To say that 2011 has been quite a remarkable year for Dope D.O.D. would be an understatement. The career of the Dutch hip hop crew has skyrocketed since the start of the year after releasing their first video ´What Happened´ on January 30. Not only has it gained over 4.5 million views it has paved the way for the boys to get international acknowledgement.

Right after the release of ‘What Happened’ the crew got a request from Vidzone (the largest online music video streaming service in the world, part of Sony Computer Entertainment) to show the video as ‘One To Watch’ via its network. This power rotation got the crew even more international attention resulting in the first performances abroad. At this stage the band got invited for the renowned Iceland Airwaves Festival. Not a bad start at all.

In the meantime Dope D.O.D. continued working on their album ‘Branded’. Via MySpace they got in contact with legendary hip hop artist Sean Price (Heltah Skeltah, Boot Camp Clik, Random Axe) who proposed to work together on a track. ‘Psychosis’ was the outcome. And obviously the co-operation
between one of America’s most respected members of hip hop and an unknown act from a small country somewhere in Europe raised heads all over the globe. The song got picked up from the U.S.A. (on www.nahright.com the largest hip hop blog of the U.S.A.) to Russia (on www.rap.ru the largest hip hop site of Russia). The new style Dope D.O.D. brought to the table got more and more awareness.

By the time ‘Psychosis’ dropped (early in April) the whole album was finished. They even did a second collaboration with underground star Simon Roofless (U.S.A.). He provided vocals for ‘Real Gods’. The plan was to release the album at the beginning of their European Tour late September. However the group didn’t want the fans to wait that long and they decided to make an E.P. and a series of short movies to introduce the characters of the group. This resulted in the Evil E.P. and the Fatality shorts. Showing the world once more of what Dope D.O.D. is capable of. The release date was set on June 24th

Early June the band was asked to feature as the opening act for Limp Bizkit’s show in Amsterdam. The band accepted and the only thing that still had to happen was the approval of Fred Durst (lead singer of Limp Bizkit). The video for ‘What Happened’ was sent to him and he was so enthusiastic that he invited the band to act as Limp Bizkit´s main support on their continental European tour. Starting on the 25th of June. And so it was that Dope D.O.D. was playing a sold out release show for 500 people on the 24th of June in Groningen (Holland) and the next day the performed in Germany for almost 10,000 people.

From the tour with Limp Bizkit the group learned a lot. It has crafted their performance skills and Dope D.O.D. was ready to take the next step in establishing their name and fame. Starting with the release of ‘Branded’ and their European tour in September and October. Taking them to Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, France and Bulgary. During this tour the famous band KorN asked Dope D.O.D. to accompany them during their tour through the U.S. in November. After 13 successful shows in the USA the group is finally back in their hometown. But they cannot sit back and relax. As 2012 brings even more gigs allover the world. Starting with the infamous Eurosonic/Noorderslag festival in January. SXSW has already been confirmed, as well as Canadian Music Fest. The crew will get even busier in 2012.