known Mononym, mononymously as Cam'ron, is an American rapper. Beginning his career in the early 1990s as Killa Cam, Giles signed with Lance Rivera, Lance "Un" Rivera's Lance Rivera, Untertainment, a ...

& Nymlo track ''"Moving Weight, Pt. 1."'' Rock's samples range from dramatic strings (''"Wild 100s"''), haunting hypnotic loops (the monstrous

track ''"Show Off"''), and booming horns (the Dave East joint ''"Limitless"'') to inspired comedic bits from

Bernie Mac Bernard Jeffrey McCullough (October 5, 1957 – August 9, 2008), better known by his stage name Bernie Mac, was an American stand up comedian, actor and film producer. He joined fellow comedians Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, and D. L. H ...

(''"I Ain't Scared"'') and

Chris Tucker Christopher Tucker (born August 31, 1971) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. Tucker made his debut in 1992 as a stand-up performer on the HBO comedy series '' Def Comedy Jam'', where he frequently appeared on the show during the 1990 ...

(''"Until Then"''). Highlights are numerous. On ''"Black Superhero Car"'', DZA and

trade verses over a throwback sample that sounds like early-era Pete Rock-disciple

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...

Royce Da 5'9" Ryan Daniel Montgomery (born July 5, 1977), known professionally as Royce da 5'9" (or simply Royce 5'9"), is an American rapper. Best known for his association with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, they became acquainted in 1997 and formed the hi ...

contributes to the plaintive, aptly titled piano-looper ''"Hold The Drums"'', and an all-star cast of

BJ The Chicago Kid Bryan James Sledge (born November 23, 1984), better known by his stage name BJ the Chicago Kid (or simply BJ), is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, Sledge is best known for frequently collaborating with Top ...

, and

descend upon ''"Milestone"''. The 13-track time machine does not relent or disappoint, making ''Don't Smoke Rock'' a standout for hip-hop fans in need of quality nourishment.

Track listing

All tracks produced by

Personnel

*Olubowale Akintimehin - composer *Owen Biddle - bass *Big K.R.I.T. - featured artist *BJ The Chicago Kid - featured artist *Paul Bloom - keyboards *Dave Brewster - composer *Cam'Ron - featured artist *Shonka Dukurah - vocals *Alan M. Duval - photography *Dave East - featured artist *Jeremy Gerson - product manager *Dan "The Man" Humiston - mixing *Jadakiss - featured artist *Daru Jones - drums, music direction *Dom Kennedy - featured artist *Marcus Machado - guitar *Malcolm McCormick - composer, featured artist *Raul Montgomery - composer *John Spark Moriau - mastering *Eileen Moudou - violin *Brandon Newsome - percussion, vocals *Nymlo - featured artist *Pete Phillips - composer, executive producer, primary artist, producer *Marion "OJ" Ross - horn *Rick Ross - composer, featured artist *Royce Da 5'9" - featured artist *TaVon Sampson - artwork *Randy Singleton - photography *Smoke DZA - executive producer, primary artist *Styles P - featured artist *theMIND - featured artist *Aristotle Torres - art direction *Wale - featured artist *Preston West - A&R * Chuck Wilson - Executive Producer

References

{{Authority control 2016 albums Pete Rock albums Smoke DZA albums Albums produced by Pete Rock