Dopestylevsky

Dopestylevsky is the second studio album by Jewish rapper Eprhyme, released on April 26, 2011 by K Records. It is notable as the label's first hip-hop album in a decade, as K Records is typically known for punk and indie rock. A video for the album's lead single, "Life Sentence", was funded by Kickstarter and released on November 7, 2011.[1]

Dopestylevsky
Studio album by Eprhyme
Released	April 26, 2011 (2011-04-26)
Recorded	Brooklyn, New York Olympia, Washington Phoenix, Arizona
Genre	Alternative hip hop
Length	41:36
Label	K
Producer	Smoke M2D6
Eprhyme albums chronology
Waywordwonderwill (2009) Dopestylevsky (2011) Lost Tapes and Found Sounds: 2006-2012 (2013)
Singles from Dopestylevsky
"Life Sentence" Released: November 7, 2011

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
PopMatters	[2]
Tiny Mix Tapes	[3]
Skyscraper	positive[4]
The Forward	positive[5]

Dopestylevsky received largely positive reviews. Jessica Monk of Tiny Mix Tapes called it "a solid album of consciousness-raising Jewish hip-hop, [although] not an exercise in genre-bending...we can believe the hype, and take it that this well-heeled genre has finally arrived chez K."[3] John Book of Skyscraper magazine said, "Eprhyme is a nice breath of clarity that isn’t the exception to any specific rule, just hip-hop music at its best."[4] Jay Michaelson of The Forward described it as "a more polished and more professional record" than his debut album, containing "less novelty, less preaching, but perhaps more potential to reach a wider audience with a Jewish flavor of hip-hop and rap."[5]

In a negative review, Mike Schiller of PopMatters wrote, "Eprhyme demonstrates an impressive grasp of rhythm and rhyme, but his words are mere sounds that give us something to hold onto; they’re not meaningful, they’re not really about anything, they’re just there...Dopestylevsky is a perfectly pleasant hip-hop album that won’t get on anyone’s nerves [but not] the transcendental experience its author promises, nor does it even begin to live up to the literary figure referenced by its title."[2]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Grind Thoroughly"	3:25
2.	"Life Sentence"	4:03
3.	"Poppasong" (featuring Brad B and Foundation)	4:00
4.	"Blow Up the Block" (featuring DeScribe and Y-Love; prod. Electro Morocco)	4:04
5.	"Elements of Style" (featuring Labtekwon)	2:56
6.	"Smoke Break"	2:31
7.	"Let's Build" (featuring Compost)	3:32
8.	"Notes from the Underground"	4:22
9.	"Lose Your Cool" (featuring AKA)	4:21
10.	"Divine by Design" (featuring Saints of Everyday Failures)	3:33
11.	"Better in the Dark" (featuring Darshan)	4:24
Total length:		41:36

• "Blow Up the Block" was previously released in single form by Shemspeed as "Boom Selecta", with an extra verse by Kosha Dillz.

Personnel

Smoke M2D6 – producer Foundation – producer ("Poppasong") AKA – featured artist Brad B – featured artist Skylar Blake – musician Drew Cohen – vocals Compost – featured artist Darshan (Eprhyme and Shir Yaakov) – featured artist DeScribe – featured artist Glimpse – featured artist Yosef Goldman – vocals El Goonie – cut

Rolondo Guajardo – musician Ardas Hassler – musician Labtekwon – featured artist Daniel Landin – musician Tim Pollock – musician Poweena – vocals Tom Russell – musician Jeff Rygwelski – musician Saints of Everyday Failures (Eprhyme and D-Scribe) – featured artist Xperience – featured artist Y-Love – featured artist

References

1. Chernikoff, Helen (August 23, 2011). "Kickstarting Jewish Culture?". The Jewish Week. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
2. Schiller, Mike (August 10, 2011). "Eprhyme: Dopestylevsky". PopMatters. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
3. Monk, Jessica. "Eprhyme - Dopestylevsky". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
4. Book, John (June 27, 2011). "Eprhyme - Dopestylevsky". Skyscraper. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
5. Michaelson, Jay (May 2, 2011). "Monday Music: Prime Time for Eprhyme". The Forward. Retrieved 1 September 2015.

External links

• Dopestylevsky - Eprhyme at AllMusic. Retrieved 1 September 2015.