Don't Smoke Rock, Pt. III: Smoke DZA + Pete Rock Reintroduce That Cocaine Era Hip-Hop

Don’t Smoke Rock, the new album from Smoke DZA and Pete Rock, embodies the spirit of old Harlem, that pre-gentrified Harlem. Featuring guest appearances from artists such as Cam’ron, Dave East, Royce Da 5’9", Rick Ross and others — Don't Smoke Rock also reintroduces the world to PR's voice as they may not be familiar with the Soul Brother #1's mic skills.

“It’s a vibe. It’s a painting. It’s a moment,” Smoke DZA says of the recently released project. “Something that comes around once in a while.” The album personifies New York’s gritty hip-hop and soul by bringing together two artists who have an everlasting mutual adulation for one another.

Okayplayer talked with Pete Rock and Smoke DZA about Don’t Smoke Rock, out today (December 2nd) on Babygrande Records.

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Okayplayer: Pete, why was now the time to reintroduce your voice and to return to rapping?

Pete Rock: I don't know... I just feel like we wanna give it to the fans that miss it. No real issue with it [rapping], but we just wanna give back what's been missing. What we feel should be in the mix of the new stuff and amongst the younger generation.

OKP: DZA, how did working with Pete Rock inspire you on Don't Smoke Rock...?

Smoke DZA: Well, shit... Pete Rock, man. He's top five greatest producers of all time.

PR: Thank you, sir.

SD: That's inspirational within itself... So, just being able to prove myself to Pete was just — it was better than proving myself to any hip-hop fan. No disrespect to the hip-hop fans, but this is Pete Rock.

OKP: Pete, same question... How has working with Smoke DZA inspired you?

PR: He didn't really have to prove himself to me because he was already buzzing on the streets and I was hearing his name out there. I just never got a chance to listen to his music. And one day I did and then we had a friendship for a while through someone I was working with. We had met and became really cool. And, y'know, it is easy when you can rap. For me, it's like if you can rhyme, you can be my friend.

OKP: How did you guys meet?

SD: We met fucking years ago [when] I used to carry Pete's crates to get in the club, man [laughs].

PR: Exactly [laughs].

SD: We met before Harlem got gentrified.

OKP: "It's a vibe. It's a painting. It's a moment," you say, Smoke. Can you explain how this project symbolizes these three things for you?

SD: I feel like [this album] is a painting that a lot of people haven't seen in a while. It is a vibe that a lot of people haven't had in a while. And it is a moment that people haven't had in a while. It's all of the three. I think it is probably the best work [that] I've ever done as a lyrical artist and the best production I've ever had.

Like I've never endured something like what I got—even when it came to the features. It was the first time where I went nine for 10 on the features that I wanted. You know what I mean?! It wasn't something where I'm like, 'Damn, I wish I would've had this dude on this,' because I actually got it. So, it is kind of hard moving forward after I scored on what I really wanted to do.

Of course, you know [there's] more shit that I wanna do and more artists that I respect and have friendships with that I'd like to have on this album, but we have a UNIW 2 coming soon. Sheesh, the lineup on this [album]... this is a dream project.

OKP: The press release states that this album represents a “pre-gentrified” Harlem. What does that sound like?

SD: Well, that sounds like...

PR: Soul.

SD: It sounds like soul, you know what I mean? You can't even really describe the sound other than saying "soul". That's just where it comes from. That is the type of music [that] I love. That's what I grew up hearing my father play. His 45s and vinyl of Marvin [Gaye], Al Green and Otis Redding. That was the vibe that I had in my household when I was a child. So, you know that is kind of embedded within me. Making this type of project with the Soul Brother #1 is like you can't go wrong.

OKP: How do you think you managed to capture that sound? That feeling?

PR: I guess just like knowing what Harlem looks like and riding through the town... the blackness of it. What it was from the '70s to the '80s to now. It was a dramatic change, y'know? Because Harlem actually used to be way more dangerous. And you see all kinds of people living there now, so... it's a good thing. I captured those times in this album—when hip-hop clubs were first starting.

In the '80s, you had these hip-hop clubs like Club 2000, The Rooftop, Latin Quarter and The Fever. All of these places that hip-hop dwelled in—they're landmarks and they're legendary. It is history and that is kind of what I see and capture as I'm making beats or listening to the music that I make that I think Smoke would sound good on. Being that he's from Harlem, I felt [it] was easy for me because I hung out in Harlem a lot. Like a lot, a lot.

OKP: Is there a war between the old and the new players in hip-hop? Or is it more of a collaborative effort between the two?

PR: Media can make anything possible, but it's never [been] a war. Sometimes we have [different] opinions about music. Y'know, we kinda criticize the younger generation with their music. It [the music] has changed and we weren't ready for the change. But you know what? I feel now that I'm in it, y'know? I like it because I love music and I'm [just] as passionate about music and production and beats [as I was when I first started].

I just want to melt [my style] with the young generation and let the world know that in hip-hop there's more to be heard... and to never say something is "old school." You can call it "old school," but music is music and it should all be heard and appreciated. Smoke has had a nice period that he's been working from and I've been around for years. So, you know, he's experienced in one way and I'm experienced in another and we just combine.

I immediately wanted to work with Smoke after hearing his music, so I was excited to do it. I just knew it would be something.

OKP: DZA, you said as “diehard” New Yorkers it was important for you to make a record that “embraces what New York feels like.” How did you turn that into a sound?

SD: I don't think you can make "what New York feels like" into a sound. I think you just gotta embody that. Like me and Pete embody New York city. There's a lot of music [out] here and there are a lot of people from New York who make different types of music, which isn't a bad thing because people are inspired by different ages of hip-hop, y'know? I'm an older guy. I am 32, so I come from the era of Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, Biggie Smalls, Jay Z, DMX, The LOX and Wu-Tang.

That's what I care to carry [on]. Those are the guys that I watched at the forefront, so it is easy for me to embody that because I actually still live in New York. I still run around and do everything I do in New York, but I travel the world so I'm taking my experiences from New York [around the globe]. I'm not just giving it to New York because this ain't just for New York. This is for the world. I want the world to know what New York sounds like.

You can't tell them what it sounds like... you gotta give it to them. I think after they hear Don' Smoke Rock it'll be like, 'Well, this is what New York sounds like [and] this is what we need to keep up with.'

OKP: You have a pretty impressive list of features on this album. Can you kind of explain why chose the rappers you did for the particular songs?

SD: I respect every artist that is on this album. We have relationships with all these people, so it really wasn't something that was like farfetched. It was just basically putting together the best body of work with who we felt could rap on these records. And, as you see, there aren't too many New York people on the album. We just wanted to make [Don't Smoke Rock] a great project.

It didn't really matter where you were from—you just had to be able to rap. It was about rappers. This is a rapper's album. If you're looking for singles and all that type of shit then this ain't it. This is the shit that you'll listen to when you wanna think or when you wanna vibe. When you gotta good little car ride or whatever and you need a soundtrack—this is what Don't Smoke Rock is. This is a moment.

This ain't something that can be un-organically created. This is that real shit.

PR: I feel the same. [Don't Smoke Rock] is the kind of album that you can just vibe out to from A-to-Z. It is one of those things where on a nice day, you can pop it in and feel good about yourself listening to it.

OKP: What do you want fans to get out of this project? What’s the takeaway?

SD: That lyrics still matter...

PR: ...and beats still matter.

SD: That you don't really gotta force shit down people's throats for them to understand it...

PR: The big takeaway is knowledge. Lyrics. People saying something actually. Something that my child can learn from even if there's cursing. Because eventually your child's gonna grow up and curse anyway. We all do it here and there. But, y'know, something that people can understand lyrically and musically. Don't Smoke Rock is just about making something that's good for your soul. Something that makes you feel nice and warm.

Don't Smoke Rock is available for purchase on iTunes, Amazon and other digital marketplaces. If you want to get a taste before copping, please press play on the album's stream below. Also, don't forget to read parts one and two of our interviews with these two New York giants here and here.

Layne Weiss is a Los Angeles-based author whose work has appeared in a number of publications including LA Weekly, Paper Mag, Wax Poetics and Mass Appeal. You can follow her (and us!) latest and greatest on Twitter @lawflylikepaper.