Smoke DZA

Sean Pompey (born February 8, 1984), better known by his stage name Smoke DZA, is an American hip hop recording artist from Harlem, New York City. Smoke DZA decided on his moniker after being influenced by Chris Tucker's character Smokey from the movie Friday and the acronym DZA stands for "Dream Zone Achieve".

Biography

1984–2007: Early life and career beginnings

Smoke DZA was born February 8, 1984 at Harlem Hospital in New York City and has lived in New York all his life. The son of two Guyanese immigrants, Smoke was exposed to music at home by his father and fell in love with hip hop at a young age. He grew up listening to and emulating fellow New Yorkers Jay-Z and Notorious BIG. After dropping out of high school to pursue his music career, DZA began battle rapping and has battled fellow Harlem MC J.R.Writer. He was discovered by Jonny Shipes of Cinematic Music Group in 2002 and went on to ghostwrite for numerous rappers, including Hi-Tek. In 2002 he partnered to become one half of the group Smoke & Numbers until going solo in 2008.

Smoke

Smoke is a collection of airborne solid and liquid particulates and gases emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with the quantity of air that is entrained or otherwise mixed into the mass. It is commonly an unwanted by-product of fires (including stoves, candles, oil lamps, and fireplaces), but may also be used for pest control (fumigation), communication (smoke signals), defensive and offensive capabilities in the military (smoke-screen), cooking, or smoking (tobacco, cannabis, etc.). Smoke is used in rituals where incense, sage, or resin is burned to produce a smell for spiritual purposes. Smoke is sometimes used as a flavoring agent, and preservative for various foodstuffs. Smoke is also a component of internal combustion engine exhaust gas, particularly diesel exhaust.

Smoke inhalation is the primary cause of death in victims of indoor fires. The smoke kills by a combination of thermal damage, poisoning and pulmonary irritation caused by carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide and other combustion products.

DZA

DZA may refer to:

Pete Rock

Peter Phillips (born June 21, 1970), better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapper. He rose to prominence in the early 1990s as one half of the critically acclaimed group Pete Rock & CL Smooth. After the duo went their separate ways, Rock continued with a solo career that has garnered him worldwide respect, though little in the way of mainstream success. Along with groups such as Stetsasonic, Gang Starr, A Tribe Called Quest and The Roots, Rock played a major role in the merging of elements from jazz into hip hop music (also known as jazz rap). He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongside DJ Premier, RZA and J Dilla as one of the mainstays of 1990s East Coast hip hop production. Pete Rock is also the older brother and younger cousin, respectively, of rappers Grap Luva and the late Heavy D.

Biography

Early life

Pete Rock was born in The Bronx, New York, the sixth of seven children born to Jamaican immigrant parents. His family moved to Mount Vernon, New York when he was seven years old. During high school, he met his future recording partner CL Smooth. According to Rock, his father was also a part-time DJ who had an impressive record collection. Rock would often accompany his father to a cricket club called Wembley in The Bronx and watch as he spun records for the guests. His first job was as a paperboy, in his neighborhood.

Babygrande Records

Babygrande Records is an independent record label based in New York City founded by Chuck Wilson. Sean Roberts is the current President of the label. Babygrande is distributed by the The Orchard, and represented by the Creative Artists Agency in Hollywood.

History

Babygrande Records was founded in 2001, and has since amassed a catalog of over 3000 albums, music videos, and online content. The label's catalog includes genres such as hip hop, indie rock, and EDM.

Current Artists

Discography

The following is a discography for Babygrande Records, an independent record label based in New York City that specializes in Hip hop, Electronic, and Indie Rock. Artists such as GZA, U-God, Freeway, Kasim Keto, Journalist 103, Brand Nubian, and Jedi Mind Tricks have released records on Babygrande Records.

Studio albums