Smoke DZA and Benny The Butcher recently brought Memphis Bleek out of the woodwork for the new single "3 Kings." That should show the kind of pull the former has in the rap game. As if that needed further proof, his new album On My Way To Berlin is a star-studded and immaculately vibey project.
Across 12 tracks and 34 minutes, the "Champagne Campaign" MC skates over breezy sample melodies and crisp drum breaks with the help of many similarly solid spitters. Wiz Khalifa, Killer Mike, Ab-Soul, Dave East, T.F., Kai Ca$h, Zombie Juice, and many more appear on the tracklist, each contributing slick and charismatic performances.
As for Smoke DZA himself, the New York City native has a lot of standout bars and verses on his way to Berlin, whether that's over classic boom-bap or via a speedier flow on a more trap-influenced beat. For example, "Check" with the aforementioned Dave East speeds up the mostly hazy and smoky full-length with rapid-fire verses and more menacing vocal performances.
It wasn't that long ago that DZA dropped the You're All Welcome EP with DJ RELLYRELL, and we can probably expect his near-future career to be just as prolific as it's always been. Smoke never hangs up the mic, and the consistency of his subject matter still hasn't limited the surprises and skills within his lyricism. There's a little something for every rap fan within On My Way To Berlin. We can only hope we can depend on this fire for the foreseeable future.
Smoke DZA – On My Way To Berlin
Tracklist
1. 4FiF & BRoadway
2. Spaceships (with T.F. and Mike & Keys)
3. Champagne Campaign (with Pria and Wiz Khalifa)
4. Check (with Dave East and Mike & Keys)
5. Sam Jay Wellness Check
6. Crimson LV Constructs x 4th Rope Heels (with Mike & Keys and Pria)
7. 89 Rolex (with Mike & Keys and Ab-Soul)
8. In That Order (with Marcelus Airlinez and Kai Ca$h)
9. 10/10
10. 11:11 (with Dom Kennedy)
11. Freebird Rules (with Mike & Keys, Zombie Juice, and Flash Garments)
12. Generational Love (with Killer Mike and Harry Fraud)
