Smoke DZA
Hip Hop is just a hobby for some but for Smoke DZA, it is a way of life Born and raised in Harlem, NY, DZA (real name Sean Pompey) wasraised surrounded by music, though it wasn’t necessarily hip hop, “My first exposure to music was through my Dad.” He reflects, “He played hisoldies every weekend and still does up to this day.” DZA was introduced to and fell in love with hip hop at a young age and began a journey thatwould lead him from dropping out of high school to being one of the hottest, most sought after unsigned rappers in the game today. “I was waytoo popular in high school, ...read more
Hip Hop is just a hobby for some but for Smoke DZA, it is a way of life Born and raised in Harlem, NY, DZA (real name Sean Pompey) wasraised surrounded by music, though it wasn’t necessarily hip hop, “My first exposure to music was through my Dad.” He reflects, “He played hisoldies every weekend and still does up to this day.” DZA was introduced to and fell in love with hip hop at a young age and began a journey thatwould lead him from dropping out of high school to being one of the hottest, most sought after unsigned rappers in the game today. “I was waytoo popular in high school,” DZA states, “ I used to battle everyone whether it be in the lunchroom or in front of the school. I was way moreinterested in that, than attending classes.” His early creative processes started where many rappers do, with the lyrical genius of NotoriousB.I.G., “I remember learning all of Biggie’s verses, writing them down and making my own renditions of the songs. After I got out that phase Istarted crafting my own songs like “History” where I spoke about destroying any rapper lyrically and I wrote a song called “Music On My Side”which was an ode to any artist that influenced me to do music. Jay-Z, Biggie, Big L etc.” As DZA’s focus and talent grew, he began to releasemixtapes, like the early Respeconize and even formed a group with a childhood friend call “Smoke & Numbers” before striking out for solosuccess and Cinematic Music Group in 2005. « hide |
